Balloch Country Park is a

country park A country park is a natural area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment. United Kingdom History In the United Kingdom, the term ''country park'' has a special meaning. There are around 250 recognised coun ...

on the southern tip of Loch Lomond in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It was recognised as a country park in 1980, and it is the only country park in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, Scotland's first

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

. Balloch Country Park features nature trails, guided walks, a walled garden, and picnic lawns with views of the Loch. It was originally developed in the early 19th century by John Buchanan, a partner in the Glasgow and Ship Bank, and the gardens were significantly improved by the Dennistoun-Browns, who bought the estate in 1851. Buchanan also built Balloch Castle, which now serves as the park's visitors' center.

Balloch Castle

Balloch Castle was built in the

Scottish baronial style Scottish baronial or Scots baronial is an architectural style of 19th century Gothic Revival which revived the forms and ornaments of historical architecture of Scotland in the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period. Reminiscent of Scot ...

as a residence in 1808 by the architect Robert Lugar at the order of John Buchanan of Ardoch. The new castle used stone from an earlier castle built near the current site by the Earl of Lennox in 1238 and occupied by the Lennox family until approximately 1390. Situated nearer the water than the present day castle, the only remnant of the original structure is a mound that once formed the moat. This site is given statutory protection under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The current castle used to serve visitors centre and the headquarters of the Countryside Ranger Service in the park, but now lies derelict. The castle grounds offers a car park and walled garden with trees and shrubs, including the rhododendrons and azaleas that reach full bloom in late May and early June.

Events

Balloch Park is host to the annual Loch Lomond Highland games each summer. Events such as caber tossing and typical Scottish cuisine attract many visitors. In June 1991 Scottish folk-rock band Runrig played to an audience of 50,000.

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

played a gig to 80,000 people over two nights in the summer of 1996, as did R.E.M. in 2005. BBC Radio 1 roadshow used the park as a location for annual live shows in the 90's with Travis, Skunk Anansie, Billie Piper and

Jason Donovan Jason Sean Donovan (born 1 June 1968) is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap ''Neighbours'', playing Scott Robinson, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 mi ...

playing. In August 2007 the first Live at Loch Lomond music festival took place in the grounds of the park. The second Live At Loch Lomond was also a success generating respect from the crowd.

References

{{Coord, 56, 0, 45, N, 4, 35, 7, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Country parks in Scotland Parks in West Dunbartonshire Vale of Leven