Scotland’s national parks offer a variety of activities and attractions that could make them appealing for vacations. Pack your bags and get ready for adventurous tours across these beautiful parks, which have been carefully protected in their natural form.
These national parks give visitors a superb taste of the jungle that is different from what life tastes like in bustling cities. What can be better than a vacation that gives a chance to explore nature with its spectacular flora and fauna? Read on to discover the parks in Scotland.
Here’s an introduction to each of the parks in Scotland.
1. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
1.1. Benmore Gardens
Benmore’s thriving botanic garden comprises many species of plants, trees, and flowers from around the globe, set amongst the gorgeous scenery at the foot of Beinn Mhor and Lock Eck. Giant redwoods stretch up to the sky, and there are over 300 species of rhododendrons. There is a remarkable viewpoint from which to view the nearby area.
1.2. Loch Goil
On Loch Goil is the attractive Cormonachan Community Woodland, home to ancient Atlantic oaks, some of which are over 300 years old, and hazel trees from around 100 years ago. A number of trails allow visitors to explore this beautiful corner of the National Park. It includes a viewpoint and contemplation shelter, waterfalls, and an old village waiting to be revealed.
Continuing south of the woodlands to the end of the road will take the visitors to the 14th century Carrick Castle sitting on the shoreline of Loch Goil. It showcases bizarre panoramic views of the surrounding hillsides, while for the more audacious, there are operators offering stunning outdoor and water-based activities in Lochgoilhead. Carrick Castle is located a further two miles beyond the woodland.
1.3. St Fillans
St. Fillans is in the northeastern corner of the National Park, with countless views and historic landmarks.
A waymarked trail will take the visitors up the hillsides behind the village for views westwards across Loch Earn. Visitors can also visit the site of an old pictish fort, located to the south of the village. One of the most famous areas of the National Park is the Trossachs, and the area around Loch Achray & Loch Katrine is a fine destination for many visitors.
It only takes around 20 minutes by car to travel from The Lodge Visitor Centre to Glen Finglas. Each of the places below has car parks, and a few have facilities like toilets and cafes.
The Lodge Visitor Centre near Aberfoyle is a spectacular base from which to explore the Queen Elizabeth Forest. The Craigmore View and Lime Craig trails offer extensive panoramas of the surrounding areas.
2. The Cairngorms National Park
The Cairngorms National Park is enormously diverse; it is a living, working landscape from the stunning wild high mountains to the heather moorlands and peatlands to the splendid forests, the farms and crofts, and the wetlands and rivers that wind through the flood plains. The villages and towns in the Park have superb networks of community paths and trails, giving visitors a taste of the exclusive landscapes, nature, and heritage of each community.
Munros are mountains in Scotland that are at least 3,000 feet high (about 914 metres) and are named after Sir Hugh Thomas Munro, (1856-1919) who was the first to publish a list of all the mountains of this type in the Journal of the Scottish Mountaineering Club in 1891.
The Cairngorms National Park has the most extensive range of mountains in the United Kingdom. Its arctic-like wilderness plateaus are encircled by attractive valleys and rivers. Climbing a Munro means the visitors will pass through ancient Caledonian pinewoods, take in historic sites, and reach summits higher than anywhere else in the British Isles. The National Park comprises the largest population of twinflowers in Scotland.
3. Glenn Affric National Nature Reserve
Glenn Affric National Nature Reserve is an enchanted mix of native woods, gleaming lochs, and haunting moorland. It features a long distance of ancient pinewoods and is one of the major ancient Caledonian pine woods in Scotland.
The visitors can wander amongst the pine trees accompanied by the chirpy calls of woodland birds. Visitors might encounter ospreys, secretive otters, or red- and black-throated divers elsewhere. In autumn, the visitors will be inspired by the mosaic of color and the echoing roar of red deer stags.
4. St Kilda National Nature Reserve
St Kilda is the United Kingdom’s only dual UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of only 39 worldwide. It is home to nearly 1 million seabirds, including the UK’s largest colony of Atlantic puffins.
It was evacuated on 29 August 1930 after the remaining 36 islanders voted to leave as their way of life was no longer maintainable. St Kilda has its exclusive wren, as well as a sub-species of the mouse, which is twice the size of a British field.
There is no magical place like St Kilda, towering out of the storm-tossed waters of the Atlantic Ocean, with its cliffs and sea stacks clamouring accompanied by the cries of hundreds of thousands of seabirds.
5. Creag Meagaidh National Nature Reserve
Creag Meagaidh National Nature Reserve (NNR) gives visitors a comprehensive mountain experience. Starting from stunning wild mountain plateau to woodland that’s gradually returning to life, Creag Meagaidh feels like the Highlands beautifully compressed into one reserve.
The melodramatic scenery here comprises Munro summits, an exposed whaleback ridge and ice-carved gullies. Whether the visitors want serious hillwalking, low-level walks, ice-climbing, birdwatching or botany, there’s something here for everyone. The top attractions are the mountain hare, red deer and ptarmigan on the high slopes.
In The End
The National Parks in Scotland offer much more magic than described in this article. In addition to scenic beauty, these places showcase enchanting flora and fauna straight out of a fairytale.
Last Updated on July 8, 2024 by Sathi Chakraborty
