Castle Kennedy

Castle Kennedy is centred around the castle itself and its where the village takes its name from. The original castle was built for John Kennedy, the Earl of Cassilis in 1607, however, it was ruined in 1716 after a fire. Lochinch castle was built in the 1864 and is still the home of the Stair family today. Castle Kennedy gardens were laid out in the 1730s by the Second Earl of Stair and his troops and cover 75 acres of land. The gardens sit between two natural lochs, Black Loch and White Loch which attract wildfowl such as greylag and Canada geese. White Loch is so important it is protected as an SSSI. Black Loch features a Crannog - a manmade island with a causeway linking it to the shore (the causeway no longer stands) and a common feature from Iron Age to the Middle Ages in Galloway. The main features of the garden are its world renowned rhododendrons, pinetum, monkey puzzle avenue and 2 acre lily pond! All this plus the trademark palm trees featured in most of the Rhin's popular gardens. Castle Kennedy had an airfield in operation in the Second World War which changed to a passenger airway for a short period in the 1950s.

Nearby Places to Visit...

Soulseat Loch - an attractive loch you can walk around with access for disabled anglers. There are also remains of 12th century Soulseat Abbey by the herb garden on the South side of the loch

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