u/erksmith

Hello again! This is my second post as I work through planning our trip to Scotland next May.

As I mentioned in my last post, we’ll be walking the West Highland Way.

Thanks again to everyone who helped with the itinerary. We’ve pretty much got that portion finalized.

My next question is what to do after the Way.

We’ll have approx. 10 nights after finishing the Way, and we’re trying to figure out how best to spend them. Our working plan is to attempt Ben Nevis from Fort William after we finish, weather permitting, but beyond that we’re pretty open.

A few options we’ve been considering:

-Head to Oban / Mull
-Spend some time on the Isle of Skye + Inverness
-Go north toward Inverness, then slowly make our way backs south toward Glasgow, possibly through Stirling
-Find a couple of smaller villages or towns with a great inn/hotel, good food and pubs, and just settle in for a few days
-Or leave Scotland altogether and spend the remaining time exploring parts of England

We did spend time in London and Edinburgh last summer and would gladly go back to either, but we’re also looking at alternative options this time around. We’re definitely not opposed to revisiting places we loved.

For those who have done the WHW, I’m curious in what you wanted afterwards. Were you still keen to keep exploring the Highlands, or were you ready for a bit of a change of pace?

Any recommendations are welcome. We’re really open to anything!

Also to note: Not completely against renting a car but would try to avoid it if possible.

Thank you!

***edit - should have included interests are!

-hiking / out door experiences
-Unique cultural experiences
-pub culture
-live music
-experience restaurants
-local culture
-history

Hello all,

My wife and I are hiking the West Highland Way next May and would appreciate some feedback before we lock everything in.

I’ve read through a lot of posts here and a number of blogs, but I’d really appreciate some firsthand feedback from people who’ve completed the trail.
A little about us. We’re both in our early 40s and are fairly experienced hikers. We’ve completed multi day hikes in the Canadian Rockies, the Dolomites, and the Tour du Mont Blanc, so we’re comfortable with longer days and some challenging terrain. We’re not trying to rush the trail, but we’d like to have enough time each day to stop for lunch (if available) take in the scenery, visit any must see spots along each stage, and still arrive at our accommodation at a reasonable time.

Our itinerary currently looks like this:

Milngavie to Balmaha (32km)
Balmaha to Rowardennan (11.5 km)
Rowardennan to Inverarnan (22.5 km)
Inverarnan to Tyndrum (19.5 km)
Tyndrum (Rest Day)
Tyndrum to Kingshouse (30 km)
Kingshouse to Kinlochleven (14 km)
Kinlochleven to Fort William (24 km)

A few questions:

1. Milngavie to Balmaha (32 km)

We’ve seen some suggestions on hiking from Milngavie to Balmaha on the first day as a good way to get your trail legs while the terrain is relatively forgiving.

We were originally booked in Dryman (Clachan Inn-edited for typo) but canceled and booked the Oak Tree Inn in Balhama.

For those who have done it, how reasonable did you find it? Would you recommend it, or is it better to break that section into two days? We also like the idea of staying in Balmaha over Drymen.

2. Rowardennan or Inversnaid?

Our current itinerary has us staying in Rowardennan after Balmaha, which makes for a fairly short day of about 11.5 km. The following day we continue to Inverarnan.

We’re wondering if it would make more sense to carry on through Rowardennan and instead stay in Inversnaid, then continue to Tyndrum the following day.

Since the Loch Lomond section is commonly considered the most difficult part of the West Highland Way, we’re curious whether the shorter day into Rowardennan makes that stretch more enjoyable and sets you up better for the difficult section, or if staying in Inversnaid creates a better overall itinerary.

3. Rest day in Tyndrum

We’re planning a rest day in Tyndrum and are thinking of taking a day trip to Oban to explore the area.

Does Tyndrum make sense as a rest day location, or would you recommend taking our rest day elsewhere on the trail?

Most of our accommodation has flexible cancellation (all except our Kingshouse booking), so we’re still able to adjust the itinerary slightly if there’s a better approach for the first half of the way.

I’d really appreciate any feedback or suggestions from those who have completed the trail. Thanks in advance!

Update

Thank you all for your input! We’ve made the adjustment and will be staying in Drymen on night one and keeping our rest day in Tyndrum. As much as we’d love to stay in Bridge of Orchy it’s a bit out of budget (dang Canadian Dollar!).

Cant wait to hit the trail!