Toward Point Lighthouse

Toward Point Lighthouse stands at the southern tip of the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll and Bute, where Loch Striven meets the Firth of Clyde. Built in 1812 by Robert Stevenson, it has guided ships for over two centuries. Two keepers’ cottages were added in the late 19th century, and a white building on the shore once housed the foghorn. The foghorn, originally steam-powered and later diesel, fell silent in the 1990s. The cottages were sold in 2012 and now serve as a private residence. The lighthouse marks the south-western edge of the Highland Boundary Fault on the mainland. Though the fault line itself lies about a kilometre west, its presence is revealed by serpentinite rocks and a sharp shift in geology. Younger sedimentary layers give way to much older metamorphic psammite, a clear sign of the fault’s influence. The contrast in rock types makes the area geologically significant. Visitors can walk along the shore to see the lighthouse and its former foghorn building. The cottages, now privately owned, remain visible from the path. The surrounding landscape shows the dramatic change in rock formations where the fault passes nearby. Views stretch across Loch Striven to the hills beyond. The site offers a quiet spot to observe both maritime history and natural geology.