I was delighted to find this romantic ruined castle during our holiday on the west coast of Scotland. This is Castle Stalker, a 15th century tower house built by the Stewarts of Appin. It’s on a small island in Loch Linnhe, just north east of Port Appin (the setting for Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped, a fictionalised account of the “Appin Murder” of 1752).
It was quite late in the day when we got there and the light was fading, so my photo is rather dark. I’d love to go back and take a trip across the loch to the island and see round the castle. It’s privately owned and there are tours on just 5 weeks of the year. There’s a brief history of the castle on the Castle Stalker website.
Castle Stalker is the location of Castle Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh in the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
BooksPlease 
One of the many things I love about the UK is that ruined castles pop up everywhere! I hope you get to visit it one day.
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I love Kidnapped, but from reading it I always imagined Appin to be very bleak. The Castle, loch and surrounding landscape look beautiful, but what a bloodthirsty history lies behind the view! Thank you for visiting my my blog.
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That would be an amazing tour to take! What a picturesque setting.
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What a great place to visit through your lovely photos; thanks so much
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Interesting indeed. From your photo, the castle does not look so large, except for its multi-stories. Perhaps it’s the distance that makes it look that way.
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Europe is a fabulous place to find castles…my photographer son (who lived in England, Ireland, Prague, and now Berlin) has enjoyed the castles immensely. Thanks for sharing this great shot.
Here’s MY SATURDAY SNAPSHOT POST
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I’m determined to return to Europe one day and spend at least a month traveling around and touring some of these fascinating landmarks 🙂 Very interesting photo!
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Very picturesque setting, thanks for sharing!
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I’ve loved seeing all the castle photos that have been posted in the past on Saturday Snapshot. But I think this one’s my favorite. That’s some “moat” around the castle! 🙂
Here’s my Snapshot.
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Thanks for the amazing photos. Visiting your blog is a travel brochure for me. I am anxious now to get moving. Here is my Snapshot Saturday post for today
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What gorgeous layers to that landscape photo! It seems you can just keep looking deeper into the image … castles are just so darn romantic!
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That looks like a great place to go exploring, and I love the name! When I saw it in your post title I thought maybe it was a comical self-description – that you were off stalking castles. 🙂
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Lovely photo. Imagine owning a castle on an island in Scotland.
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What great photos. I thought of The Holy Grail immediatey! I’m glad you mentioned it. It’s a beautiful place. Interesting about the Kidnapped connection too- I read that for the first time this year.
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Fabulous.
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That’s a beautiful setting for a castle. Now I must explore the links you’ve provided to learn more about it. Thanks for posting. BTW, have you tried lightening up the photo by using an editing too that comes with your computer? But of course, leaving it dark like a silhouettes exudes its mystery that a bright picture could not.
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What a beautiful place. I think the darkness of the photo makes it seem more mysterious. Thanks for sharing.
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Margaret – Oh, that really is a gorgeous ‘photo! The dimming light actually adds to the atmosphere in the picture, I think. And now I have a new place to put on my list of places I should visit.
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I haven’t been there yet either. If it’s anything like the castle in the middle of Loch Leven it will be a lot bigger than you think it is.
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Monty Python! I could even get my husband interested in visiting. I’m convinced already!
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