Saturday, April 26, 2014

Inchgalbraith - Loch Lomond

Little Inchgalbreith island in Loch Lomond is very interesting. The island is only about 100 feet in diameter, and the ruin of a 16th century castle occupies most of the available space. A tangle of trees have grown throughout the tower, and a thick cloak of ivy covers many of the walls.

The castle was one of the power bases of the Galbraiths (Clann a' Bhreatannich - the Clan Briton). One might wonder why they'd build such a large castle on so tiny an island, but the castle was built when the level of the loch was lower. There is some thought that several of the islands in the loch were once linked together, and from a boat afloat on the loch (say that ten times in a row) you can see the traces of what may have been a causeway that linked Inchgalbraith to Inchconnachan.

Ospreys have nested on Inchgalbraith over the years, and Boswell and Johnson were taken to look at them when they visited Loch Lomond during their Scottish tour. In the 1800s the ospreys were deemed to be a danger to the game fishing, and were shot during a so-called 'vermin crusade'. But the ospreys have returned to Loch Lomond, and I was fortunate to have seen one last year. Below are a few photos of Inchgalbraith from a visit in 2004.




8 comments:

  1. Fascinated with photos of inch galbraith, as my maiden name is Galbraith, and my family came from the area.

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    1. I also am very interested due to my name being Galbraith. We saw it last week from the mainland (near Luss). Would have loved to arranged a boat to travel to the islet.

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    2. I go over on my kayak in the summer from Luss it's beautiful exploring that way. I'm a galbraith too so it's a must.

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  2. Would love to message the owner of these photos if possible.

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    1. I am the owner of the photos. I can be reached via the email address on the 'About' page of the blog.

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  3. Thanks very much for postng pics, didnt realise exactly where my clan base was till I expored loch Lomond by boat today....fascinating stuff history...

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  4. Is the island accessible via boat tours?

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    1. None that I know of, so you'll need a friend with a boat. You used to be able to rent small motor boats from Macfarlane's Boatyard in Balmaha, but I don't know if they still do that.

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