Walking from the West Highland Railway

Feature
Walking from the
West Highland
Railway
40
Scottish Mountaineer
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Feature
Photo: N. McNab ©
Ben Dorain
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Scottish Mountaineer
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Photo: N. McNab ©
Feature
Ben Lomond
Tim Woods, creator of ‘Car Free Walks’, suggests leaving
the car at home and taking the train. The West Highland
Railway from Glasgow into the highlands to either Oban
or Mallaig provides a scintillating taste of the best that
Scotland has to offer – serene lochs and lonely moors, offset
against the famously jagged mountain skyline. Walk from
the West Highland Railway and become eco-friendly
Photos by the author unless credited
F
or most mountain lovers, the
journey – however idyllic – is merely
the warm-up; indeed, being stuck
on a train as the summits flash past may
sound like torment to some. Fortunately,
the many stations on the West Highland
line provide easy access to some of the
country’s finest walks.
Those without the luxury of unlimited
free time will have to pick and choose
the stations from which to walk. It’s not
easy; as I spread out the maps that cover
the region, more and more ‘must-do’
routes leapt out. After much deliberation,
I decided to head for the central section
between Crianlarich and Corrour, which
offers the ideal combination of Munrobagging, the country’s finest Youth Hostel,
and a visit to Rannoch Moor – one of
Britain’s few remaining wildernesses
(albeit one with a pub, a phone box and a
station).
The West Highland Railway starts in the
urban surroundings of central Glasgow,
but it doesn’t take long to leave the
city behind. I spotted a hen harrier just
ten minutes from Queen Street Station,
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Scottish Mountaineer
swooping across the farmland beneath the
Kilpatrick Hills.
Around Helensburgh Upper, the
‘official start of the West Highland
Railway’, according to the information
board on the platform, the landscape
is dominated by gorgeous views across
the Firth of Clyde and Loch Long to the
hills of the Argyll peninsula, with the
loch-side villages between Rosneath and
Garelochhead adding a splash of colour to
the scene.
Trees crowded over from either side of
the single-track line, brushing the windows
as we trundled along to Arrochar & Tarbet
Station, where the distinctive
double-pronged summit of Ben Arthur
marked the start of the Highlands.
The northern reaches of Loch
Lomond soon came into view on the
right-hand side, but by now I had done
enough window gazing. My legs needed
stretching, and fortunately it was not
long before we pulled into Crianlarich,
with Cruach Ardrain – my target for the
day – looming large to the south-east of
the town.
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Feature
View looking north from Cruach Ardrain over
Crianlarich and the hills towards Tyndrum
Route Description
Cruach Ardrain (1046m)
From the station, head through the
Youth Hostel grounds and into the
forestry land. A bit of tricky route
finding takes you through the everchanging maze of trees and tracks,
before you reach Grey Height via
Meall an Fhreiceadain. From here,
follow the crest of the ridge that
leads on to Cruach Ardrain, with the
option of extending the route to Beinn
Tulaichean. Return via the same route
back to Crianlarich.
Maps
OS Explorer 364 – Loch Lomond North
Sleeping
Crianlarich Youth Hostel (01838
300260) is handily located right next to
the station. It’s popular, so book ahead.
There are also several B&B’s and hotels
in the village.
www.syha.org.uk
Eating and drinking
The Rod & Reel (01838 300271) in the
village centre is a popular choice with
walkers.
Been there, done that…
For an alternative walk from Crianlarich,
head along the West Highland Way to
Derrydarroch Farm and follow the Allt
Andoran to the Munros of An Caisteal
and Beinn a’ Chroin, returning via
Twistin Hill.
www.mcofs.org.uk
Cruach Ardrain
I
t was a typical start to a walking trip
in Scotland. Almost as soon as I left
the station, boots retightened and
backpack readjusted, dark voluminous
clouds appeared from nowhere to fill the
previously clear-blue sky.
They duly opened before I had made
much progress through the forest that
covers the lower slopes of the mountain.
And the rain merely served to top-up the
already-saturated ground underfoot, which
was testing the water-resistance claims of
my new boots. The warmth and comfort
of the train carriage already seemed a long
way away.
Forestry may be important for economic
reasons in this part of Scotland, but it
does little to aid route-finding, and I was
grateful to reach the clear ground of Grey
Height. A brief lifting of the cloud revealed
the peaks of Stob Garbh and Stob Coire
Bhuidhe across to the east, but it was back
in force at the summit of Cruach Ardrain.
The original plan had been to continue
on to the nearby Munro of Beinn
Tulaichean, but two walkers who had
come from there assured me that there
was little chance of better views. As we
huddled together over steaming cups of
tea behind the summit cairn, we decided
to head back to Crianlarich together
– company a better option than a lonely
walk in thick cloud.
Returning earlier than planned, I caught
the last train of the day heading for
Tyndrum, the next stop along the line. A
slightly underwhelming day on Cruach
Ardrain was soon forgotten as I spread out
my map in Paddy’s Bar and planned the
next day’s attempt on one of the region’s
star attractions – Ben Lui.
Walkers and train-spotters
mix at Rannoch Station
Scottish Mountaineer
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Feature
Along the track past Cononish Farm,
with Ben Lui in the background
Route Description
Ben Lui (Beinn Laoigh) (1130m)
At Lower Tyndrum Station, cross the
railway line and follow the track through
the forest. Head west along the River
Cononish before crossing the Allt an
Rund to climb into Coire Gaothach.
You can ascend via the north or south
ridge of the corrie; the path is easier to
locate on the northern side, but presents
no great difficulties on either side. If
ascending via Stob an Tighe Aird, make
sure to turn off as the small dip in the
ridge (NN272264) if you want to avoid
the hairy scramble directly to the top.
After circuiting round to the summit,
descend via the other side and return
along the Cononish valley to Tyndrum.
Maps
OS Explorer 364 – Loch Lomond North
or OS Explorer 377 – Loch Etive and
Glen Orchy
Ben Lui (Beinn Laoigh)
T
his mountain achieves a rare feat
for Scotland – a walk-in that rivals
the ascent itself. Travelling by train
means you approach from Tyndrum, which
provides plenty of time to admire one of
Scotland’s most remarkable mountain
views – Ben Lui’s Coire Gaothach: the
windy coire.
The huge wall at the back of the corrie
attracts plenty of climbers in winter
conditions. Central Gully is the most
popular route and was one of the earliest
Scottish winter routes, first climbed
in 1892 by members of the Scottish
Mountaineering Club. The parallel ridge
lines of Stob Garbh and Stob an Tighe Åird
provide a great challenge for walkers, and
this is where I headed.
The walk from Tyndrum starts in thick
coniferous forest, but this merely adds to
the anticipation. As soon as I reached the
path by the River Cononish, the famous
corrie immediately dominated the view,
despite sharing the mountain panorama
with the huge bulks of Ben Oss and Beinn
Dubhcraig.
I raced along the riverside path and
ascended quickly into Coire Gaothach,
still undecided on which side to ascend.
Various guidebooks champion both
sides as the best way up: Stob Garbh
on the northern side has a trickier, more
interesting climb, while the southern ridge
of Stob an Tighe Aird has fantastic views
across to Ben Oss and the chance to find
the wreckage of the Lockheed Hudson
that crashed here in 1941.
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Scottish Mountaineer
In the end, the weather forced my hand
– a break in the clouds allowed the sun to
light up the southern side, enabling me to
pick a suitable-looking gully by which to
ascend.
As I climbed, the giant corrie wall to
the right constantly drew my attention,
its mesh of gleaming slabs and moss and
rubble-laden gullies looking even more
foreboding at close quarters. Luckily, I
was concentrating on the route at around
850m, where a path leaves the precarious
corrie edge and heads to the summit via
the friendlier slopes around Càrn Mhuirich
and Sgiath Dhubh.
It is possible to reach the summit by
scrambling directly up the ridge from the
dip in the arm of Stob an Tighe Aird, but
only for those with a very sure head for
heights – the cliffs to your right are very,
very steep!
After saluting the summit with a
flapjack-and-coffee stop, I descended via
Stob Garbh, disturbing a herd of deer
grazing near Coire an Lochain. Below me,
a lone soul was heading for one of the
many routes up the main wall, and the
chance to explore the intricacies of Ben
Lui’s magnificent corrie at close quarters.
I turned back repeatedly as I returned
via Cononish, trying to pick out his
distinctive red jacket among the everlengthening shadows that were spreading
across the mountain. At my last gaze near
Cononish Farm, he was lost in the haze,
no doubt enjoying the ‘Queen of Scottish
Mountains’ all by himself.
Sleeping
Stay at the By-the-Way campsite (01838
400333) next to Lower Tyndrum Station
– plenty of tent space, plus wigwams
and bunkhouses if it’s wet. They also
have a drying room.
www.tyndrumbytheway.com
Eating and drinking
The Real Food Café (01838 400235) is
great for a top-notch feed; Paddy’s Bar
(01838 200251) likewise for a topnotch drink. Both are in Tyndrum village
centre.
www.therealfoodcafe.com
www.glhotels.co.uk/tyndrumpaddys.html
Been there, done that…
Head for the often-overlooked Corbett
of Beinn Odhar (901m); it is easy to reach
from Tyndrum; head north along the
West Highland Way and go from there.
The great corrie of Ben Lui
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Feature
Loch Laidon at dawn (near Rannoch Station)
Rannoch Moor
P
ersistence pays in Scotland. After
two days of weather that could
best be described as ‘wet and
cloudy’, the autumn sun was beating
down as I hopped on the train and
headed for Rannoch Station.
This is perhaps the most stunning
part of the West Highland Railway,
and surely one of the sections that
persuaded the readers of Wanderlust
magazine to award it the title of ‘Top
Rail Journey in the World’.
This new-found fame meant I needed
to bag a seat early; the snap-happy
crowds were out in force, and the
window spots quickly become blocked
by their oversized cameras (and, in some
cases, bodies). Luckily they all flocked to
the western-side windows, where a thin
band of cloud hung low in Glen Orchy,
leaving me to gaze in peace upon Beinn
an Dòthaidh and Beinn Dorain, which
tower over Bridge of Orchy Station.
During my pre-trip planning, I had
decided to leave these twin peaks
out, for forgotten reasons that I now
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Scottish Mountaineer
regretted as they looked magnificent in
the morning sunshine.
They were soon forgotten at the
next stop, though. A quick tour of the
hamlet of Rannoch, on the edge the
sprawling emptiness of the namesake
moor, and even tiny Tyndrum will feel
like Las Vegas.
The hamlet has just eight full-time
residents, which includes Gracie in
the station tearooms, who gave me all
the local gossip as I took in a pre-walk
cuppa. She also told me about the
Harry Potter film crews that arrive here
every other year to film the Hogwart’s
Express scenes for the blockbusting
series. “They come in here, wanting
tea and sandwiches,” she told me, with
a doleful shake of the head. Not an
unreasonable request in a tea room, I
thought silently, but perhaps it is more
the noise and bustle that annoyed
her, for Rannoch Moor is a place best
appreciated with the minimum of
human disturbance.
The moor is truly captivating, a
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Feature
Looking down on Loch Laidon from
the path up to Stob na Cruaiche
Route Description
Stob na Cruaiche (739m)
From Rannoch Station, cross the railway
line and head past Cruach Cottage
along the forest track. Just before Allt
a’ Bhùirich – an obvious ford where the
burn crosses the track – a path leads
sharply to the right and continues on to
Stob an Armailte and Stob na Cruaiche.
To descend, take a bearing from the
summit of the second peak down to the
footpath that runs between Glencoe
and Rannoch. Follow this back through
the forest to Rannoch.
Maps
OS Explorer 385 – Rannoch Moor and
Ben Alder
Cloud sweeps over Stob na
Cruaiche, north of Rannoch Moor
Sleeping
The Moor of Rannoch Hotel is a good
(and the only) option for those seeking
a bed for the night (01882 633238).
www.moorofrannoch.co.uk
There is a bunkhouse on Rannoch
Station; ask at the tearooms on the
station, or call 07876 754999. Wild
camping is allowed around Loch Laidon,
but ask permission first.
Eating and drinking
The hotel does tasty local food (book
ahead) and the tearooms on Rannoch
Station are open from 10:00 - 16:00,
March to October. Other than that, it’s a
gas stove and whatever you’ve brought
with you.
Been there, done that…
The footpath to Corrour Station, along
the lower western slopes of Carn
Dearg, is a popular walk and it can be
done between trains if you want to
return to Rannoch.
rippled brown carpet of heather pitted
with lochs and lochans that are a legacy
of its glacial history. The panorama on
all sides is framed by the craggy peaks
that fence the moor in – the Mamores
and Glen Coe to the west, the Bridge of
Orchy group to the south, and the Loch
Ossian hills sitting to the north.
But enticing as it appears, the moor
itself is no place for an aimless wander
– every year unsuspecting hikers get
stuck in its boggy wilds. A better option
is to find a vantage point from which
to admire the scenery, and Stob na
Cruaiche, rising above Loch Laidon, is
the pick of the bunch.
After a steady couple of hours’
climbing through forest and across
moor, the summit surroundings had
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The Moor of Rannoch Hotel
all the vital ingredients for the perfect
Scottish mountain day – warm sunshine,
a light breeze to keep the midges away,
and the only company the herd of deer
that galloped past. A fair reward for the
cloud at Cruach Ardrain I thought, as I
tried to name the surrounding summits.
Scottish Mountaineer
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Feature
Loch Ossian (near Corrour) and
Scotland’s most tranquil youth hostel
Càrn Dearg and Sgòr Gaibhre
The final day’s walking started from
Corrour Station, the most remote in
Britain. No vehicles venture here: it is
strictly for car-free walkers only. And all
the better for it: a glimpse of how much
of the Scottish countryside once was. It is
also another station on the West Highland
Railway where walkers are spoilt for
choice. There are Munros and Corbetts
on all sides, plus plenty of long-distance
routes in all directions. These, however,
are more suitable for people without three
days of walking behind them (and no more
clean socks).
Càrn Dearg and Sgòr Gaibhre, the two
Munros between Corrour and Rannoch,
were the hills of choice; a short walk in
from the station being a key attraction by
this stage, with my legs beginning to feel a
touch heavy.
More glorious autumn weather meant
the climb past Meall na Lice on to Càrn
Dearg flew by. If anything, the views here
topped those at Rannoch Moor. Nothing
interrupted the stretching landscape of
loch and mountain. The deer that had
been constant companions on each day
were nowhere to be seen, but two startled
ptarmigans squawked away as I trudged
across the saddle between Carn Dearg
and Sgòr Gaibhre. Upon reaching the
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Scottish Mountaineer
second summit, the huge bulk of Ben
Alder dominated the view to the east,
with Rannoch Forest in the foreground
and the sun shimmering on Loch Ericht
to the south; truly a trip into the heart of
Scotland.
Given the proximity of these peaks to
Corrour, it would have been feasible to
make the last train home. But this is not a
place to be dashing for trains; leave that
to the city dwellers. No trip to Corrour
would be complete without an evening
spent at Loch Ossian Youth Hostel, surely
the finest setting of any accommodation
in Scotland. This former boathouse, from
where shooting parties once headed across
the water to the Corrour Estate, is now
the ideal spot to rest weary feet and dry
saturated socks.
The fire was warming the toes and the
whisky, dutifully carried in by a fellow visitor,
doing likewise with the cockles of the group
who had assembled that night. But I briefly
left the comfort of the hostel to catch the
last of the day’s light. The setting sun was
illuminating the sky above the Nevis Range
in a rich palette of colours, and birds called
to each other over the gentle ripples of the
loch – the only sounds that would be heard
until the first train of the day chugged by
the next morning.
www.mcofs.org.uk
Feature
Corrour Station
Corrour Station
Route Description
Càrn Dearg (941m) and
Sgòr Gaibhre (955m)
These two Munros are a great day out
from Corrour. From the station, take the
track signposted to the Youth Hostel.
Continue past the turning for the hostel
and beyond the rocky lump of Meall na
Lice. There’s a bit of heather bashing up
the slopes on to Càrn Dearg, but from
there on it’s a glorious high-level route
on to Sgòr Gaibhre, Sgòr Choinnich and
back via the path around Loch Ossian.
Maps needed
OS Explorer 385 – Rannoch Moor and
Ben Alder
Loch Ossian Youth Hostel in the dawn mist
Sleeping
Loch Ossian Youth Hostel (01397
732207) is a perfect place to spend
a night in the heart of the Western
Highlands.
www.syha.org.uk
(Note: the B & B and bunkhouse on
Corrour Station are currently closed)
Eating and drinking
Whatever you bring with you – there’s
no eating-out round here (the hostel is
fully self-catering).
Been there, done that…
The walk along the Lairig Leacach from
Corrour Station to Spean Bridge is one
of Scotland’s great valley walks – but
allow at least a day.
www.mcofs.org.uk
Scottish Mountaineer
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Feature
Further
Information
LochTulla
The West Highland Railway
“Let the Iron Road to the Isles
– Rathad Iaraim nan Eilean – make
tracks for you to follow”
More information about the West
Highland Railway
For cheap and flexible rail fares in the
region, visit:
Photo: N. McNab ©
I
n 1889, the North British Railway
Company overcame the opposition
of landowners, rival railways
and steamboat operators to obtain
permission to build a line between
Glasgow and Fort William. Built
to serve the isolated communities
of the north-west of Scotland, the
West Highland Railway was officially
opened on 11th August 1894.
Construction was not without
its difficulties. In total, it took five
years and around 5,000 workers to
complete the line. Crossing Rannoch
Moor was a particular hazard. The wet
ground meant that sections of track
had to ‘float’ on a bed of ash, rubble
and brushwood. During the early
stages, a party mapping the best route
for the tracks got lost on the moor
and had to be rescued by shepherds!
The line has long been used by
hikers. In the 1920s and 1930s, regular
parties headed north from Glasgow
to walk and climb in the hills. And
today, increasing numbers of walkers
and tourists alike are re-discovering
the pleasures of taking the ‘Top Rail
Journey in the World’. Who would
want to be stuck behind a steering
wheel when the scenery is this good?
www.scotrail.co.uk/content/highlandrover.html
www.scotrail.co.uk/content/feedomscotland-travelpass.html
For more information about sights
along the way, download this guide to
the railway line:
www.scotrail.co.uk/sites/files/pdf/
WHLlinelft.pdf
To see the competition it beat off to
claim its title, visit:
www.wanderlust.co.uk/article.
php?page_id=2415
roads and also cutting down on your
carbon emissions: a vital contribution
in global efforts to tackle climate
change.
Car Free Walks, the website for
green walkers, has routes across
the UK, including fantastic car-free
routes in many parts of Scotland. You
can also add your own routes to the
website for others to enjoy.
www.carfreewalks.org
Car-free walking in Scotland
Taking the train not only enables you
to concentrate on the views, it’s also
better for the environment. Leaving
the car behind means you are helping
to reduce congestion on Scotland’s
About the Author:
T
im Woods has written travel and walking articles
for several publications, including Trail, Summit,
The Dalesman, The Guardian and other magazines.
He writes a regular column about responsible travel for
Kanoo World Traveller. He has five years experience of
writing and editing environmental articles as an editor
at the Institute of Development Studies, UK, as well as
editing many other publications in Europe and Africa.
He is co-founder of Car Free Walks (www.carfreewalks.
org), a website that encourages walkers in the UK to
take the bus or train by suggesting routes that can be
reached using public transport. He has researched and
written most of the walks for the website, as well as
updating a blog with longer articles and ideas about carfree walking.
http://carfreewalks.blogspot.com
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Scottish Mountaineer
Gary Shipp from Car Free Walks waits at Corrour Station with two weary
near-Munroists – just ten left after the Loch Ossian hills had been ticked off
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