Day 12 Crannog Centre/Pitlochry/Glen Lyon

Yesterday Wednesday May 27, driver Iain drove me to the Crannog Centre near Kenmore, about 16 miles from Killin, and I appreciated again that I didn't rent a car and try to drive myself around out here. The roads are narrow and windy, often one lane. If you meet someone coming the other way you have to skooch over onto the verge or back up to a passing place. Killin is at the west end of Loch Tay, Kenmore is at the east end. The Crannog Centre is a fascinating re-creation of an Iron Age settlement on the shore of Loch Tay from 2,500 years ago. Crannogs were built on artificial islands with causeways back to shore. There were food preparation demos, fiber preparation and weaving, woodworking and a blacksmith, a small museum and a cafe.
Then we ventured to the town of Pitlochry-

"Pitlochry is a bustling Victorian resort town in Perth and Kinross, nestled in the heart of Highland Perthshire on the River Tummel. Famous for its dramatic scenery, whisky distilleries, and outdoor adventures, it is a year-round destination easily accessible by car or train from Edinburgh and Glasgow."

for lunch and a wander, then on tiny roads along Loch Tummel, past Fortingall with a 5,000 year old yew tree in the churchyard, and through Glen Lyon over the Bridge of Balgie. Then on the tiniest road I've ever been on (maybe other than the goat track on the side of a mountain on a Greek island), basically an asphalted path along the shoulder of Ben Lawers mountain (Munros are mountains over 3,000 ft)

"Ben Lawers (Scottish Gaelic: Beinn Labhair)[2] is the highest mountain in the Breadalbane region of the Scottish Highlands. It lies north of Loch Tay and is the highest peak of the 'Ben Lawers group', a ridge that includes six other Munros: Beinn Ghlas, Meall Garbh, Meall Corranaich, An Stùc, Meall Greigh and Meall a' Choire Leith.[3] It is also the highest peak in Perthshire,[4] and the tenth highest Munro in Scotland. Ben Lawers was long thought to be over 4,000 feet (1,219 metres) in height, but accurate measurement in the 1870s showed it to be only 3,983 feet (1,214 m). (the figure of 3,983 ft is a conversion from metric - the surveyed height from the main triangulation has always been 3,984 ft on imperial maps published since the 1870s."

I had thought about trying to hike this, or at least part of it, but after getting lost coming down the big hill above Killin, decided to admire it from afar. I found out the official name of that big hill is Sron a Chlachain-

Route description
Sron a’ Chlachain, “the peak that resembles a nose above the village”, is situated on the west side of Killin. This route is a hill path with an ascent of 400 metres (1300ft). Most of it is typical of an upland path as the surrounding habitat is a mixture of rough grazing, giving way to heath and moor at a higher altitude. Walkers are rewarded for their hard work with extensive panoramic views over Killin, Loch Tay, Glen Dochart and Glen Lochay.

When we finally dropped back down onto the 2 lane/sometimes 1 road along the north shore of Loch Tay toward Killin it seemed like a super highway.Read more