Loch Lomond & Cowal Way, day three

Wednesday 20th May 2026

It was still raining. The previous day I had spent the whole day walking in the rain along the Loch Lomond and Cowal Way from Glendaruel to a wild camp on the pass Bealach an Lochain and the following morning it was still raining, so after breaking camp I set off along the trail past the lake Curra Lochain between the fabulous crags that are either side of the pass on the side of the mountains Beinn Lochain and Beinn Bhuela. Despite the poor, misty weather conditions there were geese on the lake, honking at me as I passed while my path under foot was excellent and dry, but this wasn’t the case beyond the lake, where the path was very boggy, which continued on the descent into a conifer plantation. It is very difficult to keep a grip on a wet, muddy path that is descending steeply, though not so in ascent. I very carefully made my way down, almost slipping over at one point, so I was relieved when I finally reached the wide forestry track at the bottom that took me over the Lettermay Burn. While looking back now, I was able to see the waterfalls on the burn Sruth Bàn, which I must have walked past on my descent but been too preoccupied with staying upright to notice, while the two mountains either side of the pass looked even more impressive from further away, even in the misty conditions due to their abundance of visible rock. My descent continued down forestry tracks until I eventually reached the road around the head of Loch Goil where holiday homes dominated the coastline while the rain finally eased with the weather slowly improving.

Lochgoilhead seemed like a magical place to spend your holiday because it is quiet, out of the way, a difficult place to get to, so would hopefully not be too overrun with tourists, but maybe if I had been there in better weather I would have seen what it is really like. A narrow lane hugged the coast between the loch and a caravan park before reaching the River Goil where I had to follow this upstream for a distance before finding a bridge. At high tide, I would need to have kept to the road, but that was not necessary so after crossing the bridge I followed the coast into the centre of the village where unfortunately I didn’t stop, but turned left up a lane that steepened to reach an area of rhododendrons. After turning left, a wide, gently rising path took me pleasantly into a conifer plantation, leading me to a dramatic landscape at a crossing of the Allt Airigh na Creige with many waterfalls at its meeting with the Donich Water. I lingered there, taking a few pictures, before continuing to climb through the trees, which became increasingly steep as I toiled up an ascent reminiscent of many I have done in the past. The path zigzagged ingeniously beside a stream until eventually, after leaving the plantation behind, the path became less distinct and boggier with my route guided by white painted posts. During my frequent stops for a breath I now had views over the trees towards the hills the other side of Loch Goil and in the improving weather they looked spectacular, basking in the sunshine that had now come out.

The relentless climb eventually eased and I came to the top of the pass, which is the highest on the whole trail. North of the pass was the Brack, which I had previously climbed in 2022 from this point, so when I began to descend into Coilessan Glen I was retracing my steps of four years ago. Many of the trees I had passed on that occasion had now been felled leaving a desolate wasteland that caused me a few difficulties. Once the steep descent had ended I found my way blocked by young trees, which either crowded out my path or had fallen across it, so when I was once more back on forestry tracks my route down became a lot easier, eventually leading me to a road. I was now near Loch Long, heading north with the sun finally making an appearance, which prompted me to take off all my waterproofs. The contrast in this day was quite remarkable with rain at the start of the day, but now, with all my waterproofs folded up in my rucksack, I was enjoying the sunshine. After a while I came to a path that branched off the road and led me down to the shore of Loch Long heading towards the impressive Ardgarton Hotel, turning left before then to pass a fabulous bank of bluebells.

As great as the sight of the bluebells was, I couldn’t help feeling a bit blasé about them since I had been seeing many of them for over a month and at home they had gone to seed a long time ago. Even just on this holiday I had been seeing bluebells every day, so it was becoming nothing special, which is a shame because bluebells are always a wonderful sight. Eventually I reached the car park in Glen Croe where the trail took me across the busy A83 trunk road and along an excellent path that weaved across the hillside slowly gaining height past fabulous vegetation until I eventually reached a conifer plantation and joined a forestry track. This track led me to a radio mast where a wide, gravel path zigzagged back down to the A83 and the shore of Loch Long, where I rounded the head to reach the village of Arrochar. From this point the Loch Lomond and Cowal Way heads north through Glen Loin to reach Loch Lomond at Inveruglas where there used to be a ferry to take you across Loch Lomond, but since this no longer runs there is no point. Instead, I considered the Loch Lomond and Cowal Way complete at this point so, after having some fish & chips, I headed through the woods above the village, surrounded by bluebells, to get to the railway station of Arrochar & Tarbet. There was a lot of road walking on this trail, though it passes through some beautiful countryside or it would have been if I’d been able to see more of it, without the weather interfering. My main problem with the Loch Lomond and Cowal Way is that it is too short, but for me it was only a good start to much more walking to come.

Loch Lomond & Cowal Way, day two

Tuesday 19th May 2026

I had a lovely evening before this walk at the Glendaruel Caravan & Camping Park where it was dry and sunny, the birds were singing loudly and there were excellent facilities. However, it started to rain over night and the following morning it was just grey and miserable with persistent rain forecast, though when I set off it was hardly raining, not heavy enough to hear the drops on an umbrella or a waterproof coat, so I had a relatively enjoyable start to my second day on the Loch Lomond & Cowal Way, but it wasn’t long before it started to rain again. My walk started on the narrow roads through the valley of Glendaruel which was enlivened by many bluebells growing beside the road, as well as the white flowers of wild garlic and three-cornered garlic. 

Eventually I reached the main road where I turned south, heading back down the valley, but soon I branched off the road, passing an unwelcoming farm and onto a track that provided me with the first prolonged climb of the trail. This took me up the valley of Garvie Burn and into Strath nan Lùb, past some cattle and into the driving rain. Occasionally the rain eased to a light drizzle, which afforded me with the opportunity to put my hood down and reflect that the best part about walking in the rain is when it stops. The rain eased as the morning progressed and I slowly dragged myself and my heavy rucksack up the seemingly unending track, climbing into the mist until eventually I summited the pass, the second highest on the trail, and began to descend steeply. 

I had now entered the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, though this was completely missed by me as I descended into a conifer plantation. My guidebook indicated that I needed to turn sharp left after a series of bends whereas the green diamond markings on my Ordnance Survey map would have had me taking the second turning on the left. I thought I’d seek a third opinion so I consulted the walkhighlands website which agreed with my guidebook so when I reached the sharp left I took the signposted green lane which was carpeted with wood sorrel. This brought me to a fabulous gorge where the Allt Robuic burn cascades down a series of waterfalls whose stunning sight drew my eye away from the bluebells that decorated the sides of the valley. 

As the rain fell again an excellent footpath took me past the falls and along the northern bank, weaving around the contours, over wooden bridges and with protective fences above the steep gorge. Eventually a flight of steps brought me to a washed away bridge, which my Ordnance Survey map would have taken me over. Since I couldn’t turn right, I turned left and followed a wide track that led me into Glenbranter where I eventually found a wooden shelter to escape the rain and have my lunch. When I emerged the rain had stopped, or at least eased, but it was never far away and was soon back. A tedious walk followed along a quiet lane, and once the bluebells of Glenbranter had been left behind there was nothing for me to see. Eventually I reached the outskirts of Strachur, where I crossed the main road and headed up an access road. 

With no accommodation available for me in Strachur, despite wanting to stop due to the bad weather, I had to keep going and find somewhere to wild camp, so I slowly headed up the road alongside the River Cùr past more bluebells as the rain fell heavily again. After crossing the river a good path took me up to a forestry track which led me into the side valley of the Leavanin burn with conifers covering the slopes on my side, though many areas had been felled providing me with views up the valley through the rain. I kept thinking about where I could possibly camp, but with nowhere to camp on the tussocky ground of the conifer plantation, I had to just keep going. After a left turn my path narrowed, crossing many streams with water rushing down the hillside until eventually I reached a crossing of the main burn and a short climb that brought me to the edge of the forestry land where I finally stopped to pitch up my tent.

This is one of those days that make me wonder why I spend my holidays walking in wet Scotland, but if the weather had been better perhaps I would have had my answer. However, much of this day was spent walking on roads or wide forestry tracks that are never appealing, though at least I would have had views of the surrounding mountains which I was deprived of on this walk due to the weather.