Experience Inchcailloch, a very special island in Loch Lomond, on Saturday 4 or Sunday 5 September in the company of some of the characters who used to live and work there: the boatman, the minister who brought his flock across from the mainland each Sunday, the farmer who worked the land and mourners at a funeral. Join National Park Rangers and Drymen Community Theatre in an exciting recreation of life on this secluded island.
Performances start at 11am, 12.30pm and 2pm on Saturday and 12.30pm and 2pm on Sunday. The event is free but there is a charge of £5 for the ferry. Booking is essential, for details see the National Park website.
Inchcailloch, just off Balmaha, is part of the Loch Lomond National Nature Reserve. Now a haven for wildlife and a place to enjoy a tranquil visit, tradition has it that 1,300 years ago Saint Kentigerna, mother of Saint Fillan, settled there and set up a nunnery where she led a life of devotion. The name Inchcailloch means island of the cowled women and a church was built 500 years after her death. It was used by the surrounding mainland parish until 1770, but the graveyard continued to be used until 1947. The island was once farmed, then oak trees were planted at the end of the 18th century to supply tannin to cure the leather straps that drove the industrial revolution in central Scotland. The oak trees remain and are now valued for their contribution to biodiversity as a unique wildlife habitat.