Kelburn Estate - Kelburn for famillies

Natural Beauty

Kelburn Castle is beautifully situated at the foot of a spectacular glen, a hundred feet above sea level, half a mile from the sea, overlooking the islands of the Firth of Clyde. One of Kelburn's most outstanding features is its glen. In the space of just over half a mile, the Kel Burn, which has helped to form the glen over thousands of years, rises on the moors 800 feet above the Castle and drops dramatically by way of many waterfalls and deep gorges to the sea. The glen is a wealth of wild flowers and ferns, shrubs and trees, partly cultivated but predominantly wild.

Paths wind up on both sides of the glen with wooden bridges allowing you to cross the burn at certain strategic places. At the top you meet the upper estate road and can cross by the Bow Bridge, an attractive stone bridge at least two hundred years old. Near the bottom of the glen, and only 300 yards from the Centre buildings, is the Waterfall pool. At this point, the burn drops a sheer 20 feet into a spectacular grotto surrounded on three sides by overhanging cliffs of red and yellow sandstone. The pool below is small but deep and traps many sea trout that are unable to make further progress up the burn.

The glen is the home for a great variety of wildlife. Throughout the year you may see a roe deer or fox darting out of sight and grey herons often glide up the glen to land beside the burn. Dippers may be seen perching on rocks whilst buzzards circle overhead. During the winter large flocks of small birds foraging can be seen such as Long Tail Tits, Siskins and Goldcrests and Bullfinches are often seen feeding down by the waterfall pool. By Spring, Swallows and Housemartins are regular visitors to the glen and a Great Spotted Woodpecker may be heard drumming in the woods. Early Summer heralds the migrant visitors including the Willow Warbler and distinctive sounding ChiffChaff.

In mid January, snowdrops start to appear and by Spring, Bluebells, Wood Sorrel and Wood Anemone are all in flower early before the trees grow their leaves. Throughout the Summer there is a succession of flowering plants to be seen in the glen, Wild Strawberry, Red Campion and Herb Robert are just a few you might find. Most notable of the non-flowering plants are the ferns of which there are several varieties including Harts Tongue and Male Fern.

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Natural Beauty