Photographs, route description and map of a circular walk at Drymen through the grounds of Buchanan Castle estate starting and finishing at the village of Buchanan Smithy

Buchanan Castle

Buchanan Castle is a ruined country house
originally the home of the Buchanan family
but passing to the Grahams in the 17th century.

The old house burned down in 1850
and the present house built in 1854.

1930s plans for it to serve as a hotel
were dashed by World War II
when its function became altogether more practical.

It was firstly a hospital
( Nazi Rudolph Hess taken there for treatment
after his crash landing near Glasgow )
and then a post-war school.

It remains the seat of the Clan Graham
and is a category "B" listed building.

Wikipedia - Buchanan Castle

Historic Scotland - Buchanan Castle

Clan Buchanan - Buchanan Castle Photos

Wikipedia - Clan Graham

Buchanan Castle

This walk is a circular route of about six miles which should take no longer than three hours to complete from Drymen.
It passes through the attractive Buchanan Castle Estate and then into part of Garadhhan Forest. If required the walk can be shortened to about three to four miles by omitting the forest section.
The walk starts from the Stirling Road car park in Drymen, turns left onto Stirling Road to pass The Drymen Inn and enter The Square.
It turns right onto Gartmore Road ( take care crossing roads ) to pass The Clachan Inn, takes the ﬁrst road on the left, Balmaha Road, and then swings right onto the main road for Balmaha.
There are still a nnmber of houses to pass before leaving the village and after the last house, Bramblewood B&B, look out for a car track on the leﬁ which enters a small wood at the side of the road.
The walk continues along the car track and on exiting the wood it passes Forest Lodge cottage on the left. It then passes through a metal gate onto a rougher car track with open ﬁelds and horses on either side.
At the end of the track the walk enters the Lomondside Stud Equestrian Centre with its sheds of farmyard machinery and horse stables.
It turns right opposite the farmhouse to leave the centre and continues down the car track to the driveway for Buchanan Castle Estate.
On turning right, it passes the all weather tennis court on the left and Castle Gardens road on the right.
Ahead, at the fork junction it ignores the signed road on the left to Buchanan Castle Golf Club and halfway up the road on the right is spotted the front facade of the dilapidated Buchanan Castle.
The castle was the home of the Dukes of Montrose before it was used as a military hospital and one of its most notable patients during the Second World War was the German, Rudolf Hess.
The walk then takes the narrow path round the right side of the Castle to pass the cottages, Berryknowe and Lochview and at the the junction turns left onto a secondary road through the estate.
It continues ahead passing a variety of interesting former hospital unit cottages and rebuilt houses.
At the junction it turns right onto the main driveway, passes the golf club, and at the next cross roads turns right again to leave the estate on a car track which goes through a wood onto Balmaha Road and the facing Buchanan Smithy Cottages.
If required the walk can be shortened here on turning right and taking the Balmaha Road back to Drymen.
Continuing on, the walk turns left at the end of the Cottages and passes Buchanan Smithy Terrace onto a rough car track with ﬁeld on either side.
At the end of the track, it takes a narrow path on the left, before the sign "Private Road, Ardyle", into Garadbhan Forest.
You might like to pause hear and reﬂect as the walk emerges onto a forest track with some great views of the Loch to feast your eyes on.
ln the distance are the Lomond and the Luss Hills which gives the walker a taste of the Highland wilderness beyond.
It then tums right here and continues ahead till it reaches a narrow track on the right with a blue band post.
Follow this track as it goes through a short wood to a gate and tums right onto Gartmore Road.
From here it is an easy downhill stretch of the walk with open farmland on either side and after passing the primary school it enters the village and the square to complete the walk at the car park.