Starting in Milngavie, near Glasgow, the West Highland Way runs 96 miles north and navigates through the alluring and often magical scenery of the Scottish Highlands. Those who walk it experience the true beauty of Loch Lomond as they scramble along its banks and later the belittling vast openness of Rannoch Moor, before finally coming to a spectacular end in the magnificent snow capped mountains that surround Fort William. As I've mentioned in my last few posts, I walked the West Highland Way last week with a friend of mine. We started in Milngavie (pronounced Mull-guy) on Friday 11th February, and six days later we found ourselves stumbling into Fort William. What follows is the story of how we managed to walk the whole 96 miles, with no previous training and in winter.
The idea had only come to fruition a few days prior, and without thinking much my friend James and I had booked tickets on a train up to Milngavie. With four hours to spare on the journey we decided to take a look in the guidebook, and the supposed preparation and guidelines for walking the West Highland Way. They included:
- “It would be foolish to even think about setting off if you have not done any previous rough walking or had to carry heavy packs”
- “Vitally important that you avoid wearing new boots and clothing that has not had chance to lose its newness”
- “best enjoyed in summer months”
Now, considering we hadn't walked a long distance trail before, and we hadn't had time to train for the trip it seems that we were classed as foolish, and the fact that we were both wearing new boots added to that label. Couple that with us waking the way in winter, and you've got one of two things: Seriously hardcore hikers, or Seriously stupid guys – we liked to think we were the first of the two.
Nonetheless, we started out from Milngavie not really knowing what to expect from the road ahead and within a few minutes the small town had disappeared and we got a sense that we were really heading off into the wild. The trail snaked on through Mugdock wood building up anticipation for what lay before us and despite the wet weather we were already planning on walking through the night.
We followed the purpose built trail for a few miles before stumbling upon some wooden holiday homes, apparently built in the times of WWII. They looked eerily like a set from a horror movie, and as we walked towards the hut's access road we noticed a Spiderman doll tied to a tree – spooky. Before long we came across a brief section of road walking before we hopped off and followed the path up a hill and through a field.
It was at the top of this hill, just south of Duntreath Castle that we entered a land completely different from the one we were walking in two minutes ago. Mist hung above the rugged moorland, and through a rare break in the clouds we could see the peak of an unknown mountain towering above us. Finding a vantage point we looked out across the lands, finding the West Highland Way to be almost identical to how I imagined.
We continued on through our first 'wild' landscape and traversed a train line for a few miles. Easy walking ensued and the scenery, although still beautiful, eased off a bit and it did so until darkness crept in.
As the sun retreated behind the horizon we found ourselves heading into the dark unknown of Garadhban Forest. The trail runs about three miles through the thick canopy before popping out at the other side within view of the West Highland Way's first real ascent, Conic Hill.
Despite the darkness, and the usual spookiness associated with forests at night, I felt completely at ease in Garadhban Forest. The eyes of animals floated in the woodland as they glinted in our head torch light but we moved deeper in. It wasn't long before we came across a diversion for the West Highland Way, the forest was being thinned and it was supposedly hazardous to walk along the trail, instead we were to follow white tape around the forest until it brought us back to the WHW about two miles away.
For what seemed like hours we walked along the muddy paths, occasionally coming across a fir tree that had decided to lie across the trail. These were no small trees either and each one provided a new challenge about how to best get over or around it. We negotiated our way through the treacherous diversion before arriving at a t-junction in the trail. The diversion had come to an end, but the West Highland Way forked off in two directions, one of them would be back the way we came.
Inevitably we decided to go the wrong way, and an hour later we arrived in a very familiar place. The relief of finally getting out of the woods subsided rather quickly as we realised we had just walked a six mile circle. The weather was getting worse now, the rain was belting through the trees and the temperatures were getting colder, couple that with the annoyance of walking back on ourselves, we were unhappy ramblers.
We readjusted the route and decided to follow the WHW rather than the temporary diversion and an hour later we were out the other side of Garadhban forest. We now stood on a wide open moor, away from the shelter of the trees, the wind was picking up and the heavy rain had now turned to sleet. We needed a rest, but to sit for even a minute exposed to the chilling winds left us shivering.
From here the only way to civilisation was a few miles over Conic Hill or back through the forest, and we weren't going that way. We could barely see the trail in front of us now so, after some thought, we decided the safest thing to do would be to retreat into our storm shelter and wait for the weather to get a little more forgiving.
For an hour and a half we waited with the tiny sheet of material over us, rain drumming on the top and snow gathering on the bottom until I decided it was time to find a place to set up the tent. With some difficulty we managed to get the shelter erected and when it was up it was like heaven. No wind, no rain, and a warm, comfortable sleeping bag waiting for me.
The start of the West Highland Way had been more than enjoyable, the walking was good and the sights were already amazing, and they were only going to get better. We'd started in civilisation, and here, although technically close, we felt miles away from anyone.
Nonetheless, we started out from Milngavie not really knowing what to expect from the road ahead and within a few minutes the small town had disappeared and we got a sense that we were really heading off into the wild. The trail snaked on through Mugdock wood building up anticipation for what lay before us and despite the wet weather we were already planning on walking through the night.We followed the purpose built trail for a few miles before stumbling upon some wooden holiday homes, apparently built in the times of WWII. They looked eerily like a set from a horror movie, and as we walked towards the hut's access road we noticed a Spiderman doll tied to a tree – spooky. Before long we came across a brief section of road walking before we hopped off and followed the path up a hill and through a field.
It was at the top of this hill, just south of Duntreath Castle that we entered a land completely different from the one we were walking in two minutes ago. Mist hung above the rugged moorland, and through a rare break in the clouds we could see the peak of an unknown mountain towering above us. Finding a vantage point we looked out across the lands, finding the West Highland Way to be almost identical to how I imagined.
We continued on through our first 'wild' landscape and traversed a train line for a few miles. Easy walking ensued and the scenery, although still beautiful, eased off a bit and it did so until darkness crept in.As the sun retreated behind the horizon we found ourselves heading into the dark unknown of Garadhban Forest. The trail runs about three miles through the thick canopy before popping out at the other side within view of the West Highland Way's first real ascent, Conic Hill.
Despite the darkness, and the usual spookiness associated with forests at night, I felt completely at ease in Garadhban Forest. The eyes of animals floated in the woodland as they glinted in our head torch light but we moved deeper in. It wasn't long before we came across a diversion for the West Highland Way, the forest was being thinned and it was supposedly hazardous to walk along the trail, instead we were to follow white tape around the forest until it brought us back to the WHW about two miles away.
For what seemed like hours we walked along the muddy paths, occasionally coming across a fir tree that had decided to lie across the trail. These were no small trees either and each one provided a new challenge about how to best get over or around it. We negotiated our way through the treacherous diversion before arriving at a t-junction in the trail. The diversion had come to an end, but the West Highland Way forked off in two directions, one of them would be back the way we came.
Inevitably we decided to go the wrong way, and an hour later we arrived in a very familiar place. The relief of finally getting out of the woods subsided rather quickly as we realised we had just walked a six mile circle. The weather was getting worse now, the rain was belting through the trees and the temperatures were getting colder, couple that with the annoyance of walking back on ourselves, we were unhappy ramblers.
We readjusted the route and decided to follow the WHW rather than the temporary diversion and an hour later we were out the other side of Garadhban forest. We now stood on a wide open moor, away from the shelter of the trees, the wind was picking up and the heavy rain had now turned to sleet. We needed a rest, but to sit for even a minute exposed to the chilling winds left us shivering.From here the only way to civilisation was a few miles over Conic Hill or back through the forest, and we weren't going that way. We could barely see the trail in front of us now so, after some thought, we decided the safest thing to do would be to retreat into our storm shelter and wait for the weather to get a little more forgiving.
For an hour and a half we waited with the tiny sheet of material over us, rain drumming on the top and snow gathering on the bottom until I decided it was time to find a place to set up the tent. With some difficulty we managed to get the shelter erected and when it was up it was like heaven. No wind, no rain, and a warm, comfortable sleeping bag waiting for me.
The start of the West Highland Way had been more than enjoyable, the walking was good and the sights were already amazing, and they were only going to get better. We'd started in civilisation, and here, although technically close, we felt miles away from anyone.
