​Geilston Gardens are by the village of Cardross which is, on the road which runs along the northern shore of the River Clyde, about half way between Dumbarton and Helensburgh.  
It was a beautiful day and took us only a short journey (around 35 minutes) from Appletree Luxury Self Catering Cottage to get to Cardross.  A signposted road leads up from the main road to the car park. .  There was free parking at the gardens and a warm welcome from the National Trust for Scotland staff at their wooden hut at the entrance.  As we are members we gained free entry, however the fee for non- members around £7.50 for an adult with family tickets and other concessions available.
We collected our laminated plan and set off to explore.....

The Walled Garden is accessed through a small door in the wall to the west of Geilston House.  On entering the first thing that strikes you is the enormous 100ft high Wellingtonia tree in the centre of the lawned area.  The tree which is thought to be over 250 years old towers above the many herbaceous beds with their riot of colour.  The borders were in full bloom when we visited (15th June)  the many vivid colours providing a haven for bumble bees
On the northern wall of the walled garden is an ancient lean to greenhouse by Mackanzie and Moncur of Edinburgh dating back to the 19thcentury.  Still heated (by a modern oil boiler) it is home to many young vegetables, fruits  and flowers including the beautiful pink and white Phlox and the unusual and strikingly architectural Aednjum.which hadn’t come across before.
Adjacent to the glasshouse is a potting shed with an inscribed date above the door of with the date 1797 inscribed above the door.  
Stepping inside the potting shed we looked through the ‘secret’ window which has a stunning view of the Geilston burn as it crosses the weir.

Once through the gate a series of paths meander down to the banks of the Geilston burn.(river)  Steep sided, bordered by many colourful Rhodedendrons there are many secret hidey holes, nooks and crannies.
Down by the burn there are some fantastic red barked rhododendrons looking like witches hands pushing out of the ground.

Below us we could see the town of Helensburgh.
Just above Helensburgh there is a T junction and the path separates – to the west Rhu and to the east is Helensburgh
We took the Helensburgh branch.

Another beautiful day at Appletree Self Catering Cottage and we decide to drive up Loch Lomond to Glen Falloch and visit the Glen Falloch Falls which are also  known locally as “Rob Roy’s Bath Tub”
From Appletree we drove along the A811 towards through Balloch up to the roundabout with the A82.  This took us up the western shore of Loch Lomond with some spectacular views across the water towards Ben Lomond.

The sign leads us to a small car park where we leave the car and follow the track north through a pretty birch wood with the fast flowing river Falloch down on our right hand side.

Although many of our visitors chose the summer months to come and stay at Appletree Cottage in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, winter can have its own special and unique benefits.  Not least the fantastic weather we have been having this year.  Yes, we've had a few wild wet and windy days and a reasonable fall of snow in January, but other days have been warm and sunny with clear blue skies.

Having parked in the lay-by at Finnich Toll we take the gated road to the west. (there is a pedestrian gate which is accessible next to the vehicular gate, the latter of which is padlocked.  From there the road climbs gently, old tarmac giving way to a well made road recently refurbished to facilitate extraction of the timber from a wood about two miles away.  Other than the very occasional timber lorry there is little traffic on this road.
Already the views are vast - the Campsie Range to the south east with the distinctive Drumgoyne hill at its western end, at the bottom of which is the excellent and ancient Glengoyne Distillery.  The village of Killearn can be seen perched on the hill to the east with its landmark 103 foot high (31.4meters) monument commemorating the celebrated linguist, historian and humanist scholar George Buchanan who lived from 1506-1582)

A recent fixture at Balmaha is a statue of Tom Wear.
Tom Weir was a hugely popular presenter,  famous for series on Scottish Television where he explored Scotland on foot.
He inspired many to don a rucksack and head for the hills to discover the joys of the great outdoors in this magnificent country of ours.
A much loved character he lived locally in Gartocharn. 
Tom's sister was also famous and a household name - the actress Molly Weir. Her catchphrase can still occasionally uttered by older generatons to this day "Flash - cleans baths without scratching"
Now statue  of Tom Weir and his just as famous bunnet stands handsomely beside Balmaha Bay.  A fitting tribute to his everlasting contribution to outward bound exploration and Scottish Culture.

Stronachlachar (pronounced Stronachlachar) is on the shore of Loch Katrine and  can be fairly busy in the summer months as it is a favourite drop off point for the pleasure boats on the Loch.
The hamlet boasts a few houses, a former hotel and a fantastic tearoom which has a glass conservatory which extends almost onto the water.
The tearoom (which also does meals) offers a friendly welcome and a huge array of home baking.  A huge wood burning stove at one end of the cafe provides abundant heat on this cold winter day