Scotland's West Coast, with its majestic mountains and rugged shores, is unrivaled in its rich heritage of historic houses, castles and gardens. There are more than 20 public and private gardens in Argyll alone, including several located on small islands lying a few miles off shore. Contributing Editor Olwen Woodier, a garden aficionado whose family lives in Argyll, makes frequent pilgrimages to many of them. She says their relative proximity makes it easy to visit at least six of these horticultural treasures within one week.

[Note: As of press time, the hoof and mouth disease had not reached Argyll. And in the stricken areas, most places are open except farmlands. Regardless, hoof and mouth can not be passed to people, and all contaminated livestock are being destroyed.]

Begin your tour in Inveraray, about a 70-minute drive from Glasgow, at the head of Lock Fyne. Take A82 from Glasgow and continue on A83 to Arrocar then west around the head of Loch Long. With its wide Main Street dominated by an ancient bell tower and low-slung, white-washed storefronts, Inveraray is one of the most picturesque towns in the Highlands. Because it's close to several gardens, Olwen says Inveraray is an ideal spot to spend a night. If you want Old World charm, a cozy place to enjoy a meal, and a pint of good ale, head for The George Hotel at the top of Main Street. Two- foot-thick walls, flagstone floors and hand-hewn beams date the hotel as one of the original 14th century buildings spared from demolition. While they may lack the antiquity, The Argyll Hotel and Hotel Loch Fyne also offer comfortable accommodations and good, if unremarkable food--dinners are superior to lunches. Located loch-side, these two hotels afford views across the water to Loch Fyne's eastern shores and the tiny village of Strachur. To get to Strachur, and ultimately The Younger Botanic Garden at Benmore, turn off route A83 onto the A815 road about 10 miles north of Inveraray and take the A815 down the Cowal Peninsula.

At Strachur, you'll find delicious cuisine and first-class comfort at The Creggans Inn. This country charmer sits on the edge of a quiet lane near where Mary Queen of Scots moored her boat on her way to Dunoon Castle in 1563. The Creggans has recently been refurbished under the direction of Alex Robertson, a native of Argyll. The cuisine is creative "modern Scottish" prepared by a young chef who takes advantage of the wonderful array of fresh produce available at his doorstep. The oak-smoked salmon, as well as other smoked seafood, is produced nearby at the Cairndow Fisheries located just north of Inveraray, at the head of Loch Fyne on route A83. The Fisheries also has a restaurant, The Loch Fyne Oyster Bar, renowned for its variety of fresh and smoked seafood. If you visit in June, be sure to ask if they are hosting a seafood festival.

The Younger Botanic Garden at Benmore, near Dunoon, is only a 10-mile trip from Strachur. Located at the southern end of Loch Eck and set amidst the mountains of the Cowal Peninsula, the 140-acre garden was begun in 1820 with plant-ings of Scots pines, Norway spruce, European larch and mixed hardwoods. The owner also lined the main avenue to Benmore house with plantings of giant Wellingtonia redwoods. Today, they tower 150 feet above the other plantings. When the garden was taken over from the Younger family in the 1930s and annexed to the Royal Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh, it was planted with additional varieties of conifers and more than 250 species of rhododendrons. Most of the rhododendrons bloom during May and June. Some, however, bloom as early as February, others° as late as September.

If you find yourself at the Botanic Garden on a Wednesday, Olwen recommends dinner at the Esplanade Hotel in Dunoon. Every Wednesday from Easter to mid-October, you can experience a Highland Ceilidh Night of music and dance. At the Esplanade, this comes in the form of a bag piper from Strachur accompanying a group of Highland dancers. Dinner is a "Mini-Burns' Supper" where you get to taste haggis with bashed neeps and champit tatties (a smashed mixture of turnips and potatoes). This is followed by whatever you really want to eat, such as fresh salmon from Tarbert with hollandaise sauce, a roast of local Glen Shira venison, and Gammon (ham) from Ardrossan.

From Dunoon, backtrack to the main A83 road and drive 10 miles south of Inveraray along the Loch Fyne shoreline to Minard. Look out for the sign announcing Crarae Woodland Gardens. Developed in the 1900s, this enchanting, 35-acre woodland garden is planted with rare trees and flowering shrubs from all over the world. From spring through summer, the woodland is ablaze with the exotic colors of more than 400 rhododendrons and azaleas. The lower gardens are comprised of formal beds of roses and perennials.

"Keep your eyes open when you continue on A83 for Stonefield Castle on the descent into Tarbert," says Olwen, "or else you can easily miss the sign." Screened from the road by banks of evergreens, this small, handsome castle was built in 1837 on a prime location perched above the picturesque Tarbert harbour and fishing village. Sloping all the way down to the shores of Loch Fyne, the garden is filled with magnificent species of rhododendrons collected by Sir Joseph Hooker on his travels in the Himalaya more than 100 years ago. The rhododendrons and magnolias are at peak bloom times in late April through June. But Olwen recommends stopping at Stonefield Castle any time to enjoy lunch or dinner in the castle's spacious dining rooms and take in the superb views across Loch Fyne. The castle is open year round for overnight stays. For other options, continue a couple of miles into Tarbert fishing village where you'll find several harborside hotels that also serve delicious meals. Or drive five miles south of Tarbert to the charming West Loch Tarbert Hotel.

About two miles past West Loch Tarbert Hotel a sign announces you've reached Kennacraig; another sign points left to Skipness. This narrow (B842) road to Skipness travels over the moors to the east shore of the Kintyre peninsular. Wind your way down to Cloanaig and take a 30- minute ferry ride to the Isle of Arran. Called "Scotland in miniature," this beautiful island attracts outdoor enthusiasts with its endless possibilities for wildlife watching, hiking, mountain climbing, horseback riding, sailing and fishing. And, in 1999, Arran's first whisky distillery opened. The major attraction for Olwen, however, is Brodick Castle and Garden with its hundreds of acres of plantings. The landscaped gardens surrounding this imposing castle include a walled, two-acre kitchen garden, and another walled garden that is as vast as it is formally landscaped. Brodick also has woodland gardens, which, according to the dictates of 100 years ago, are filled with giant rhododendrons and other subtropical shrubs and trees. The Isle of Arran falls under the jurisdiction of Ayrshire and can be reached by ferry from that coast, at Ardrossan.

When you return to Cloanaig, resist the temptation to take the road along the east shore. Travelers with many gardens to visit will want to return to the A83 junction at Kennacraig and continue south along the West Coast. This is the quickest way to Tayinloan, a tiny hamlet where you can get a simple meal at The Tayinloan Inn while waiting for the ferry to take you to Achamore Garden on the Isle of Gigha. Only six miles long and one-and-a-half miles wide, Gigha is one of the smallest and most beautiful of the Inner Hebrides. On a nice day, yoõu might want to walk the half-mile from the ferry to Achamore Garden (you can also rent bicycles at the General Store). Or, if it's time for lunch or tea, head to the Gigha Hotel located about halfway between the ferry and gardens. Like the island, everything is on a smaller scale, and even the walled garden at Achamore holds a sense of intimacy. This walled garden is surrounded by 50 acres of woodlands and the plantings of rhododendrons (many produce blooms the size of dinner plates), azaleas and camellias. Rare, exotic plants, shrubs and trees are interlaced with delightful grottoes, pools and bog gardens.

The return trip to Inveraray takes you once more through Tarbert and Lochgilphead. A few miles outside of Lochgilphead, look for the sign to Oban on your left. This puts you on the A816 road in the direction of Kilmartin and Kilmelfort. When y˜ou reach the crest of the road where you're looking down on Loch Melfort, Arduaine (Ardoonie) Garden is not far away. At the crest of the next hill, pull off the road and enter through the parking lot of the Loch Melfort Hotel, an excellent place to dine and stay overnight. Arduaine Garden is considered the jewel in the crown by many. The landscaping is a blur of soft lines produced by the exuberantly lush growth of plants constantly bathed in moisture. In June, one area of woodland is transformed into a purple haze thanks to blooms of thousands of foxgloves. Not far away, interconnected water gardens, created by a series of spring-fed pools spilling into each other, are surrounded with exotic plantings.

Don't despair if you can't make it to all the gardens. Because no matter where you go in the West Highlands, you're already in one of the biggest and most beautiful gardens of all.

JUST THE FACTS: Argyll Gardens

Before You Go

Contact the British Tourist Authority, 551 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10176; 212-986-2266, 800-462-2748; and request brochures Glorious Gardens of Argyll and Bute, and Great Gardens of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. A map, "Argyll and the Isles," also is helpful.

Some of the gardens are closed from the end October to mid- late April. Those that do stay open have limited facilities for visitors--the tearooms are closed, and the ferries run infrequently. The Cloanaig ferry to Arran does not operate during the winter, but the ferry service from the Ayrshire coast runs throughout the year. Web sites to check: www.travelbritain.com, www.visitscotland.com, and www.nts.org.uk (National Trust for Scotland). The country code for Scotland is 44.

GARDENS

Achamore Garden, Isle of Gigha; 1583 505254 www.isle-of-gigha.co.uk/gardenmap.html.

Arduaine Garden, by Oban, Argyll; 1852 200366.

Brodick Castle and Garden, Brodick, Isle of Arran; 1770 302202; fax: 1770 302312; www.britain.com.uk/tourism/pages/B/BROY.

Crarae Garden, Minard, Argyll; 1546 886614; fax: 1546 886388; www.crarae-gardens.org.

Stonefield Castle Hotel and Garden, Tarbert, Argyll; 1880 820836; fax: 1880 820929; www.stonefieldcastle.co.uk.

Younger Botanic Garden at Benmore, Argyll; 1369 706261; www.scotsheritage.com.au/younger.htm.

HOTELS

The Argyll Hotel, Inveraray, Argyll 1369 702059; fax:1369 704483; www.argyll-hotel.co.uk.

The Creggans Inn, Strachur, Argyll 1369 860279; fax:1369 860637; www.creggans-inn.co.uk.

Esplanade Hotel, Dunoon, Argyll; 1369 704070; fax:1369 702129; www.ehd.co.uk.

George Hotel, Inverarary 1499 302111; fax:1499 302098.

Gigha Hotel, Isle of Gigha; 1583 505254.

Loch Fyne Hotel, Inveraray, Argyll 1499 302148; fax: 1499 302348.

Loch Melfort Hotel, Arduaine, by Oban 1852 200233; fax: 1852 200214 www.loch-melfort.co.uk; award-winning cuisine.

Stonefield Castle Hotel, Tarbert Loch Fyne 1880 82083; fax: 1880 820929; award-winning cuisine.

West Loch Hotel, Tarbert Loch Fyne, Argyll 1880 820283; fax: 1880 820930 www.westlochhotel.freeserve.co.uk.

Love gardens but can't make it to Scotland this year? Always wondered if the grass really is greener on the other side of that privacy fence? Then the Garden Conservancy's Open Days Directory is for you. The Open Days program is made possible through the labor of 400 gardeners in 24 states who are eager to share their horticultural creations and help support the Conservancy's work to preserve America's exceptional gardens. This directory is your guide to when each garden is open. A $5 admission goes to support the Garden Conservancy. Plus, buy the directory and you get a coupon for one free admission.

The Garden Conservancy
POB 219, Cold Spring, NY 10516
845-265-2029
e-mail: info@gardenconservancy.org
www.gardenconservancy.org

May 2001