A wonderful "fairytale" forest in the heart of Scotland has been named the best to visit in Britain by Time Out.
Introducing the list, which includes popular spots like Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, the travel publication said the UK does it better than most when it comes to "fantastical, lore-inspiring" woodlands.
It added that there are "storybook-worthy" forests up and down the country with each being home to "little oddities" and "natural wonders".
See the 'fairytale' forest in Scotland named the best to visit in the UK
Stretching from the pretty village of Aberfoyle to the rugged hills beside Loch Lomond, Loch Ard Forest was described as a "sublime body of trees" hiding both "natural and manmade wonders".
The magazine went on to praise its "enveloping conifers and ancient oaks" as well as the "rare animal species" that inhabit these woods, including roe deer, otters, red squirrels, reintroduced water voles and osprey.
Recommended Reading:
'Off the grid' getaway in Scotland dubbed one of Britain's best treetop hotels
BBC Saturday Kitchen star shares his favourite Scottish restaurant to eat at
See why this 'vibrant' Scottish city is the best place to live in the UK
Scottish city 'brimming with culture' named one of the best UK places to live
Offering some advice, the publication tells potential visitors to follow the "myriad forest trails" to see if they can find the "gleaming pool of fresh water" that is known as Loch Ard.
Thanks to how sheltered it is, the area is the "perfect spot" for water sports like kayaking and wild swimming. The various sculptures placed all over by local artist and environmentalist Rob Mulholland also make this place ideal for art lovers.
Time Out adds: "If you fancy prolonging your stay, Loch Ard’s sheltered woodland is also a good spot for wild camping, which is legal throughout Scotland."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel