Dalriada

The £3.1 million three-year Dalriada Project aims to realise and maximise the potential of the area's natural and cultural heritage assets for the long-term benefit of residents and visitors to Mid-Argyll.

The Project is funded through the Heritage Lottery fund and a range of other partners including Forestry Commission Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage, Argyll and the Islands Enterprise, Argyll and The Islands LEADER, British Waterways Scotland, The Waterways Trust Scotland and Argyll and Bute Council.

Established in 2007, the Dalriada Landscape Partnership Scheme will be complete in August 2010. The Waterways Trust Scotland chairs the project board on behalf of the project partners.

The Dalriada area, famous for the world-class prehistoric landscape, also has a vibrant history. The Dalriada Project has been working with the local community to document the stories of the people who have lived, worked, and raised their families in the region for future generations to learn from and enjoy.

Volunteers have worked with older members of the community to capture their stories on tape and film and local artists have worked with children from Ardrishaig Primary School to create a 3D pictorial map of the Crinan Canal.

The stories of the area have been used to build up a spoken and pictorial archive of life in the 20th Century and to create a 'History of Dalriada' publication which is due out Easter 2010.

In the meantime, elements of The Dalriada community history programme, including recordings of the memories of the older generation made by local children; can be previewed on the project's new website www.dalriadaproject.org

A New Way to Discover Dalriada

The Dalriada project has launched a new website www.dalriadaproject.org to inspire and make it easier for people to visit and discover the wonderful Dalriada area in Argyll.

Visitors to the website will be able to find out about the history and culture of the area as well as the wealth of things to do. The area is rich in natural and cultural heritage, has a renowned museum at Kilmartin, and offers a wealth of opportunities for outdoor activities such as walking, cycling and boating.

Protecting rare species of butterfly, making exciting archaeological discoveries, restoring ancient woodlands and creating innovative trails and paths are just some of the activities of the Dalriada Project. The new website allows prospective visitors and locals to find out more about the area, plan trips and see what the project has achieved since its inception in 2006.

The Project is also tasked with delivering a number of innovative interpretation schemes that will allow visitors to download information at various sites and through the website. Podcasts will include a guided trail along the Crinan Canal, another of the area's exceptional sites. These will be available next Spring.

Wildlife
The Project has been involved in schemes to enhance biodiversity by the use of traditional grazing animals including Highland Cattle to increase the species mix and help rare insects, such as the marsh fritillary butterfly. Other projects are helping to protect the iconic black grouse and the ancient woodlands for which the area is justly famed. Since April the area has provided a home for the European beaver, absent for 400 years and the first legally reintroduced mammal in Britain.

The Near to Nature Trail is an exciting walk, scheduled to open in Spring 2010, incorporating bridges and walkways that descend into a gorge through native woodland. With two spectacular nature reserves and many other sites of natural interest the sheer diversity of wildlife within a relatively small area makes the mid-Argyll a must-see destination for anyone keen to spot our native wildlife.

Walking
The spectacular landscape, a National Scenic Area, offers a great deal for walkers of all abilities. There are two National Nature Reserves, an abundance of Forestry Commission trails, old drovers' roads, coastal walks and the Crinan Canal. The richest archaeological landscape in Europe centred on Kilmartin Glen and a host of more recent historical sites, including castles and chapels completes the picture.

The Project is also in the final stages of delivering the heritage path network linking many of the ancient track-ways and heritage sites, improving access paths and installing new waymarking.

Sailing
The Crinan Canal has been described as Scotland's most beautiful shortcut. It is easy to see why when sailing into this nine-mile link between Loch Fyne and the Sound of Jura. Telford's masterpiece runs alongside the Moine Mhor nature reserve (the Great Moss), carves through solid rock and alongside the magnificent Add Estuary, before reaching Crinan. Here iconic Puffers are moored, once the lifeline of western Scotland's scattered communities.

History
As well as recording memories to create an archive of life in the 20th century, the Project has been involved with the discovery of new archaeological sites in conjunction with one of its partners, the Kilmartin House Museum. Walkover surveys have discovered hundreds of previously unrecorded sites. Five dun (a fortified dwelling) excavations have made important discoveries, including iron-age glass beads. Evidence of metal-working has been found at one of the duns.

The area's more recent history can be visited with a trip along the Crinan Canal. The canal, nine miles long and over 200 years old is another of the area's exceptional sites. It is a working heritage monument where examples of the 'Puffer' ships, once common along Scotland's western seaboard, can still be seen alongside the yachts and fishing boats that still use this shortcut through the Kintyre Peninsula.

Cycling
The spectacular landscape offers a great deal for cyclists of all abilities. For the off-roader there are a host of Forestry Commission trails, such as those in the Glashan and Knapdale Forests, old drovers' roads, and some fantastic mountain bike tracks put together by the local cycling club. Road riders can enjoy the well-surfaced route along the Crinan Canal, a multitude of quiet lanes and the Sustrans Oban to Campbeltown Route 78 which runs through the area.