8-13 August 2023
Rob Roy MacGregor (1671-1734) was a Scottish outlaw who later became a folk hero (the “Robin Hood” or “William Tell” equivalent for Scotland). The Rob Roy Way route was originally devised by John Henderson and Jacquetta Megarry, and became one of Scotland’s Great Trails in 2012. I took the alternative route between Ardtalnaig and Aberfeldy via Glen Quaich; this increases the overall route length from 128km to 155km. Moreover, because of lack of accommodation on the alternative section, there are logistical challenges unless carrying a tent or being supported by a driver. Hence my decision to backpack with my tent and wild camp along the route. I walked from Pitlochry to Drymen which is the reverse of the usual direction – this fitted better with the other activities I had planned while I was in Scotland.
Map 52: Pitlochry to Ardtalnaig
In many ways this first section of the walk, which included the alternative non-waymarked section, turned out to be the best part of the expedition. I left Pitlochry just as the town was waking up at around 08.00am, crossed a pedestrian suspension bridge over the River Tummel and immediately began to climb on forest tracks.
Having crossed the highpoint on the track, there were views of the Tay valley before descending to Grandtully and walking close to the River Tay, initially along the route of an old railway line, to Aberfeldy.
An Australian couple coming the opposite way, who make an annual visit to relatives in UK and incorporate a walking holiday, were on the final day of the trail from Drymen. They had hoped to see red squirrels, deer, otters and beavers but sadly hadn’t seen any of these. The nearest they had seen was a tree trunk which they were certain had been chewed by beavers.
I bought and ate lunch in Aberfeldy, saving the provisions in my weighty rucksack, as I was sure that there wouldn’t be any further opportunity to buy fresh food for a few days.
The steep walk up the gorge past the Birks of Aberfeldy was impressive. It’s a popular walk from the town and I was pleased to see that, despite my heavy pack, I was overtaking most of the other people on the path. The waterfalls and rapids are very picturesque.
Having reached the small road to the reservoir and farm, I had arrived at the junction between the usual route and the “alternative, wild” route and had to make my final decision. In retrospect, I’m certainly pleased that I chose the alternative route. I was soon off the road and following a track heading further uphill and following Urlar Burn. I should have studied the contours more closely – Aberfeldy is around 90m, the top of the waterfalls just short of 300m and my highpoint for the day around 535m – so I had a significant additional climb after the top of the waterfall. Most of this was on a track over the moor but subsequently on a quiet single track road.
There followed a steep descent on tired legs into Glen Quaich with views of Loch Freuchie.
I hoped to find a spot to camp in the Glen. I found a place close to the river and some woodland but also rather near to some farm buildings. However on investigation, the buildings were clearly uninhabited and rapidly becoming ruins. There was even space to pitch my tent in the old gardens but I opted for the spot I had first found next to the river and what appeared to be a little-used track by a bridge. The bridge had a safety warning attached: “not to be crossed”. I think it had been the shortest route from the road to the house used when the house had been inhabited.
During the evening, a red squirrel dashed past amazingly within a few feet of my tent – so I had seen a red squirrel and I felt a bit sorry for those Australians but they hadn’t done the alternative route and they weren’t camping. A deer also passed within yards of my tent later in the evening. Sadly both were fleeting glimpses and I’ve no photographic evidence. The wind kept the midges away!
It had been almost 7pm when I pitched my tent but I decided to make a prompt start the next morning, just in case my tent was visible from the road. Probably it wouldn’t have been visible as it’s green and it was some distance from the road. However I was away by 07.00am.
I continued to walk down the glen, eventually reaching Loch Freuchie. A farmer on a quad bike with sheep dogs drove up and down a couple of times and gave a friendly wave. There had been a notice by the track mentioning that walkers are welcome and he obviously took the welcome to heart.
The track led to the small village of Amulree, where I crossed the river on the old bridge and joined the road. An information board explained that what had looked like islands on Loch Freuchie were actually remnants of an Iron Age stilted defensive platform on the water. The board also explained about the level of depopulation during the Highland clearances. Most inhabitants were evicted by force – between 1832 and 1835, 500 people had been cleared from Glen Quaich. By 1850, of the 3,500 people living along Loch Tay and Glen Quaich only 100 remained. Sadly many died on the journey across the Atlantic to Canada.
The drovers’ inn was a ‘King’s House’ on the 18th Century Wade Military road. Unfortunately its latest incarnation as the Amulree Hotel closed in 2007. However a notice nearby outlined a development strategy to refurbish the buildings and incorporate a mixture of businesses and residential units. It all sounds very exciting as long as it gets off the ground and is well thought out.
I left the village, making my way up the road until I had gone in total almost three quarters of the way around Loch Freuchie. I turned up a side track to walk up Glen Lochan over the pass where the path became boggy and disappeared. However a path and then track reappeared as I descended into Glen Almond near the Auchnafree Estate Buildings.
It was a good track to begin up Glen Almond, later becoming a path which was less distinct. Once I had reached the isolated building at Dunan, I turned north to descend towards Ardtalnaig.
I aimed to find a spot to camp on the moor before reaching the lower pasture. The ground turned out to be hummocky and boggy but I was fortunate to find a small area with some firmer grass near the stream. The wind had dropped so there were a few midges but otherwise it was a perfect campsite and probably the best wild camp for me on the entire route.
I was delighted in the morning to have a dry tent, although the cloud base had lowered overnight. There were also more midges so I was relieved that I’d remembered to pack my head net and repellent.
It didn’t take long to reach “civilization” – the return of both mobile phone and 4G signals. I passed a farm where the task seemed to be gathering in the sheep. After that the track improved and then became a tarmacked road to Ardtalnaig.
Map 51: Ardtalnaig to Lochearnhead
At Ardtalnaig, I was back on the main route. The path to Ardeonaig was entirely on a road above the south shore of Loch Tay. It was a quiet road but nonetheless I was pleased that I didn’t have to walk a longer section of road which would have happened if I had kept to the “standard” route. I stopped for coffee at the hotel as I passed – but there wasn’t any cake!
The path onward deviated away from Loch Tay up a hill past an activity centre which I have gathered closed down following the Covid pandemic and has been sold for redevelopment. Fortunately I could see that it is being refurbished as there were several contractors’ vehicles there.
The moor seemed to be covered with flying ants. I’ve since discovered that there are annual swarms of flying ants and even a day designated as “flying ants day”. In reality the “day” can extend to weeks when the ants take to the sky en masse to find a mate every year. They didn’t seem to bite but it was disconcerting to discover myself covered with black ants which reappeared as quickly as I brushed them off.
As I climbed, I had good views of Loch Tay and later, having crested the hill, of the reservoir Lochan Breachlaich. Having reached the dam, the track turned into a service road. This road led all the way to Killin. However I didn’t need any further provisions so I turned off on a track to bypass the town. I also hoped that I would find a suitable place to camp – as long as I could get away from the ants!
Fortunately I found a place to camp just above the track. It was only 15.45 but I didn’t think there was any other potential camping place that I would get to within a reasonable time. As far as I know, no-one came along the track while I was there. I saw a fox on the hillside, but it didn’t come near.
There was rain overnight and it was ongoing when I woke with no immediate sign of stopping. I packed a wet tent but had managed to keep everything else dry. I left at 07.30am but in fact it was dry by 09.00am and I was able to lay my tent out to dry a bit at my first rest stop. I was back on the main route and walking along a disused railway line converted to foot and cycle path.
I walked over the impressive Glen Ogle Viaduct.
I decided not to descend to Lochearnhead village as I still had plenty of food. However soon afterwards I was tempted by the signs for the café at the old Balquhidder Station: http://www.thegoldenlarches.com/coffee-shop/ I wasn’t disappointed and ended up having a breakfast roll, Bakewell slice and two mugs of coffee. Apparently the “shark” toilet is world famous. I also managed to discover that my e mails had stopped coming to my phone 24 hours earlier because I needed to update my Google mail app. Why does this sort of IT problem always happen at the most inconvenient time? My husband was able to instruct me via a couple of texts and I did it using the free Wi-fi – that was my excuse for the Bakewell slice and second coffee!
Map 57: Strathyre to Drymen
I detoured through the village at Strathyre and did buy some provisions from the shop. I asked for some tap water for my water bottle and was told to go to the café. So that’s my excuse for the second coffee and cake stop of the day!
I left Strathyre, noticing that I was leaving the “Camping Management Zone” where wild camping isn’t allowed and fines of up to £500 made for non compliance. This was a little disconcerting as I didn’t know that I had entered the zone. I knew that near Drymen and Loch Lomond it wasn’t possible to wild camp anywhere and had booked sites but hadn’t realised that anywhere else near the Rob Roy Way was included in the Camping Management Zones.
Soon after that, the sun came out and I decided that I had reached a good place to finish drying my tent so I put it up. This would have been a suitable overnight camp, but I was keen to press on a bit further.
As I walked near the shores of Loch Lubnaig, I kept an eye out for a suitable wild camp pitch. However there didn’t appear to be anything – some possible areas were directly under electricity lines, there was much ground foliage and my tent would have been visible from the track. Hence I found myself at the south end of the loch and entering another camping management zone. In any case, I wouldn’t have camped there as it was on a holiday cabin site. I walked on towards Callander. I wasn’t at all sure whether or not I was still in a Camping Management Zone. Eventually around 2-3 miles from Callander I saw a stream trickling down the hill from my left side and the trees weren’t too densely packed. I decided to leave the path and explore for a potential camp site. Mostly the ground was too boggy or there were brambles which could ruin my tent. However I saw a small flat topped hill which I climbed. At the top, there was a small clearing and what appeared to have been used at some time as a camp fire or barbecue site. It looked like a perfect camping pitch for me and wasn’t visible from the path. There was some phone signal so I texted my husband to give him my camping position – in fact he rechecked on his computer and was sure that on that side of the path in the woods I was outside the Camping Management Zone. In any case it was after 6pm and I intended to leave by 07.30am. Actually my tent was so camouflaged amongst the trees that I took the precaution of setting a compass bearing when I went to fetch water as I certainly didn’t want to lose my tent.
In fact I should have got up even earlier. At 07.00am it started pouring with rain and I could see on the forecast that it wouldn’t stop until lunch time. When my tent came down at 07.30am it was VERY wet.
It was raining so much that I didn’t even go down to the Falls of Leny. The path was deserted apart from one man coming the opposite way who commented that the weather was keeping the midges away. I passed the remains of Boscastle Fort: one of the Roman forts located near the Highland Boundary Fault and controlling exit from the Highland Glens.
Soon after that I took a short diversion to Little Leny burial ground where Strathyre-born Dugald Buchanan (1716-68) is buried. He’s considered to be the principal religious poet of Gaelic Scotland.
On arriving at Callander, the first tea shop I looked at was packed. However I soon discovered Deli Ecosse https://deliecosse.co.uk/ up a side road. Particularly given that I was dripping rainwater everywhere, I received a really warm welcome and was pleased that I had found this gem within the town. The kind assistant even asked about the wet tent which she assumed was in my large rucksack!
All too soon I felt that I needed to be on my way. I headed out of Callander along the south side of the river, eventually continuing along the south bank of Loch Venachar where there were signs about the camping management zones. Fortunately I still had a long way to go before I wanted to camp again. The route turned off on to a track over the Menteith Hills towards Aberfoyle.
I met a few walkers coming the other way. The rain stopped soon after noon and I was near a convenient seat and grassy patch so I pitched my tent to start drying it.
Fortunately it was a Saturday as this route over the hills is currently closed for forestry work except at weekends. Some of the larches have a fungal disease (harmless to humans) and are having to be felled.
Everything seemed to be well signed, including a diversion to get round some recently fallen trees that aren’t being cleared until the autumn. However unfortunately I must have missed a sign or a sign was missing so I found that I had descended to a forest car park just over 2km short of Aberfoyle. I didn’t want to walk that far along busy A roads so I diverted back into the forest to find the path I needed just north of a golf course. Unfortunately I managed to take a wrong turn even after that but by then I was almost in Aberfoyle so I continued on.
Having reached Aberfoyle, I left almost immediately to enter the Loch Ard Forest. I felt certain and was correct that this area wasn’t within a Camping Management Zone. The only problem was actually finding a flat piece of land to camp. The flat places were either immediately adjacent to the forest track or were very marshy with knee high grasses.
I found a spot eventually but it wasn’t a brilliant place to say the least. It rained in the night and there was a lot of condensation so the flysheet and outside of the tent were soaking by the morning. I evacuated the site and found a place next to the track to lay my tent out to start to dry and to cook breakfast. Lots of cyclists and a single runner were up and about so early on a Sunday morning and passed me. Eventually I set off at 09.00am.
The rain started soon after. There were heavy showers with less heavy rain between them. There were also many patches of blue sky but I seemed to be constantly under a rain cloud. I passed the enormous Corrie Aqueduct and many domed shafts from the Victorian Loch Katrine water scheme built to supply fresh water to the people of Glasgow. The bridge is 304m long and Category B listed.
Eventually I reached the road to Drymen near Drymen Road cottage. It was still raining very heavily. Unfortunately I hadn’t studied the contours and so didn’t realise that there was so much uphill on the road. However I was cheered by the sight of three men dressed in kilts coming towards me – evidently they were taking the Rob Roy Way very seriously and I just managed to photograph them after they had passed me. It was bad enough walking in modern waterproofs – I dread to think how uncomfortable it must have been walking in a heavy rain-soaked kilt.
Just after I had reached the summit of the hill and started to walk down to Drymen, the rain stopped. I decided to try to dry my tent a bit more as it was still very wet and I wasn’t confident it would be dry once I arrived at my campsite. This provoked comments from passers by who seemed to think I might have been pitched there all night!
Eventually I crossed the place where the West Highland Way crosses the road and soon afterwards I was in the village at the end (or beginning) of the Rob Roy Way. I stowed away my trekking poles and put on my glasses so I could read cooking instructions on food in the Spar shop and only buy noodles etc. that cook almost instantly in boiling water. An elderly man who was sitting on a nearby bench and apparently commenting on all and sundry remarked to his wife that he wondered how I had been able to see to get there! At least it gave his wife a short break from comments directed about her which I realised were the main target of his verbosity.
Having stocked up on food, I realised that my booked campsite although called Drymen Campsite was over a mile away uphill out of the village. However it was worth the walk and I was pleased not to feel the pressure to find a suitable wild camp site after my struggles to do so on the two previous days. I arrived early at about 3pm and so had a wide choice of pitches. Gradually the walkers arrived – mainly people of all nationalities completing their first day on the West Highland Way out of Milngavie. Drymen Campsite was excellent with all facilities that a walker might need including free hot showers and a point for charging mobile devices as well as a large sheltered area for food preparation. https://drymencamping.co.uk/ I would have ordered a farm made pizza for dinner if I’d realised they were available! The site was also very quiet despite the large number of potentially noisy people.
Where's Kathryn? 