Argyll and Bute is one of 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod. The administrative centre for the council area is in Lochgilphead at Kilmory Castle, a 19th-century Gothic Revival building and estate. The current council leader is Councillor Jim Lynch.
Loch Lomond is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands. Traditionally forming part of the boundary between the counties of Stirlingshire and Dunbartonshire, Loch Lomond is split between the council areas of Stirling, Argyll and Bute and West Dunbartonshire. Its southern shores are about 23 kilometres (14 mi) northwest of the centre of Glasgow, Scotland's largest city. The Loch forms part of the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park which was established in 2002.
Cowal is a rugged peninsula in Argyll and Bute, on the west coast of Scotland. It is connected to the mainland to the north, and is bounded by Loch Fyne to the west, by Loch Long and the Firth of Clyde to the east, and by the Kyles of Bute to the south.
Loch Fyne, is a sea loch off the Firth of Clyde and forms part of the coast of the Cowal peninsula. Located on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends 65 kilometres (40 mi) inland from the Sound of Bute, making it the longest of the sea lochs in Scotland. It is connected to the Sound of Jura by the Crinan Canal. Although there is no evidence that grapes have grown there, the title is probably honorific, indicating that the river, Abhainn Fìne, was a well-respected river.
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park is a national park in Scotland centred on Loch Lomond and the hills and glens of the Trossachs, along with several other ranges of hills. It was the first of the two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament in 2002, the second being the Cairngorms National Park. The park extends to cover much of the western part of the southern highlands, lying to the north of the Glasgow conurbation, and contains many mountains and lochs. It is the fourth-largest national park in the British Isles, with a total area of 1,865 km2 (720 sq mi) and a boundary of some 350 km (220 mi) in length. It features 21 Munros and 20 Corbetts.
The Arrochar Alps are a group of mountains located around the heads of Loch Long, Loch Fyne, and Loch Goil. They are part of the Grampian mountains range, which stretch across Scotland. The villages of Arrochar and Lochgoilhead are the nearest settlements. Many of the mountains are located on the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll and Bute, west of Scotland.
The Kyles of Bute form a narrow sea channel that separates the northern end of the Isle of Bute from the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll and Bute, on the Scottish mainland. The surrounding hillsides are roughly wooded, and overlooked by rocky tops and areas of moorland.
Tarbert is a village in the west of Scotland, in the Argyll and Bute council area. It is built around East Loch Tarbert, an inlet of Loch Fyne, and extends over the isthmus which links the peninsula of Kintyre to Knapdale and West Loch Tarbert. Tarbert had a recorded population of 1,338 in the 2001 Census.
Tarbet is a small village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Located within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.
The Brack is a mountain, located in the Arrochar Alps, on the south side of Glen Croe, near Loch Goil in Argyll and Bute in Scotland. The Brack has two summits: the lower peak, Cruach Fhiarach, can be seen from the shores of Loch Long, and the main peak is seen from Glen Croe and Loch Goil.
Colintraive is a village on the Cowal Peninsula, in Argyll and Bute, west of Scotland. Once the site where cattle were swum across the narrows to the Isle of Bute, the MV Loch Dunvegan — a ferry operated by Caledonian MacBrayne — now provides a link to the island.
Portavadie is a village on the shores of Loch Fyne on the coast of the Cowal Peninsula, in Argyll and Bute, West of Scotland.
National Cycle Route 75 runs from Edinburgh to Tarbert on the Kintyre peninsula, via Glasgow. It is often known as the Clyde to Forth cycle route.
Inveruglas is a hamlet on the west shore of Loch Lomond, fairly near the north end of the loch and is within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. It is situated on the A82 trunk road, connecting Glasgow to Inverness. It is within the historic county of Dunbartonshire, and since 1996 it has been part of the Argyll and Bute council area.
The Great Trossachs Path is a 48-kilometre (30 mi) long-distance footpath through the Trossachs, in the Stirling council area of Scotland. It runs between Callander in the east and Inversnaid on the banks of Loch Lomond in the west, passing along the northern shores of Loch Katrine and Loch Arklet. The path is suitable for walkers and cyclists; much of the route is also suitable for experience horse riders, although the middle section along the shoreline of Loch Katrine is tarmacked and so may not be ideal for horses.
The Kintyre Way is a waymarked footpath through the Kintyre peninsula of Argyll and Bute in Scotland. It runs between Machrihanish near the southern end of the peninsula's west coast, and Tarbert at the northern end of Kintyre where the peninsula is linked to Knapdale, via Campbeltown. The way is 161 kilometres (100 mi) long, and is fully waymarked. Additionally there are distance markers at 1 mile (1.6 km) intervals along the route. The route is primarily intended for walkers, but most sections can also be cycled.
The Three Lochs Way is a 55-kilometre (34 mi) long-distance path in Argyll and Bute in Scotland that links Balloch and Inveruglas. The path crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, which divides the Scottish Highlands from the Lowlands, and is named for the three major lochs linked by the route: Loch Lomond, the Gare Loch and Loch Long. About 1,500 people use the path every year, of whom about 300 complete the entire route.
The 478 is a bus route in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, which runs between Dunoon and Portavadie via Tighnabruiach and Kames. It is operated by West Coast Motors, which was established in 1921. Strathclyde Partnership for Transport inaugurated the route, along with that of the 477 and 479, in October 1993. The route is noted for its long stretches of single-track roads with scattered passing places, especially along the B836 between Sandbank and Auchenbreck, at the junction with the A886 Colintraive–to–Strachur road. The drivers of the 477, 478 and 479 have dubbed their routes the "Bermuda Triangle" due to their complexity and remoteness.
