Trek date: 27th August 2020 - 31st August 2020
Disclaimer: I’m writing this in 2022, doing my best to recollect events in the past, piecing together things that happened from notes, photos and my fallible memory.
Getting to the start of the West Highland Way Trek
I live in Kent in the Southeast of England, with easy links into London which is the hub for onward journeys to pretty much anywhere. I opted for taking a Caledonian Sleeper Train from London Euston to Glasgow Queen Street, which then just required a connecting train to the start of the trek at Milngavie. This was my first sleeper train experience in the UK, I found it to be a really pleasant experience. The room was clean, cosy and comfortable, it can take me a little while to drift off to sleep and I didn't have too much trouble here.
Train travel in the UK is expensive at the best of times, a cabin on a sleeper reflected this, there are also cheaper non-cabin options available if you're a person who can rest well in a recliner seat, unfortunately this option wasn’t available to me at the time due to Covid-19 social distancing regulations.
Day 1 - Milngavie to Milarrochy Bay
My sleeper train pulled in early to Glasgow Queen Street and eventually arrived in Milngavie on a drizzly morning at 7am. At this time of morning not much was open, luckily they have a large Tesco which I stopped off at and bought myself a quick breakfast, snacks and a belt to stop my trousers falling down.
I then navigated to the start of the trail in the centre of the highstreet and without much ceremony started the trek.
Milngavie to Drymen
The beginning of the trek was fairly straightforward, as with the whole trail it's well signposted and very difficult to go wrong, simply follow the markers with the hexagonal symbol and signs saying West Highland Way :P.
The first part was mostly flat and made good time to Drymen in about 4 hours covering 20km. This was a pleasant walk but ultimately nothing to shout about, mostly walking through forest areas and along farmers fields, the scenery doesn't spark awe yet.
I had originally planned to stop and camp at Drymen, but having set off so early and arriving at would mean setting up camp at midday, with loads of daylight hours left I continued on.
Drymen to Balmaha
Here the scenery starts getting interesting, having not done much research prep before starting, I wasn't sure what to expect along the way. It's at this point that the trail split and one path followed a flatter path and the other went up to a large hill, so I decided to go for the hill.
Turns out this was Conic Hill, a popular climb from people stopping off at Balmaha to see over the south of Loch Lomond. The climb for coming from the West Highland Way was easy enough even with my backpack filled with all my belongings. Being in Scotland, even in August, you can't predict the weather and on reaching the top of the hill the view was masked by clouds and drizzle. The view is usually the reward for the effort in lugging yourself up to viewpoints, however I find satisfaction in simply accomplishing the task of reaching the top.
I descended the hill and stopped off at a local pub in Balmaha called the Oak Tree Inn, got myself some warm food and several pints. Completing an additional 10km from Drymen over 2 and half hours.
Balmaha to Milarrochy Bay
After relaxing in the pub for a couple of hours and consuming more alcohol than expected, I set off with a nice buzz. The dizzle continued to come down which hadn't stopped all day, this didn't dampen my spirits, quite the opposite walking along Loch Lomond was really pleasant, and looking forward to setting up camp for the first time in my life.
I’d booked a head for a stay at Milarrochy Bay Camping and Caravanning Club Site, a 3km hke from Balmaha taking around 45 minutes.
Previous hikes I've done have been part of organised tour groups and the camp setup usually done by porters. So this was my first experience of travelling with all the gear and setting up the tent. I had practised putting up the one man tent in my garden so as not to have any surprises on the first night, luckily that practice paid off and the tent didn't collapse on me during the night. The only hitch was my choice of sleeping mat, choosing to bring a yoga mat, this was bulkily strapped to my bag and turns out not particularly comfortable to sleep on. Any future hikes I do I'll opt for something lighter and hopefully a little more comfortable.
Day 2 - Milarrochy Bay to Inverarnan
The sun rose on a new day and with daylight flooding my tent, I got up and started the laborious task of dismantling the tent and procedurally organising my backpack for optimum weight distribution for the long hike ahead. That sounds really nerdy but if you’ve got a backpack on for 8 hours you best be sure it's not going to destroy your lower back.
Milarrochy Bay to Rowardennan
Light on breakfast, from 9am I was ready to get going. With only a cereal bar fueling my steps I was hoping lunch time would roll around quickly to grab a substantial bite to eat. The route hugged the shore of Loch Lomond, being mostly flat, the only obstacles were when the route got a little tight and you would need to squeeze between boulders, not an easy task with a backpack.
Luckily it was only a 10km, 2 hour walk to get to a lunch pit stop, the only hurdle left was patiently waiting for the pub to start serving food for lunchtime. The rest was needed and the realisation of hiking 30km a day with a loaded backpack was starting to seem a little ambitious for me.
Rowardennan to Inverarnan
Fueled up, it was now a straight 23km hike to Inverarnan, where I’d pre booked a spot on Beinglas Farm. Wild camping is an option as well, but I figured I'd choose campsites so I've got access to shower facilities and eating options.
The hike was straight forward following the signs however I did go slightly wrong when hitting a hilly wooded area on the Loch Lomond northeast side. I later found out I took the higher track which some emergency vehicles used, and there was also a lower path that had you scrambling over fallen trees and boulders. I have no regrets.
"Sad Guy"
I found out about my slight detour off the official West Highland Way from a couple I met at a pitstop at Inversnaid. They were saying the lower path took them a while to navigate with all the obstacles in the way. At this point I’d been walking for 4 hours already covering 20 kms and I guess was running on low energy levels and keen to get going to bring the chance of relaxation at the campsite.
We were both heading to Inverarnan to the same campsite and talked for a bit and then hiked ahead. Close to Inverarnan the trail threw up a big hill to climb and I regret not taking more time to enjoy the view from the top, but when you’re hungry you don't always make the right decisions.
I later bumped into the couple again at the campsite pub and had a pint and a shot of whisky with them. We were having general small chit chat, talking about people we met along the way. The girlfriend remarked that at the halfway point they had a chat with a person but gave off "sad guy energy". At this point their partner put their face in their hands. I let out a burst of laughter, and said yeah I think you're talking about me, oh no, i'm now reevaluating my entire personality.
This still makes me laugh, unfortunately I'm cursed with resting bitch face and my emotional state is closely tied to what's in my belly and that will inevitably influence the kind of first impression I give off.
Day 3 - Inverarnan to Bridge of Orchy
It's by this point that I'm starting to discover that no matter how uncomfortable your camping setup is, it doesn't really matter. If you've hiked 30km in a day your body is going to want to get its rest and you're able to fall asleep without too much hassle.
Inverarnan to Tyndrum
Having left Loch Lomond behind the scenery started to change, walking through an oasis of purple I still don't know what plant it was. This section had a gentle but noticeable incline, I was also taking longer to cover the similar distances done on previous days, fatigue starting to settle in. Getting to Tyndrum after a 20km hike over 4 and half hours.
The Temptation of a Soft Bed
While having a pit stop at Tyndrum, the continuous hiking and camping was starting to take its toll and in the moment of weakness I did call the Bridge of Orchy hotel to see if they had any rooms available. Unfortunately or fortunately they didn't, and with prices of around £150 a night that was a good thing.
Tyndrum to the Bridge of Orchy
Tyndrum seemed like a nice town, and had a great lunch at The Real Food Cafe. The town seemed like an ideal place to split up the journey. However I’d planned to get to the Bridge of Orchy and set off to do the final 11km of the day.
I hadn't organised a campsite for this day with the plan to wild camp and found a nice spot next to the river, and I wasn't alone there were plenty of other tents, campervans and bikers pitched up.
I did end up eating at the Bridge of Orchy Hotel's restaurant having possibly the best meal of the trek, a delicious bowl of mussels and a sticky toffee pudding. After that and a few pints I stumbled back to my tent and passed out for a new day.
Day 4 - Bridge of Orchy to Kinlochleven
Aches and pains begin to make themselves heard, but the routine of packing back up the camping gear gets more familiar and easier.
Bridge of Orchy to Inveroran
Doing some quick Googling I saw that Inveroran wasn't far away, only an hour's hike away and had a pub /hotel there which I could get a fully loaded Scottish breakfast at. It was a good call and the food was great with a friendly chilled out atmosphere. Another worthwhile stop for someone not looking to do the West Highland Way but without having to camp.
Inveroran to Kingshouse
Some of the best views can be found on this part of the trek, you climb high up on hills to overlook the valleys and stunning scenery. The only fly in the ointment were, well, the midges. Depending on the time of year and the weather conditions they can be a little annoying. I recommend bringing a netted hood with you to keep them off your face. I hadn't initially bought one with me but luckily one of the campsites was selling them.
Kingshouse to Kinlochleven
Kingshouse was a nice lunch stop, plenty of facilities there for anyone thinking of ending their trekking for the day. Probably a good thing to end your day here as the next section contains the devils staircase. It wasn't too bad but perhaps I regret doing it at the end of the day when I was a bit fatigued. I remember getting to the top and basically crawling to Kinlochleven.
Kinlochleven itself was a return to civilisation, it's the most built up area since coming out of Milngavie, as such you have plenty of eating options, and an opportunity to stock up in local supermarkets.
Day 5 - Kinlochleven to Fort William
I stayed at Blackwater campsite which had some great facilities and was near supermarkets, pubs and restaurants. The only thing was the amount of midges about, but applying liberal amounts of insect repellent seemed to keep them away.
I woke up with some movement issues, the previous 130km catching up with me. I was concerned that I wasn't going to be able to complete the final 25km, so I had a restful start and incentivised myself to get to the end by booking a hotel at Fort Williams rather than camping.
The weather was sunny and warm, and being in Scotland I took that as a good sign for a pleasant hike. I wasn't betrayed and I took a slow methodical approach, being treated to more great highland scenery.
Advice
Think about taking an extra day to spread out the distances, doing +30km multiple days in a row can take its toll. It's not a difficult trail but carrying a heavy backpack can be a distraction. Consider paying for luggage transport, having a lighter load will allow you to focus more on the scenery than your sore feet and aching back. There are plenty of pubs and hotels along the route, the only food you need to take with you are snacks, nothing more.
For the Stat Nerds
You can view the route I took on strava:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5