Off-season fares might prompt Scotland trip

With off-season rates to Europe in effect, it seemed a good time to share my trip to Scotland.

We stayed at Buchanan Arms, a former coaching inn in the village of Drymen, 17 miles north of Glasgow. It is a village that has a main road with a town square, complete with a butcher shop, library, post office and The Clachan Inn.

The Clachan Inn is the oldest licensed pub in Scotland, and Rob Roy's wife used to collect blackmail for him there. (Blackmail at that time was payment for guarding and protecting cattle at night.)

Lomond Activities, across the street from the Buchanan Arms, is a business that rents bicycles and arranges longer bike trips complete with meals.

Drymen is just three miles from Loch Lomond, and a short distance from miles of bicycle paths through Queen Elizabeth Forest Park. We rented bicycles one afternoon for the trip to Loch Lomond and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves as novices.

The roads in this area are narrow, two-lane thoroughfares, built for horses rather than cars. Bicycling can be treacherous if the traffic is heavy, but wonderful if it's not. Many of the stone fences that separate the rolling fields are older than our country.

One of the highlights of the trip was a dinner in Stirling Castle. The Scottish tourist board is doing an excellent job of maintaining and renovating the castle. As you cross the moat and enter the castle grounds, you can easily imagine the sounds of the horses' hooves on the cobblestones.

The castle is at the high point of the town. Looking from the outer courtyard you can see Stirling Bridge and the William Wallace monument. History truly comes alive while standing on the spot where the Battle of Stirling was fought.

One of the most beautiful areas we visited was in the Highlands, known as the Trossoachs Callender, where the Rob Roy Museum was housed. We had lunch at the Roman Camp Country House Hotel. It is a converted 17th-century hunting lodge on the banks of the River Teith.

Luss, former home of race-car driver Jackie Stewart, is another village that should be included in a trip to Scotland. It is on the banks of Loch Lomond and is truly charming. The houses are small and surrounded by gardens; the setting is serene and calm.

We saw a demonstration of sheep dogs working their herds at a woolen mill, bagpipe serenades, and ate haggis, a celebrated Scottish dish, at several "Burns Suppers," honoring Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet.

The Scots were friendly, welcoming people. We were told last year that they had 2 million visitors to their country, and they were hoping for increased tourism. Scotland has much to offer the culture of Edinburgh and Glasgow, the rugged beauty and outdoor activities of the Highlands, golf throughout the country and Inverness area in particular, and much more.

(Linda Strait is president of House of Travel Inc., a full-service travel agency in Springfield.)