I am standing in the shadow of a snow-capped mountain, enveloped by the sort of landscape in which I could happily wander for days without being interrupted.

My ears stab up at a curious cocktail of sounds. There are a few elements in the mix: the excitable laughter of children playing; a whistle of golf balls flying through the air; a whirr of open-plot kitchens in top gear; the merry babble of a wedding celebration in full swing; the roaring of a boat as it moves across the water that flows in front of me.


 Loch lively: Cameron House enjoys a pristine location on the edge of Loch Lomond
I can be precise about my location – I find myself at the southernmost tip of Loch Lomond, the point at which the Scottish Lowlands meet the raw grandeur of the Moorland.

 Kept in the dark: The hotel offers a warm, cosy evironment
Dinner – at the Cameron Grill – proves to be a further fascinating experience.
A softer environment than the reception area, it quickly establishes itself among my favourite restaurants. The food – cooked in full view of guests – is magnificent, especially the salmon, which I delight in via a sample plate of six different smoked varieties.

 Fabulous frost: The hotel looks at its best in a winter context
This end structure houses the Cameron Club, the hotel’s (admittedly superb) health spa – access to which is complimentary.
But then, your eyes are only drawn to the building for seconds, before your attention switches to the surrounding visual drama, which unfolds as far as the eye can see. For this is a gateway to the Scottish Moorland. From here, the scenery grows ever more wild and unforgiving.


 Down to the waterline: Views across Loch Lomond come as standard
And you can take to the water in many forms. I opt for a champagne cruise on board the Celtic Warrior, a sleek modern vessel that cuts across the Loch with ease. The trip makes for a fabulously informative morning, in which I learn that the islands splayed out across the Loch include the home of the family behind Scott’s Porage Oats – and a colony of wallabies, shipped into this unlikely context several decades ago by an eccentric land owner.

Travel Facts

Double rooms at Cameron House (01389 755 565; www.devere-hotels.co.uk) start at £139, including breakfast.