Solo Camping Along The West Highland Way | Learning To Thrive

[Music] my name is Abby I'm deeply passionate about all things world and have made it my mission to document many of the world's most stunning trails be that through day hikes or multi-day long-distance walking each route is totally unique some traverse expose moorlands and rugged mountain tops others pass through a bustling market towns and historical cities they follow world-renowned archaeological discoveries and travel through some of the most tranquil valleys and mystical forests accessible on foot it's not surprising then that they attract workers from all over the world many seeking a challenge others looking to break free from you're not a name of everyday life and be inspired by nature my reason for hiking though is one of discovery and awareness getting outside is now more important than ever before with obesity rates maintaining record highs and mental health issues affecting over one in four individuals there are incredible landscapes all around us but so few of us dare to venture and seemingly inhospitable lands for fear of failure or becoming lost well I'm here to show you otherwise and inspire you to Don your walking boots and spend more time in the world for the benefit of mental and physical health I've realized that sometimes you don't have to do something crazy or radical to change how you feel about life you just have to walk I face my own trials with mental ill-health as no doubt you're seen throughout my travels but alongside building the strong support network getting outside and taking the time to reconnect with nature has helped me move further along the road of personal discovery so here's me inviting you to join me on my adventures as I explore this beautiful planet there will be challenges along the way and we're not guaranteed to succeed but it takes a brave heart and a courageous soul to commit it to the unknown now all you have to do is decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it are you ready let's go [Music] we have arrived in Glasgow this is the beginning of our next adventure today what we're doing is heading to the start of the west highland way right through the scottish highlands we've left behind some pretty trashy weather in bristol and arrived in sunshine but I've seen the forecast but I'm not expecting it to last nevertheless my first task is to find some gas I obviously couldn't fly with camping gas and so now I need to do is get into the city center to find an outdoor shop morning wash that on there thank you Cheers enjoy your day Guilhem on street here we are very in central Glasgow and what I'm looking for now is a mountain warehouse [Music] there are so many people know as we're in survival mode thanks we are at moguy this is an outer suburb of Glasgow City and it's here that the West Hannah wait officially begins my nine to six mile journey through the Scottish Highlands and the best place for me to begin is that the obelisk which I've just got to find I can see a west highland way sign there the first of many I'm sure ah mrs. erode or begins West Hannah way this way here we are the official start of the west highland way this is the scottish this so that I'll be following the entirety of my journey all the way through the mountains and the moorlands and along the Loch sides of the entire route now I actually walked this route in 2012 with my month it was the first trail I'd ever walked we did actually be in V it but I'm so excited to retrace my steps to see what I can remember and just to enjoy the journey through the best scenery that Scotland has to offer now my official trail goes that way and I'm just gonna wander around more guy for a little bit just soak up the atmosphere or you could buy to civilization and then head out into the unknown let's do this the West Highland way was Scotland's first official long-distance root opening in 1980 and is now designated by the Scottish national heritage as one of Scotland's great trails walked by over 36,000 individuals each year alrighty I've had a look around the kind of middle part from all guy I've cured myself with a coffee murmurs from the caffeine to finally just trying to reign now safer rather than waste loads of time stopping and starting I've just put my waterproof coat on and I've got my waterproof cover on my bag and now what I'm gonna do is just try and pick up some west highland way signs and begin the walk basically it's kind of funny cuz there's a lot of people around with backpacks but I'm really keen to certainly start on my own I know that the west highland ways are very popular tray but I like to use the first day to kind of get in the mindset find my pacing just adapt to the trail obviously it's a very different speed to normal day-to-day life which is go-go-go and today what I'm doing there is I'm walking about ten miles so it's about quarter past 11:00 in the morning I've been up since 3:30 and we're walking to just south of shriman with dry men and uh that's it for today so here we go welcome to start your journey as you walk the west highland way look out for these people from the past they too traveled parts of this route for many different reasons and have a tale to tell we hope you enjoy your visit and that your walk is a pleasant one thank you very much kind of show you some of the key sights on route and famous people that have used sections of the trail now the guidebook I'm using for my trip is this Trailblazer travel guide I've also got Harvey's map as well but to be fair you know I've done this chair before and I remember it being extremely well signposted now we saw the Scottish thistle on the beginning Ovilus and here's another one so this is what I expect to be following these kind of wooden markers with the pistol on telling us which way to go and this is just here as a back up really I'm hoping to just enjoy actually being reasonably map free obviously referring to this to make sure I know where I am but uh and the other thing that's great about this actually is that it tells you about the places that you're walking through about the points of interest the opening and closing times of shops and campsites so he's very helpful to have obviously it is an extra weight and but I'm hoping it's going to come in handy but as I say I do also want to spend a fair amount of time without a map just enjoying the landscape and soaking up everything that Scotland has to offer the route cast into the Islander Park alongside the underwater River one of the main tributaries of the river Kelvin it's quite weird because we walk in through this park although these beautiful beech and oak and silver birch trees and you feel like you're kind of out there already but actually all-around is the sound of industrial wax and building and you can smell the I don't know metal or whatever it is it's kind of just such a contrast check this out now I'm one for finding wild foods and bilberries or one of my all-time favorites it's a little late in the season but I have spotted one single berry that's a lie now that I've got closer I have spotted three Moshe berries here's two of them so bill breweries are basically like wild blueberries they're incredibly sweet wonderful wonderful and they grow on these low-lying shrubs quite distinctive actually and uh I'm very common to find all over Scotland the Lake District get them up in the Peak District you even get there near us and the corn top hills a O and B so they're all over the place they're growing this kind of scrubland ancient woodland up on the moss and they're always great fun to stumble upon but warning they do slow your progress the park was a lovely place to walk and obviously well treasured by the locals there were birds of all kinds singing in the trees and wildflowers dancing along the edge of the trail it was hard to not be inspired at the moment then what we're doing is working our way through this forest to the cog Alan look now this is the point where I have a little disclaimer just noting I'm probably not gonna pronounce stuff right on this walk but I'll do my best and I asked people where I can't because names are important and actually often the names of a place can tell us a little bit about a history how it was used or or yeah the people that live there I know very little about the kragle and Locke so we'll see what it's like when we get there I think I vaguely remember walking alongside it before so let's see if those memories come back with a bit more clarity in a bit you know finally the industrial noise has been left behind we're out these are this kind of meadowland with these coniferous trees beside us you know it really does feel like Scotland here we are then this is the Kigali and Locke you see the the mountains looming above us just over there in the background then the forest all around if only it was sunny but uh you know it's quite atmospheric and I feel like the clouds and the mountains are welcoming me to the highlands say it's all right actually I could not be happier right now this is just a little slice of heaven oh I nearly walked right past this one check out this memorial this is the car gallon fire Memorial and basically what it is or what it was this area here was a meeting spot in the 1920s and 30s during the Great Depression where poorer people from the lower classes and travelers would come and they'd sit around a fire here that would be burning always burning and they just share stories and talk about things and ideas and there was a real kind of social spot and now there's this this kind of rock fireplace here in memory or remembrance of these people many of which went on to fight in the Civil War it's just tucked away here in this grave of cheese it's quite a special the obvious yet really peaceful path took me past the number of secluded chalets they look to be wonderful places to stay which looked over the smaller car better look Hey look for William ninety-two miles a quick stretch along a quiet road offered further views across to the little lock before I turn north along a level path into open grassland [Music] ok I'm aware I'm talking a lot today but can I just say wow like we're on day one we're barely five miles into the trail and this is the scenery I mean wow there's nothing else much to say I really want to showcase the beauty of this trail but not just that I want to really highlight how accessible it is this is many people's first long-distance route 96 miles it's really achievable and six or seven days a bit longer if you want you know it's not crazy challenging in terms of terrain and it's just absolutely stunning the rewards you get for the effort you put in you just can't go wrong and I'm really hoping that through this video I can encourage you to join your own walking boosts and head out here and check it out for yourself towering above me were a range of volcanic Hills known as the cap sea fells and just ahead was the wooded Don Goya Hill famous with a short line of standing stones that remain nearby thought to be the facade of a chamber tomb dating back to the Neolithic period as the rain came in I made steady progress along the disused Blaine Valley Railway which between 1882 and 1951 carried passengers from a defile to prosper [Applause] at the moment then we're just working with intermittent heavy heavy showers it like pours down and then the sun's like yeah I'm gonna shine for like two seconds and then the rains like oh no you're not and then lashes it down and then the sun's like yeah but I like these people man so it shines for like two seconds and then the rains like no you don't so it's a very intermittent at the moment but I think it is gonna get more set in but it does mean these heavy showers saturate everything including the ground but there's this beautiful patch of blue sky ahead of us that's looking very appealing so let's just keep heading that way the beech tree in is the first real stop available on the trail you can stop outside using their picnic area next to the Shetland ponies and their west highland white inflamation border or you can head inside and devour one of their famous deep-fried Mars bars even though we're pretty much just walking in a straight line on this really flat terrain is it's lovely because the Verge's are alive with wildflowers at this time of year and we've got Rose Bay willow Hogg here I've seen some wild orchids I've seen bird's foot trefoil I've seen the rowing trees and the oak and the silver birch I mean when you know what to look for there is so much to see and I mean these shades of pink and purple just they bring the landscape to life even in the dull and darkness that the rain brings I mean look at this it's stunning it wasn't long before another warm wet arrived but it couldn't dampen my spirits which soared as I walked along the roaring edrick water which apparently is a great place to watch salmon in the autumn the trail also passed by a millennium post just to the side of the road the sun's come out and we're on this road which should follow all the way to German and I met up with Ron and Cecilia here oh we just like laughing up the race these guys are from New Mexico right and they're on the west Hannah way 10 days of hiking during it so far that's it but now you see they got some free epic shells near them so we've been talking walking and I'm feeling inspired to head out west I think yeah it's good for the function I anyway welcome to German comes in oh man that's me oh jeez guys take care I might see you tomorrow I got two miles to catch you up yeah yeah that's it bye guys so yeah this is German camping kind of stumbled upon that and I really feel ready to stop but it is nearly four o'clock and I guess since we've been up since 3:30 probably ought to rest I tell you what they I love lovely people piranha Syria man they're cool although a little busy the campsite was blissfully basic and I pinched up meaning overjoyed at the first day of walking I fell peacefully asleep to the sound of heavy rain snug in my sleeping bag life sure was good on the trail good morning and welcome to day 2 on the west Hanlon way he's pretty overcast today the cloud base is reasonably low but I can't in caught some glimpses as the dawn through my tent and the heads which was nice and in that sentence I'm inferring I got a lot less sleep than perhaps I need but it's just before seven o'clock and I'm on the trail so I'm making my way to dreaming this is about a mile and a half away from where I was staying and yeah I'm looking forward to today we've got about 20 miles ahead of us it's really nice to be out early I'm kind of feeling a bit overwhelmed at the number of people on the trail it's very busy lots and lots of hikers and backpackers which is good because it means I get to meet people but part of why I can't watch the trail is to think and get creative in my mind and also to sort of push myself as well but always see here we meet today and the goal really there is a known destination it's a rush Bobby maybe I said that okay on the shores of Loch Lomond huh there's like a very young West Island wait crossing don't go silent wave odds with the Scottish bit on there that is great funny I'll say they're not word they're plastic and wine they tried right there's an honesty box so basically the way these work is it's just someone who's really nice clearly a walker and even honesty Vox you put the money in the box and then each box has different kinds of stuff this one's got lots of water cuz obviously they've had a lot warm weather but yeah it's cool really nice people thank you west highland way for doing at the moment then is working our way up to the forest trap that would lead us hop Taconic hill which is 361 metres of our sea level and from there we should get pretty epic views overlock alone and say some steak for that quick a few miles yet to get there but it's just a nice gentle incline at the moment and where it's gonna get more steep so just pacing it out finding my flow for today and yeah there's such a still morning it's lovely there's been blackberries and raspberries along the side of the trail that I've been utilizing to get some vitamin C and just been doing a bit of flower ID as well so I'm certainly not rushing this just uh just warming up and seeing myself into a couple of miles nice and easy the wide track climb gently through what remains of the guard van forest much of which had been clear felled those who seek to wild camp the entire trail often find a shaded spot here and I passed by a number of tents pitch just off the trail honor Osprey happy days you know number one happy days mmm and another one life is good after crossing over the rock roy way another local long distance trail i rounded the corner to my first views over Lockland the second largest lake in Great Britain after loch ness by water volume it was a breathtaking sight and I could the line of islands that marked the Highland boundary fault a massive geological fracture separating the lone uns from the Highlands it's such a dramatic landscape honestly it's really amazing to watch the weather unfold here [Music] all the way along though we've got this Ling Heather so the flower grows all the way up the stalk it's beautiful how it's just come out and it catches the light when it shows itself and just brings the place to life [Applause] brothers track here and oh my gosh it's a hair ah it's quite far away but it's heading up the trail look in here but I've never seen a hair before as a man's in here surely Oh crossing over the burn of mark I finally began 170 metres sent around chronic Hill the first real climb of the trail it took me up into the cloud although I never felt alone since there are very friendly sheep everywhere I looked you can see the paths made out of these big boulders they're designed to help reduce erosion by coping with the heavy footfall often popular places like this on routes that see thousands tens of thousands of people a year just get it rode it away so the Rangers put in these big rocks that help to just protect the land from the number of people ah this is a lovely kind I'm pretty sure up there is the top of conic hill I didn't have to get there yet I think there's a split in the park so we're here we may as well venture up it's already wild and windy I don't see why not my face is a bit numb oh come on they're in for a bit amazing the number of people who are still growing up they just matter your taste of Scotland I guess I'm actually here tree creepers which are a cool little bird that scans are up and down trees they're very hard to see so I'll keep my eye open and of course for dinosaurs you just never know what's around here actually vaguely remember this it's the National Park Center Loch Lomond and the TRO six suit the National Park became fully operational in 2002 and encompasses around 720 square miles the center itself was a really interesting place crammed with stunning imagery and fines from around the park that left me feeling inspired to be heading out into such a wild land golden eagle feather no that's cool oh man if you're on this cherry you've got to go in there and chat to the staff they're lovely really friendly really knowledgeable I just asked about the body what's the situation like there and they said yeah great place to stay just watch out for pine martens you got a lot of food up so that's a new one on me anyway to the shop get some supplies and keep walking it's very cold I should carry one of these they're great I love it though the rain had briefly passed I treated myself to a warm brew at the cozy sand locker cafe it was truly blissful to stop and dry out though worried I would never leave eventually I pulled myself away from the warmth and we're now back outside so you got about 11 ish miles to go to the body for the first goal is to get to rewardin and which is about seven miles away but check this out we're on Loch Lomond now by the waters front was a statue of Tom we're a local climber author and broadcaster and a pioneering campaigner for the protection of the Scottish environment it felt like a really peaceful space though I doubted with the busyness in the summer they would have quite the same atmosphere it's taking me a bit of time to get my head around the scale of LOC home and the fact that it's taking the equivalent of a day to walk along and just standing on that outpost there kind of all the way around was the loss you know it's pretty big so it's gonna be nice to journey along it for a bit of time and just experience the locker all it's got to offer one of Scotland's great trails I love the West Hollen way the trail was easy to follow mostly under the trees but occasionally out on the benches of a lot along the edge of the path there were plenty of funghi to keep me entertained such as shaggy ink caps and a horseshoe funghi seriously despite the rain this is a really really lovely walking at the moment it's quite undulating but we're just walking through this birch forest you got Bilbrey and blackberry carpeting floor there's been quite a few blue tips and great tips and longtail tips flying around are the only thing I'm not enjoying right now is there's a big group behind me very noisy they're walking about the same pace as me so we keep catching each other up and I keep pushing on out front and then burning out because it's just too fast to maintain and then they catch up and they're just feeling a bit pressured by myself because I not enjoying their loudness the stillness of the forest it's just beckoning to be absorbed and I don't want to get caught up in a big group of day orcas there welcome to cash L that's a pretty cool place up there is actually a farm that they've been working on this scheme to replant 3000 hectares I think it is or native woodland here around Loch Lomond as I think is incredible actually they've been working on that skini who volunteer to get involved and pretty sure but yeah I think they should have liked her the billboard about it to be honest is pretty incredible what they're doing it was actually 3,000 acres they were working to restore planting many native trees such as oak birch Scots pine Aspen and more you can sponsor their project online or head out to explore their woodland trails if you're in the area suddenly the rain doesn't matter I have found ville breweries many many bilberries this will help my vitamin C intake which is basically nil we just missed the lucky now basically there's a car pipe that there's also these numbered place they don't go and pass those number six number five number four and their pictures so you can pay it's a picture on the shores of Loch Lomond like this guy has you can have fires here too I mean it's a pretty cool place to camp let's be real while camping isn't allowed along this area of the Loch between March and October in an attempt to help minimize the environmental impact of the millions of visitors each year there are however plenty of designated campsites or permit areas solely for the use of campaign and you can book ahead to ensure you get a space environmental research for a changing world pacu university of glasgow food station well the field station was monitoring water temperature air temperature and other external environmental variables i didn't stop the long to read all of the details but it looked to be a fantastic the interesting project to be involved in here's the sign for warden and hotel go a lot of people tend to stop off there or the youth hostel on bunk house which is just a little bit further on along the trail but there's a shelter the ben lomond shelter that I'm just gonna stop off at because they think I can get some water there and then from the youth hostel it's about an hour and a half to be Vavi happily rewards Ninh is probably best known as the starting point for the main path but Ben Lomond which sits at 974 metres above sea level the hotel itself is a notable milestone along the way which many a weary walker stops at for a drink and some hearty grub at a Klansman bar the area also sits within the 50,000 acre Queen Elizabeth Forest Park one of six such parts in Scotland created in 1953 the year of the coronation of Elizabeth the second I found the shelter it's pretty cool actually there's like toilets Amish dry so I'm hoping to talk about my water here before he head on just on from the shelter was a stone war memorial a compassionate reminder that since 1995 the area around Ben Lomond including the summit is a designated Memorial Park those who gave their lives in the first and second world wars we're at ptarmigan Lodge this is this point here and just further up is a gate that signals the sort of end of the management zone so in theory you can walk camp anywhere from then onwards which is quite good vertical swearing-in for the body and hopefully we'll get there sometime today this is where the path splits ah you can either carry on along the track or head down the trail the trails proper undulating but it goes direct to the body I'm gonna go this way I've decided he's still undulating but it's gonna be easier underfoot and hopefully is a little bit quicker there were countless waterfalls of all intensities and velocities tumbling down from the fells above though I felt weary there energy lifted my spirits over and over and kept me moving always they weren't the only thing though that grabbed my attention they might be mountain goat droppings and it might slap there hmm interesting we're finally finally at the junction where the lower path joins us so what I've got to do now is just backtrack so hopefully I'm about ten minutes away we'll say from the body that's the only disadvantage with me having come up here is I've just got to go back on myself and you know I really don't know this trail has been improved so it could have you fine but I mean those waterfalls were cool anyway so that was fun let's get this done we've made it that was a tough day incredible day but tough hopefully we can get a good night's sleep and at least we don't have the putting up tents tough now so that's it day two on the Westland away done bring on tomorrow in 1759 there were actually nine families living within the area and the current day of body was once the buyer it was renovated though in 1965 and has now maintained by the mountain body Association which oversees a hundred and two bodies and two emergency shelters across Scotland Wales and Northern England there were 14 of us staying in the body that night it sure was cozy but at least we were dry this really is like a magical forest the pine trees reaching towards the sky like hands almost desperate for light and then all around the floors carpeted with moss ah so and there we go that introduces us to day 3 we're leaving the body behind that was there an interesting night not quite as restful as I would have hoped we had a lot of mice about and they were trying to get into my stuff so anyway it's all good it's all part of the adventure the best thing about that was it was dry I could hear the rain coming down all night and I checked the forecast in this morning is supposed to be a little bit better then this afternoon so I thought as always we'll get started nice and early I think everyone was like oh was she getting up but you know I did wait half an hour actually so I think that was very generous of me and that is you know part of staying in a body is we had some people arrive about midnight I think they intended on like partying but that wasn't gonna happen say anyway right we're on to day three let's do this I don't know how far it is today go ahead of two in phenom and there's a campsite there so become pink hopefully we can pick up and stock in the dry let's do this here we go this is where we left the trail yesterday so we came down that winding track that just took forever I was definitely feeling tired yesterday thankfully I'm feeling a little bit more refreshed because that was yeah that was on my limit so like I need to stop now so never get relieving that stretcher on to new territory I cannot get enough of these watersports but even better than that I can see the other side of the lock that's my first view of the other side of Loch Lomond you see the mountains above still covered in cloud but nothing like yesterday the gravel path continually climbed and dipped across small streams some of which could easily be stepped across others needing a bridge that would sometimes be pretty slippy in the dark conditions sadly when I pass by the little shed light structure called the cherry tree cafe was closed but had heard many great things about the place which was built using wood sources and further back on the lock how cool is this trail it's just like a tiny little path up and down along the side of the lock which is awesome as you can see I decided to brave just a t-shirt let's see if this pays off I just thought was it's not raining I wanted to make the most of it and I've got my earphones in just as a little bit of distraction to help me keep my pace up this morning I'm feeling a bit of fatigue boy as you can see a bit fatigued I say it's just gonna help me keep moving it was tough going but immensely fun winding around boulders and over tree roots little did I know this was actually the easy stretch but mostly I was just intrigued by the Lochte's Lloyd hydroelectric scheme that I can see on the other side of the Loch its construction which started in 1945 took four years to complete during which 21 men lost their lives some of which were German prisoners of war the site is actually on standby but can reach his full capacity in just five minutes from a standing start next up was the inverse need force which tumbled impressively into the lock below Wow it's so nice here in the stage because the waterfall behind me drowning out my voice which is definitely not problem and then in front of us we've got the mountains it just makes me wish that yesterday was clearer obviously we missed so much in terms of the views never mind at least we're getting some today the hotel was once a hunting lodge for the Duke of Montrose and a steeped in local history from clan warfare to the clearances nowadays though it's usually crammed with coaches and sightseers hoping to hop on the small ferry to our gluey we're leaving in the snake behind now this mystical place really with lots of people on the water pause in the mountains I like it but what we're doing now is we're good another couple of hours alongside there look there's lots of wildflowers and there's a nice steady pass at the moment which is good there's also the hydroelectric power station on the other side which is being my marking so far this morning but how far we travel would say it's quite cool but up next then we head into which Rob Rory's cave so we checked that one out Rob Roy was a morning guys a he's a famous figure in Scottish history born in 1671 he was the third son to can chieftain and basically he became an outlaw and he was on the run for ten years so this cave is said to be one of the places that he hid away and apparently there's a lot of graffiti outside saying cave so we'll see what we can make it aside we've got to get there fast it's not easy underfoot actually there's a lot of roots and stones and stuff you've got to kind of weave your way through them choose the path of least resistance thankfully I'm kind of used to doing this kind of thing but given the fact this is a lot of people's first trail just stretch along Loch Lomond it's definitely not easy oh and wise I'm just fooling down a hillside here's the sign for uh his cave let's go over look it's a little bit off path I'm not sure what those two see we'll find out um okay this isn't really down there I'm not sure there's somewhere I missed this boulder field okay you can just see the graffiti over there saying cave I'm not really sure how to get there and I'm not gonna risk injury trying to so that's rubberized cave just up there yeah that was fun I think if I didn't have my pack in 60 70 miles to go I would have gone on and scrambled to show and climb that cave because the last time we did the trail he didn't get there either so I was feeling hopeful this time I just have to keep stopping and taking in my surroundings every time I get a clearing like this it means I get a little bit wet but I can see down towards the end of the lock there with the islands and then up here we got the mountains and this is epic waterfall coming down and even though the cloud is coming in I'm just in awe of this landscape and completely amazed that I'm able to be here it's just there really are no words to capture the vastness and almost inspiration that this landscape gives off so it just draws you in and you around one corner and it changes in this it looks and around another and it changes again it's really quite dynamic and diverse in the different hues that it's giving off I'm loving it I read it as you can see I'm stumbling over my words I'm just speechless it's really easy to see why these places are just crammed with myths and legends I mean we've got these trees growing out of this rock here and then you see the most gnarly box that are like knotted together and intertwine two different species of trees rocks just standing still at the most Awkward angle it's an incredible place Wow how's the big one [Applause] Wow look at that that is amazing someone told me how I'm supposed to get down here with this pack oh all right we'll make this work some well not sure how it's all know I just get my Leslie right leg there okay survival of the fittest there's a seriously for straightening weather I feel like I've been giving one giant weather report so far on this trip but uh I'm quite enjoying how the weather is right now it's dry and there's a little bit of sunshine I don't know if it's a calm before the storm I'm not too worried right now because I've just come around the corner to this fantastic view towards the end of Loch Lomond but this ruins in the foreground but it's the background that gets me those mountains that is where we are going that is just the most or inspiring with you so far on the trail obviously we haven't had that many views but this is what I imagine the west island way to be like yes one of the old buildings was the Doon body a really cozy place that I vowed to head back to stay in Sunday firepit couple of sleeping spaces either side one over here that's cool this is a nice space we've uh just gone past the turning which takes you down to the lock side and the other side of the lock there's a place that we were looking at called Louie some people like to go there there's a campsite with camping pods and things laundry but for the rest of us you aren't stopping there we carry on and as it turns out we're climbing it's a couple of mountain goats up there we read their horns of massive the goats were a real surprise to see clearly very nimble on their feet and at home on the FEL sides they didn't seem at all bothered by me so I stopped to enjoy my little window into their world before pressing on was Wow and there it is one of the last views we're going to get over Loch Lomond and probably one of the best we've had so far on this entire journey okay goodbye Loch Lomond hello Highlands let's do this well that was really quick it looks like we're here and I could not be happier to be honest what time is it it is Oh watch this day I think it's about half past three so it's not exactly early let's be honest and I remember coming here with mum when we did the trail before and we stopped with some soup that was the most reviving soup ever but this is it so this is my stop for the night day three in the bag I was staying at the being last farm campsite right next to the Ben glass burn there was a shop bar restaurant and cabins but I pitched up away from the crowd and fell asleep to the sound of the ring good morning it's been raining all night and it's still kind of raining now just how to look out the cloud base is reasonably low it's not too bad but I'm just so slowly getting ready trying to ease myself outside we've got quite a bit of miles city today we've got about 19 20 miles to the bridge of Waukee so it's gonna be a solid walk and I just really hope that this weather doesn't stay set in the whole time it's just gonna be pretty miserable let's be honest so I will see how we go but in the moment I'm certainly not rushing outside even though I probably should be ready let's go Dave for rainy day the wide track made for easy walking alongside the river phallic into which drained many Falls and tributaries having a lot of camera travel at the moment this camera just forever steaming up and then if I take it out it gets wet and then if it gets wet does that risk of dying so uh I'm struggling to capture the beauty of this landscape I mean we've got the clouds which are just kind of blanketing the mountains there we've got these pylons which I think are actually really quite curious they just feel very out of place here there's cows and sheep around as I'm walking through this like moorland meadow bit it's really lovely Hannah it's great because all I'm doing is following this track so I'm not having to navigate at all there's no wind here and I'm making friends hey can I get free please I'd really appreciate that no you know fancy nah you shall not pass thank you very much I appreciate it very kind very kind have a good one um help Oh where's really gay I feel like I need to try and jump that there's a rock okay you with me three two one ninja skills over wet foot muggy me so well I think it'd be good the wet Thailand the way never mind the fact that is West everyone knows that no not everyone knows that is wet waterfall that's amazing haha this is designed for sheep not humans underneath the railway here's the next one under the a road look at this though the road was busy the noise rarely traveled far enough to bother me and I felt transported into a land trapped in time as I followed the 18th century military track honesty rocks in the middle of nowhere look at that that is crazy pretty happy of this let's have a look inside oh wow that's a proper honesty voice lucozade cans of energy drink you've got crisps Wow nice thanks very much whoever did that pretty awesome it's basically one big problem solving game today of how to get as least wet as possible here we are just coming into the you itch forest through this deer proof fence and I'll show you the sign quite helpfully points out if we were head okay right so again if we were headed down into Corinne Larry we'd go that way through the woods and that's where we love before that's where we stayed so rather than staying at the campsite we were being being so he went that way I say this sign looks new they welcome to Queen Larry crossroads an excellent place to rest aching legs and restore your spirits might possibly see a red squirrel we'll keep our eye open that looks to me like we're headed up there on towards syndrome and what I might do is sit on that bench and sort myself out we've got this drizzle coming in so we'll just make sure everything is covered up again before pressing on this co-fund this stretch of trail actually it's all going through clinical respondent and you get kind of open stretches like this where there's light coming in but then you get the darker bits as well where the pines are closer together and they're covered in like harry moss and reindeer antler moss that just seemed to reach down and try and stop you from passing through it's very atmospheric and it could be a lonely place if you're not used to this kind of thing but you know the way I figure it the shadows of our surface shadows there's got to be light and light is always a good thing oh I really can't wipe this smile off my face sure well sometimes it's dark and I've got wet feet and it rains and it gets cold but this chair is blowing my mind I don't feel like I've walked it at all I can barely remember anything so every corner is just full of discoveries and I'm loving the fact they're like each pine needles got a water droplet on that's reflecting their landscape the waterfalls are unique the leaves are just completely different I just want to scream for joy how amazing was that mid-sentence there's talking about how much I love this man state how incredible it is and a red squirrel pops out from behind the tree I didn't capture it very well because it was on my phone rather than my dear Salah I just had to whip something out so that was just even packet more time this landscape there are not the words in the English language to describe how much it inspires me I'm just completely head over heels in love right now just head it underneath the railway line which has got this incredible bridge almost like a viaduct with these cool arches and then there's there a 8/2 that we could hear just further on I think we've got to join it for a little bit pull it over egde the railway was part of the West heinonline voted as the top rail journey in the world in 2009 with the Glenfinnan viaduct used as the filming location for the Hogwarts Express in the Harry Potter film series pretty busy hopefully we can get across the river fillion look at that that's our biggest river yeah I think the Crenn Larry Hills you've got been more stop Benin and crush our drain over there somewhere can't see them today unfortunately we're just at the sight of the remains of the fillion Priory he was a seventh century evangelist who came over from Ireland to try and convert the Scots to Christianity and literally just tucked away here in this grade of trees and we've got some graves there actually I want they must be associated with it but uh it's quite a mysterious place the remains of the Priory actually date back to the 13th century when Robert the Bruce endowed the Priory in 1713 he was a strong believer in the cultists and Fillion and even took a holy relic to battle with him in 1314 the building itself must have been quite a sight at 50 metres long and many miracles are associated with some fillion such as the nearby holy pool which is said to cure insanity the Curtin graveyard contains barrios dating back mostly to the 18th century but some even earlier which have Latin crosses inscribed on them it's a really atmospheric place how brilliant is this gatepost and there's a Rowan growing out of it amazing ah yes is our first climbing cows look overall highland cattle in my opinion are the most attractive and lovely of cattle breeds they're Longhorns and shaggy coats make them easy to distinguish and they have an interesting history originating in the highlands and Outer Hebrides first mentioned in records from the 6th century AD look at this verge here there's so many different flowers we've got proof we've got torment ears we've got the headers you've got the hair bells little bracken it's just alive with color tinium community woodland this woodland belongs to the community of tin drum I don't know if it stemmed remote I'm drum either way we're in the woods we are very happy for you to use it but please treat it with respect in particular take care not to start any fires definitely you see some of the wildlife here dipper's we see them on the water black grouse maybe some meadow Pipit golden ring dragonflies are amazing and then we got here let or the bear area is where let all was brought down from the mines in the hills above Tindra and crushed and smelted the ingots were then taken back by well then taken by pack horse to Ulua 50 miles away gosh that's a long way the Battle of dollar II plan mcdougal and Robert the briefs were allies during the Wars of Independence in 1296 when Robert the Bruce murdered the nephew of the clan chief in 1306 they became enemies and then there was a battle during the summer of 1306 caught by surprise the battle was a short frantic engagement with the last of the Bruce's horsemen killed and several of his key allies injured afterwards Robert the Bruce went into hiding and two years later he went on to defeat them at duels the Battle of the path of the Brenda I'm loving all these billboards there's another one here that says the Lakhan of the lost sword the legend after he was beaten at dowry the Robert Robert the Bruce and his army threw their weapons into the small Lakhan this included Robert the Bruce's long sword could claim or and local legend suggest is still lies here to this day just come out into this clearing here and it looks industrial I reckon this is the odd site at the lead smelting nothing's grown here for over a hundred and fifty years oh look at that it's barren let mining really kicked off in Scotland from 1550 when mining companies and businessman set out looking for new opportunities unlike the coal mines though which forced the poor and criminals to work lead mining was a much more official process with hired men travelling from around the UK to come and work it was a dangerous job though involving exposure to great blast from gunpowder and breathing in of poisonous powder after 1820 however the availability of cheap led from Spain pushed the industry in Scotland into decline but evidence of these mines remain all around how do we get across here oh man steady steady get one two three four that's how in Gaelic the name Tindra means house on the ridge and it's a popular tourist stop with many campsites and bunk houses the village is actually built over the battlefield where clan MacDougall defeated Robert Bruce in AD 1306 though I was aware of none of this as I dragged my feet and scoffs some grub all right that was really good I stopped properly I ate food quite a lot of food I've drunk water I've got some more water and we're ready to move on to the next seven miles to the bridge of rocky also these are quite cool huh and so far I can hardly move so we got the road the railway the river and the path not bad for one Glenn well fueled I found a new energy in my step as I marched along the old Military Road I knew that in bad weather this stretch might have been exposed but on the day I was walking the atmosphere was blissful and the views even better it's like divergent off paths I can feel a blister or something forming on the top of my foot so I'm gonna just stop now and sort that one out was they can oh I'm not too bad it's a sore I need to put something on that cover over stop the friction you see how wet my feet of beam then filthy as well I've got a lot of different options for what I can put on it I think for now I'm just gonna stick with a traditional bless the plaster and hope for the best just got to get to the bridge of offie there we go hopefully that will stay in place for the next six seven miles beautiful we're on the move again underneath the railway from the looks of it oh boy [Applause] in front of me benzoyl rain dominated the skyline whilst to my right the railway ran over to spectacular steel via ducts this is a private mountaineering hut I did not know that I just read that you know the straight track it's so simple you don't need to navigate you just need to walk and so it's a great time to think and I've kind of been mulling over what has the way taught me so far when I come on these trails I always learned something about myself about the landscape that I'm walking through and I feel like actually this time I've just been reminded and encouraged actually that it's okay to be me I don't need to be anybody else I don't need to prove anything I don't need to perform I just need to come out here and do what I do best to journey day to day from A to B to be open to what comes and just to thrive and this is where I can be the best that I can be I'm not in competition with anybody except myself and even then I don't want to be in competition with myself I want to be in harmony with myself just as I am with the land that I'm walking through and you know I suppose to people it looks like we come out here and we walk and we get out and we walk and we eat and we sleep and we walk again but it's more than that it takes a certain degree of self-sufficiency to be able to look after yourself with all weather conditions where can you get food and water and shelter the aches and pains that you get how can you handle those you have to have a partnership between your mind and your body otherwise you're just not going to make it and this just seems to be where I come alive I can manage it I can take on the day-to-day issues the problem solving things I can just manage and that is a good thing just because I'm taking the road less walked sometimes it's lonely but look at the things I get to see and this is okay and that's what the way is teaching me so far it's just helping me to fall in love with backpacking all over again it's reminding me why I do what I do and I just want to encourage you guys just as the ways encouraged me be the best that you can be whatever it is that brings you to life go out and do it chase those goals make those dreams happen there's no point talking about it unless you've got two problem-solving and logistics and all that but make sure they happen you know this is our life this is what we get and the only way you can make an impact is by being the best that you can be so go and do be a doer and be a good beer beer beer of you ah as you can see I just feel really free and this is what I love freedom in Scotland is the land of freedom is that not true basically every time I turn the camera off these just come out and behind the scenes right now oak cakes that's about it it wasn't long before I reached the outskirts of the village first checking out the disused railway station now a renovated bunkhouse here was a curious place with the train lines still active but potentially a good place to stop if you've been drenched and you need somewhere to dry out just down the road is the notable tourist hotel dating back to 1750 one it's an expensive place for the humble backpacker but if you're craving a bit of luxury you can't go wrong here on the other side of the eighteenth-century bridge is an official wild camping spot it's an idyllic place once the tourists have passed through though the midges get pretty bad I want to try and wash my feet this could be painfully cold feeling refreshed I headed to bed lulled into a restful slumber by the sound of the river walking good morning as you can see the spin net has come out the Muji is a really thick by the bridge of Waukee they're the only downsides of camping there pretty much which is not as bad as you think really but we'll take off in a minute I've actually got it on because it's keeping me warm it's really cold as you can see the cloud base has come right down we've not got the views we had yesterday today is a long day I've got 22 miles to go all the way to King lockup even so it's a penultimate day on the trail we've got some big sort of classes we've got a Rannoch Moor we've got lots going on today and I'm quite keen to get some miles under my belt so I stopped because I've just got this little flood here and I want to make sure I'm giving myself full attention to crossing it as best as possible it is so quiet I'm almost scared to speak we're about to head up into the cloud I don't know how much higher we go but I can see it's just there I just can't get over how quiet it is so I've been walking for about an hour and I'm just coming down this Ridge here and I can see the faint outline I'm pretty sure it's loch tulla so that means in firoan which is like basically another hotel is just there I think that's a road it's just that is a different shade of grey which would make sense it will see we work we don't go near to the lock but it's quite cool to be able to see the faint outline the midges are really on one today as soon as I stop they're like boom get up so I'm trying not to stop but I think there's a water tap at this hotel which I'm intending on filling up on my stuff to see me through today the end of the row and her nail dates back to 1700 8:00 and has been visited by numerous notable individuals such as Dorothy Wordsworth in 1893 although apparently she wasn't a fan of the food but I'm pretty sure ownership has changed since then a little further on was a lovely wild camping spot but it sure looked migi and was certainly much busier than at the bridge of Waukee West hilum way the drove road to Glencoe before the end of the 18th century the military roads in the highlands were falling into a state of disrepair which made them unsuitable for the increase in commercial traffic I was commissioned in 1803 by the government to build new roads and bridges in the highlands they're designed with gentle gradients being lower on the hillside and have larger bridges across the burns the general well-being of valued the cattle and sheep being driven to the market I insist that the road is constructed with a good depth of gravel to prevent damage to their hooves the road went out to the use the main public road in 1933 but is still in good condition today that is his being was maintained for the estate access and the west highland way look at this weather I mean sure the midges are coming out because of it but blue sky oh it was amazing it's taking quite a while but the cloud is definitely rising the sun's trying to break through that's illuminating everything with wonderful color ah get out Scotland I think that might be a mountain in front of us you can see the scree slopes now just starting to appear without realising I'd made my way out onto Rannoch Moor under the last remaining wildernesses in Europe of around 50 square miles the surrounding mountains and moorlands were of a scale I'd never before experienced and as the cloud continued to rise I was transported into a world that simply set myself on fire you can just see a few deer over there I think there's three they're a bit far away but they've clearly trying to keep the shelter of the trees it really is fantastic to now be able to see where I'm walking through and it's so obvious to me that this is the Glacial landscape before the little hillocks everywhere left behind as the glacier is scraped along that sediment and deposited it in these mounds it's a pretty incredible here it's so still and as far as I can see it's just mountains and moorland the moor is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a special area of conservation much of the western part of the more lives within the been nervous and Glencoe national scenic areas one of 40 such areas in Scotland in which certain forms of development are thankfully restricted big old erratic there a boulder left behind by the Glacia seen quite a few days today pretty much your morning we've been climbing with the steady ascent and what we're doing is we're working our way up to I think it's about four hundred and forty-five meters over this pass above sea level then we'll just send down towards the edge of Glencoe and the Kings House Hotel which is kind of it the convergence point between granite II and Glencoe and it's looked over by the great herdsmen the mountain that you'll be able to see pretty soon there's some pretty spectacular landscape and actually we just ran in the corner so pretty soon we'll be leaving this path behind I have to admit it was a real surprise I doubted the weather this morning and how wrong was I that looks like a pretty obvious trick point anything just standing tall up there I reckon that's that highest point 445 metres above sea level and actually the mountains just appearing on the horizon in front of us game on I can see the chairlift here to my left for the Glencoe ski resort and I just thought I think there's a cafe there I might go and have a look because I've made it here a really good time it's not even 12 o'clock yeah so I thought that I'd get a drink there and then press on for the last or eight nine miles to kill or even over Devil's Staircase which is the highest point and steepest climb on the way so we'll check that out once we've got the fresh brew announcer leaving the way on to the cafe originally known as white quarries Glencoe was the first commercial Scottish ski area with the first overhead ski lift opening in 1956 for around five thousand pounds the resort is currently home to some of Scotland's largest and steepest skiing slopes and it's used by thousands each year Kings House Hotel Black Rock cottage here we go ski sent us the West sign away we've just come all the way through here and we hit Kings House Hotel he'll go along the old Military Road until we get to Devil's Staircase and then go all the way across to kinloch of even today this is a cool map this is a little bit ridiculous but uh I'm gonna go on the chairlift I just want to sit on it all the way up and then all the way back down and then we'll finish our walk for today I just put everybody yeah so no just one all right oh well that was simple uh it was utterly freely to just sit back and watch his mountain bikers shredded trails below and pass over tumbling halls I couldn't help but imagine what the land would look like in the depths of winter and wondered if I'd be back once the snow had fallen much to the amusement of the chap at the top I didn't get off simply went back down the way I'd come with breathtaking views all the way actually you know it's up here that you can really appreciate the vastness of this landscape I mean this more just stretches on as far as the eye can see and then right on the horizon there's mountain after Mountain after Mountain and there's all these little locks and bodies of water you know if there is a landscape that I feel like I belong in it's this kind of landscape I just feel at home here I feel free and I just feel like I belong it's the best feeling in the world I felt so much childlike joy I just couldn't contain it with my legs dangling over the low shrubs below grinning merrily to others as they pass by on the lift it was a real highlight of my journey and we're coming into land that was good fun but uh I think it's time I put my backpack on and do what I do best let's get hiking we can just follow this road which is quite cool down towards the a8 who for crossover reach the Kings House Hotel and then hit the trail on the other side that's the plan and we've got the Blackrock cottages here it's a pretty famous just just because they're just cool the famous climbing Hut was instantly recognizable sitting proudly in front of the great herdsmen of at Eve wow that was easy the remote Kings House Hotel was under construction as I passed by but it wasn't many months later that the restorations were completed said to be one of Scotland's oldest licensed Inns it was originally built in the 18th century for travelers moving across Rannoch Moor hello I am the innkeeper Donald McInnes I was encouraged to take on the king house in early 1770s after a distinguished career in the jaw King George's army but making a living here has proved a lot more difficult than I had led to believe recently I've had to resort to the illegal trade in whiskey and salt how else can a man make a living in this godforsaken place bless top stuff literally just turned around ha the deer there I remember there being deer here before and I got to feed one something like bread or something that was left over the guys here took me out and showed me how to feed them there's such beautiful animals they really are and I love the fact that they're literally they're just 50 meters away from me stunning the deer are a major attraction in the area but it's important to remember they are still wild animals and should only be viewed from a distance it really was lovely though to just be able to pause and watch as they felt so at home in the Moors do you think that's a big enough sign the west highland away wonder which way it is never forget the importance of looking back check that out and so it begins a 200-meter ascent up to five hundred and forty eight meters above sea level the highest point on the trail let's do this honestly I don't think this should be called The Devil's Staircase it's really lovely and I know it could be exposed in bad weather but uh you've got the stream running alongside the mountains behind me and I can see the trail zigzagging or switch backing all the way up to the top it's pretty epic the pass was actually named by the soldiers who were part of the road building program under general Wade in the 1700s because of the difficulty in carrying building materials around it was arduous work that took place in the summer months with encampments established every 10 miles the inn's which developed around the works became known as Kings houses hence the Kings House Hotel which I just passed by one mile of ascent later and we're at the top 548 metres above sea level awesome and the path continues on up there and we're not going that way today we're going straight on I see the track winding its way down through the valley to Kin look even and those mountains are just something else the mountains ahead of me were the Mamaw's with ben nevis rising behind to the east was the 8 mile long black water reservoir created in the early 1900's to supply water to power the hydroelectric plants and the new aluminium smelter in the purpose-built village of King lot even stepping stones these look fun this is a pretty fast trail four and a half miles all the way to Kinloch these run from the top of Devil's stairway and it's pretty much all downhill suits me just fine it certainly was a speedy descent down to sea level at King Loch Leven but I made sure to slow my pace and savor the lands around me I soon picked up the infamous water pipes and followed them down past other waterworks into town which was the first village in the world to have every house powered by electricity following the development of the HCP scheme for the aluminium smelter here we are then we just approaching the outskirts of Kinloch even 22 miles away from the bridge of Waukee I can tell you I'm pretty glad to be here now it's gone six o'clock in the evening so I've been awake for over 12 hours and on the trail for over 11 so far it's just such an industrial entrance to the towns of the honors coming past these pipes and we got there generates the station here crossing over the river leavin I spent some time reading up about the brown trout sea trout an Atlantic salmon that used the river throughout the year it seen the town was proud of its association with the wild and untamed migration of the fish each autumn and rightly so the aluminium story museum is a great place to check out to discover more about the town and its construction around the aluminium smelting in its early days the plant actually employed over 700 people I didn't stop the to long they're keen to top up Oh Scott by the town's coop okay I've got quite a few supplies I went a bit OTT but I really wanted some yogurt I got some milk so I can make a brew and just a sandwich and some food for tomorrow so that's good I'm happy with that so now all that's left to do is to find the campsite get my tents out and sleep that night I stayed at the Macdonald hotel campsite it was a small place but friendly enough and I sat enjoying views over the lock until it got dark today is our final day on a west Hannam way we're leaving Kinloch even behind and we got about 15 miles between us and Fort William at the end of the trail so check the forecast and this morning is looking ok this afternoon there's uh showers and stuff that's supposed to come in so we'll just work on our progress today and then we will probably stay nice and dry which should be great it was beautiful last night had to go to the toilet and the stars oh gosh the stars they were just dazzling and so I'm kind of still buzzing from that experience ready to go let's get some mozzie this is a really lovely time actually up the side of the mountain I think we're working towards another sort of military hold Rovers track but I just keep looking back the views over kinloch leaving in the log it's really lovely what a beautiful place to live this is quite a big tract they've made in the land and there's another one just running up and down the mountainside there with some bigger scraping away can hear it even from this distance the work was the construction of the new hydro developments and pipeline operations whilst I knew it would help the communities to live more sustainable lifestyles I just felt a bit sad to see the damage to the wild lands around the trail it's nice to be away from those machines the sound was actually carrying quite a long way she's only really just escaped the noise and she's been replaced by complete stillness you get the occasional sound of the water pause that you walk past then nothing else you know sometimes silence can be very loud the so called great pass was served by an over old military road making for trouble-free walking occasionally passing by old derelict farm buildings a sign of times long since passed it's been quite wet on the foot actually lots of the Little rivers sort of cross the path kind of like this one and you just kind of like have to hop across as best you can we've got this coniferous forest here and on my Harvey's map it shows it as extending up the mountainside but you can see it's being clear felled so they've chopped down all the trees I guess for timber or something so it's amazing how things change quite quickly and obviously we don't have those like Harry Potter Maps so we can't track the changes as they're happening you are here so we're gonna head up and along all the way into glen nervous past the campsite that's where i'll be staying and then into Fort William and the end actually this is quite good because this shows that if the weather was really bad you could follow the public road all the way to Fort William and it says that that's four and a half miles we've got about seven and a half miles to go on towards Fort William so that's quite good to be able to see that actually flip that is colossal I've rounded the corner and I can see the slopes of been nervous the summit so seeing the cloud as most of the highest peaks are today but that is just a sheer mass of rock how do i sum that up in words I don't know if it's humanly possible that is just ginormous biggest mountain in the UK Wow this word was created as part of the centenary woods project to commemorate all those involved in the First World War amazing I found that as I pressed on towards been nervous I was feeling slightly nervous simply because I didn't feel ready for the trail to end I knew I still had a few miles to go ahead of me and sure I felt weary but my heart was so intrinsically absorbed in the lands around me but I feared the conclusion of the way the flowers and the mountains and the Moors and the forests had truly captivated me like never before that's a really good sign it just explains why they've left the forest in this way it says mosses funky and lichens all feed on decaying wood insects also live in Deadwood which in turn feed other birds and animals we're trying to make our forests more natural that's why we're leaving a little more decaying wood behind dead wood equals food for the forest awesome working our way over the pass through the forest for what remains of it so Glen nervous and I think we're just going over the top now looks like we're getting closer I have been nervous with every step done deer Dale a desirable residents in Glen Nevis we think indeed our foot was built around 2000 years ago so it's iron age it may have been occupied or rebuilt on several occasions through time from Celtic fort to Pictish Citadel uh-huh imagine the people who lived here their colorful flags and banners proclaiming the power of the tribe to which they belong the fort dominates the Glen and natural stronghold with amazing views oh I'm such a sucker for archeology like that it's a scheduled ancient monument and it's protected by law good so it should be I pressed on into Glen nervous we've been nervous rising high above me to my right I didn't feel at all intimidated by its presence only comforted and in some ways encouraged as though the mountain was congratulating me on having made it this far here we go that was pretty straightforward really so this is the cow sir following the yellow sign this is the Braveheart car parks a lots of people park here just to head up towards their Hill thought that we passed and I think I have actually made a decision which is something for me I am gonna go down to the road I'm gonna rejoin the official route and I'm gonna walk that mile mile and a half of Road walking to the official end I want to go past the old end because I realized how important it is to me actually to retrace my steps from 2012 I've not kind of figured that until this very point where I've had this option and I've been like actually I want to stick on the main route even if it is a busy road so this is it but in terms of scenery we're about to leave the beauty and head into the industrial world that will take us into Fort William so goodbye trees it's been lovely let's get to the end we've got about a mile and a half maybe two miles at a push to go we're gonna go past that old end and then we'll hit the new end right in the centre of Fort William definitely do that route though if you don't if you're not worried about seeing the old end definitely do that route so that this is the original end of the west highland way and as you can see it's pretty unglamorous so in 2010 it was moved into port really in itself and that's where we're gonna head to in a minute I remember when we arrived here we were just soaking wet it had poured down all day but there's a real sense of achievement and then we realize we had another mile to go so you can get a west highland way certificates in this building it actually feels a little bit surreal to be on the final mile of the west highland way as I said earlier I really don't feel ready for this to finish I feel like I've only just started thankfully there were some interesting buildings to distract me as I made my way into town such as the imposing granite scenaries Roman Catholic Church which was built in the early 1900s and looked oddly castle-like there was also the Park War Memorial inscribed with the names of those fallen in the first and second world wars and the Gulf War complex my heart raced in anticipation of sighting the end of the trail though I felt slightly awkward walking into the high stream overwhelmed by the people buildings and sounds it was a bittersweet feeling and I thought I'd be used to it given the number of trails I've been chewed at all my head flashed with fond memories from my time on the trail and soon I was flooded with a sense of accomplishment as I rounded the corner to the end of the way so here it is that folks the official end of the west highland way we have walked 96 miles from well guy across mountain and moorland rivers and forests and we've ended up here in fort william next to the sore feet statue feels very appropriate i have got quite sore feet actually ah i'm totally not ready for this journey to end it it's been a fantastic walk and its really opened my eyes to what it means to thrive as me i have loved the landscape that i walked through and actually its kind of also revealed to me that you're looking to get into that packing this is a fantastic trailer to start on the way marketing couldn't be simpler the conditions under foot a nice and solid as loads of places to stop to eat to rest to drink you can't go wrong so if you've been as inspired as I have by this journey to Don your walking boots and spend more time in the wild maybe the west island way is the right place for you to begin so folks thank you for following my journey and until next time stay wild during my time on the way had come to an end I knew I was only halfway through my travels in Scotland and soon I'd be heading out to walk the great glen way the trail was cooling and i was eager to respond [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Channel: Abbie Barnes | Spend More Time In The WILD

Views: 590,332

Keywords: Abbie, Barnes, Song, Thrush, Productions, Adventure, Tips, hiking, walking, Outdoor, gear, trails, Reviews, Wildlife, Expedition, Backpacking, west highland way, scotland, loch lomond, glasgow, conic hill, balmaha, glen nevis, glen coe, ski, rannock moor, bridge of orchy, aechaeology, ben nevis, climbing, wild camping, wildflowers, rob roy, camping, national park, east highland way, mountains, wilderness, travel, journey, self discovery, mental health, fitness, health, wellbeing

Id: Ujyr0bfz9BA

Length: 106min 18sec (6378 seconds)

Published: Fri Mar 22 2019