All About Mill Trail Country

Where the tough volcanic rocks on the heights of the Ochil Hills meet the softer sandstones of the Forth Valley, the change is very sudden. High and breezy rounded slopes tilt dramatically on a long scarp face. Fast-running burns have carved out deep and half-hidden valleys. Along the line of the scarp, from Stirling east-wards to Dollar, lie a string of communities known as the Hillfoots villages.
Good high-ground grazing for sheep and fast-flowing waters were the basis for the development of a textile industry second only to the Borders for its productivity. Although the mills are not water-powered today, and some of the raw material is imported exotic fibre such as cashmere, textiles are still made here. Past and present combine in the Mill Trail, a self-guided tour covering the Ochils end-to-end and taking in the most important mill sites and countryside attractions. The visitor’s starting point can be the Clock Mill Heritage Centre at Tillicoultry, which has interesting exhibitions and displays on the work of the weavers. From sturdy and handsome mill buildings below tumbling waterfalls at Alva, to some interesting bargains in today’s mill shops, the Mill Trail reveals some of the special secrets of the ‘wee country’ of Clackmannan.

Although, strictly speaking, below the Highland line, the Ochils offer adventurous countryside, with their highest point, Ben Cleuch (2,364 ft (720m)) – a walk for the fit and well-equipped – offering a stunning panorama which includes, on a very clear day, Lochnagar on Royal Deeside and the Bass Rock beyond Edinburgh. At a lower level, the Ochil Hills Woodland Park offers woodland walking and there are excursions into the Ochils by scenic pathways such as Mill Glen or Alva Glen. The Hillfoots’ endearing way of springing surprises on the exploring visitor is experienced again at Rumbling Bridge, where the peaceful River Devon turns into a dramatic rocky gorge, deep and mossy, which really does rumble with sound of great boulders endlessly turning in the water’s force. Small wonder this cascading part of the river is known as ‘The Devil’s Mill’.

Gartmorn Dam is an artificial loch, built in the eighteenth century by the Earl of Mar in a very progressive scheme to use water-power to drive pumps in his own coal mine. Today it is a peaceful tree-clad place, popular with fishermen, wildfowl watchers and other nature- lovers. Along at Dollar the woodlands below Castle Campbell offer fine walks, shady corners below the trees and – eventually – commanding views.

The former county town of Clackmannan, built beside the River Black Devon, preserves its mercat cross and tolbooth or town house (dating from the seventeenth century) as reminders of its antiquity as a Scottish burgh and its formerly important commercial role in the area. Nearby Alloa, known for its traditional industries of brewing, spinning and glassworks, is a busy town with plenty of shops and very active community arts life, centred partly on its handsome town hall. The commanding Alloa Tower, dating from the fifteenth century, was once one of the largest and most extensive tower-houses in Scotland. It was the home of the powerful Earls of Mar. Today it is being restored to its former splendour. The local Alloa Leisure Bowl with its slides, swimming pool and range of sports facilities is a superb venue for all the family.

Among the other Hillfoots communities Menstrie is – perhaps unexpectedly – associated with Nova Scotia (it was the birthplace of Sir William Alexander, King James VI’s lieutenant for the Plantation of Nova Scotia), while Tillicoultry, as well as being the starting point of the Mill Trail, is also noted for the largest retail furniture warehouse in Scotland (appropriately housed in a former mill). Alva features floral displays and mill architecture, while Dollar is a peaceful place, in an attractive setting by the tree-lined River Devon.

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