Three miles from Oban lies Dunstafnage Castle, a royal residence of the
Pictish kings, bearing the marks of extreme antiquity. It occupies a
commanding position on a point of land extending far into the sea and
almost surrounded by water at high tide. We visited it in the fading
twilight, and a lonelier, more ghostly place it would be hard to
imagine. From this old castle was taken the stone of destiny upon which
the Pictish kings were crowned, but which is now the support of the
coronation chair in Westminster Abbey. A place so rich in romantic
legend could not be expected to escape the knowledge of the Wizard of
the North and Scott made more than one visit to this solitary ruin. As a
result the story of Dunstafnage has been woven into the "Legend of
Montrose" as "Ardenvohr" and the description may be easily recognized by
any one who visits the old castle.

Oban is modern, a place of many and excellent hotels fronting on the
bay. So far, only a small per cent of its visitors are Americans, and
the indifferent roads leading to the town discourage the motorist. Had
we adhered to the route outlined for us by the Motor Union Secretary, we
should have missed it altogether. We had made a stop in the town two
years before, and yet there are few places in Britain that we would
rather visit a third time than Oban.




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