With the promise of great food and spectacular views, David Dalziel took his family to Lochearnhead
I’ve always really liked Perthshire, and it’s not too long a drive from Aberdeen to nip somewhere there for a weekend. So I was more than happy to take a trip to Lochearnhead to visit the quaintly named Clachan Cottage Hotel.
The hotel sits on the banks of the spectacular Loch Earn and is overlooked by Ben Vorlich, one of the many Munros in the area.
The views over the loch from our bedroom window were wonderful, and changed on an almost hourly basis.
The weather was rather dreich when we arrived, so visibility wasn’t great. But with the sun high in the sky the next morning, I could have drunk in the scenery all day long.
The Clachan Cottage Hotel was built originally as a row of cottages, which has now been extended to provide 21 bedrooms, a function suite, restaurant and bar. The brilliant-white building sits in an enviable location, a stone’s throw from the (sometimes) still waters of Loch Earn, where watersports and fishing can be enjoyed.
Our weekend was to be a more sedate affair – if such a thing is possible with a very active four-year-old and a nocturnal 15-month-old – and was based around the delicious food at the hotel and the picture-postcard scenery.
We had been promised great things from the restaurant, and I was taken aback by the ambitious specials menu. I was able to choose from west-coast scallops and Perthshire wood pigeon from the starters, and my head was certainly turned by the whole west-coast lobster on the mains.
It was tough choice between the scallops and the pigeon, but I plumped for the latter as I am a big fan. The tender meat was accompanied by salad leaves, crispy parsnips and lentils. I mopped up every morsel.
The lobster was a thing of beauty. What a dish this was, served with hand-cut chips and lobster mayonnaise. It was the first time I had ordered lobster, so this was an exciting experiment for me, and also my son, who was intrigued by what he thought was some kind of alien life-form from the depths.
The claw meat, in particular, was delicious, and I was glad I had chosen the dish.
The next morning, after a lovely cooked breakfast, we made the short trip to the Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre. We have visited the centre before, but it offers such a fun-packed day for the kids that it was an easy decision to go again.
You really could spend the entire day there, should you wish, as there is so much to do. We all enjoyed looking at the various animals, and Charlie was thrilled to hold one of the very young chicks and learn all about them. He even tried his hand at milking a cow, albeit a plastic one.
Away from the chicks, cows, monkeys, meerkats, alpacas and countless other species, there is plenty of indoor fun if the weather isn’t favourable. We had a round of crazy golf, tired ourselves out on the soft play, scored a few goals on the mini football pitch and made some new friends at the shooting cannons.
All that built up an appetite which we quelled in the lovely cafe, and even indulged in some delicious Stewart Tower ice cream.
After more fun on the go-karts and in the playpark, it was time to make the scenic journey back to the Clachan Cottage Hotel for round two of our culinary treat.
I was tempted to return to the specials board, as it was offering me Aberdeen-Angus sirloin steak with hand-cut chips, sauteed mushrooms, fried free-range egg and a whisky sauce, but I had been so impressed by my wife’s macaroni cheese the previous night that I had to sample it for myself.
As she is a vegetarian, my wife asked the kitchen to rustle up something tasty for her to eat, and she was delighted with their salad of puy lentils and grilled broccoli with a blue-cheese dressing.
With Charlie devouring his fish and chips as per usual, it was a happy family who retired for the evening.
The next morning brought more glorious weather, so the loch was looking particularly beautiful. It was only right, then, that we should spend some time by the water’s edge before returning home. Charlie and I had a go at skimming some stones on the peaceful water and threw sticks and stones and listened to them plopping in. We watched someone water ski-ing on the other side of the loch, and chuckled as a speedboat sailed past us with Bon Jovi playing at an ear-splitting level.
All in all, it had been a wonderful Perthshire weekend; the area never lets us down. And the Clachan Cottage Hotel provided us with full bellies and lots of happy memories.
Travel facts
Clachan Cottage Hotel, Lochside, Lochearnhead, Perthshire FK19 8PU. Telephone: 01567 830247. E-mail: info@clachancottagehotel.co.uk. Visit: www.clachancottagehotel.co.uk
Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, Comrie PH6 2JE. Visit: www.auchingarrich.co.uk