Loch Katrine’s Rhoderick Dhu Viewpoint

Rhoderick Dhu watch tower is a viewpoint at Loch Katrine used in the 1700s to warn notorious outlaw and clan chief Rob Roy MacGregor of advancing Redcoats seeking his capture. 

This viewpoint, just above Trossachs Pier, was later visited by literary giants such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge and the Wordsworths, who stayed in wicker huts at this jutting headland, built for 'the accommodation of strangers to admire and sketch this wild and picturesque landscape' and were made accessible by a new road blasted out of the rock in the 1790s. 

Sir Walter Scott was inspired to write his epic poem 'The Lady of the Lake' from this viewpoint two hundred and fifteen years ago. Scott's vivid descriptions of Loch Katrine's landscapes in his best-selling poem, a blockbuster of the day, along with the paintings and stories of other Victorian artists and writers, made visitors flock to the Trossachs. 

We have recently reinstated the 188-metre pathway Scott and other famous writers used to access this panoramic viewpoint. The previously overgrown path will be accessible by a hand-finished stone pathway and wooden boardwalks to protect the sensitive environment around the path.

A stunning three-storey lookout tower with two panoramic viewpoints and linking boardwalks is currently being installed. The path and towers will be open to the public in late May. 

Below, you can see the stunning view and some pictures from the construction work.