Glen Lyon has been described as ‘the longest and loneliest and loveliest glen in Scotland’. Many of the ley-lines in Scotland are reputed to meet in the glen giving it a magical spiritual atmosphere.

The glen stretches east to west for 51 km (34 miles), much of which is traversed by a twisting single track road. Several thousand people once lived in Glen Lyon. The population is now down to around 80.

As you travel west along the glen the heavy forests around the River Lyon give way to wilder more open mountain scenery. At Bridge of Balgie, the local tearoom is legendary among walkers and climbers and Glen Lyon Gallery, perhaps the most remote art gallery in Perthshire, specialises in wildlife and sporting originals by renowned artist Alan B. Hayman.

Form here, a road heads past Ben Lwers back to Loch Tay or you can continue to Loch Lyon, one of the wildest places in Scotland, closed in by brooding mountains and the sheer walls of its hydro electric dam. The public road here is a cul-de-sac, although the more adventurous can followed an unsigned tarmac forest road down to Killin. You won’t find this road on most maps and you will need a good sense of direction (and good brakes), but you can follow it for a round trip to Loch Tay.