The 'Border' Country
by Alan Stewart, Meigle Gallery
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When Athole asked me to do a piece on East Perthshire my immediate thoughts were of the area east of the A9, but on further reflection I decided to concentrate on just some of the delights to be found in that narrow strip of highly fertile land where Perthshire meets Angus.
A good starting point is the village of Alyth, situated on an ancient drove road; the name itself is an abbreviation of the motto to be found on the town hall "A licht abune". One of the houses on the hill behind Alyth used to light a lantern at night to guide travellers and cattle drovers towards the village.
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Hone to no less than three Golf courses, all of which extend a warm welcome to visitors, the town itself has an old world charm, epitomised by a visit to David Sim Ironmongers - a real step into the past.
| Anyone staying in the village overnight need look no further than either the Lands of Loyal or the Alyth Hotel. Both hostelries are run by the same family and the food is superb. An after dinner stroll through the beech woods of Alyth Den is a tranquil end to the day. |
Pirie the butcher shop |
A mere three miles from Alyth and situated on the A94 is the village of Meigle. Originally spelt Meggill, the hamlet is reputed to have been known before the birth of Jesus and was the site of an extensive Roman camp during the 1st century. A superb collection of 9th and 12th century carved Pictish stones are housed in the Museum which is run by Historic Scotland. Two other places well worth a visit are of course Meigle Gallery with regularly changing exhibitions of original paintings, jewellery, wood, ceramics and glassware, and right next door, Mervat's - a delightful collection of furniture, jewellery, textiles and artefacts from around the world.
Meigle Gallery |
Anyone staying in the village overnight need look no further than either the Lands of Loyal or the Alyth Hotel. Both hostelries are run by the same family and the food is superb. An after dinner stroll through the beech woods of Alyth Den is a tranquil end to the day.
Moving on and heading for the Angus border your next stop should, without a doubt, be the award winning family butchers in Newtyle. Pirie's have been winning awards for their many varieties of sausages for a great number of years, and no trip to this neck of the woods is complete without a pound or three to take home - especially in the BBQ season.
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Although the distance travelled is no more than six miles, anyone who has managed to visit all these places deserves a rest, and there are few places better or more welcoming than the Belmont Hotel. Situated halfway between Newtyle and Meigle this Hotel has been a popular stopping off place since the days when this was the junction and changeover point for the railway passenger in bygone days.
People are still travelling here for the 'house speciality' Scottish high tea - enough to satisfy anyone's appetite.
| Anyone staying in the village overnight need look no further than either the Lands of Loyal or the Alyth Hotel. Both hostelries are run by the same family and the food is superb. An after dinner stroll through the beech woods of Alyth Den is a tranquil end to the day. |
Mervat's |
I hope in these few short lines I have managed to whet your appetite and sometime soon we'll see you heading east - to the Border Country.
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