Walking the First Half of the West Highland Way in a Long Weekend

When one of my friends suggested a group trip to Scotland to hike the first half of the West Highland Way, it was an instant yes. Although, as our departure date drew nearer, I became apprehensive about what I'd signed up for. We were setting out to cover ambitious ground each day, much longer than I was used to hiking, and an old knee injury was rearing its ugly head when I walked over a certain distance.

However, I love a challenge and the decision to plan the trip coincided with Christmas, so it seemed a fitting New Year’s resolution to don my walking boots, escape the city, and get out in the hills more in preparation.

The full WHW is 96 miles and most people walk the route across 7-10 days.

As a group, we didn’t feel we could commit to the full route, so decided to use a bank holiday weekend to complete the first half, starting in Milngavie and ending in Crianlarich (46 miles), before spending a couple of nights in an AirBnB on Loch Long to rest and recover.

The official start of the West Highland Way is Milngavie which is well connected from Glasgow city centre by train. The start line is a short 5 minute walk from the station. Don’t miss the photo opp with the sign at the station though!

As a group that wasn’t used to multi-day hiking, we felt it would be too much to carry our bags with 4 days worth of stuff ourselves, so we opted to get a company to collect our bags at Milngavie station and then drop them off at our accommodation stops each day.

There was a 20kg bag limit and they were strict on it as one of our bags was over 20kg and they asked us to reduce it overnight.

We chose to split the route into 2 longer days and a shorter third day. This worked well for us and meant we had more time to relax at the end. However, it does mean two quite intense days of walking so I’ve suggested an alternative option which is also popular amongst West Highland Way walkers.

The route eases you in with a relatively flat start and lots of great places to stop for a breather. We loved Turnip the Beet for homemade local snacks and some great souvenirs. We also made a pit stop at the Glencoyne distillery along the way.

As we’d made good time, we stopped in Drymen to eat our packed lunch, although you definitely would have been fine without bringing food as there were several pubs, cafés and a small shop in the village.

The weather was on our side most of the day and the sun was breaking through the clouds as we reached the fork in the road to either take the B road to Balmaha or make the ascent up Conic Hill. We unanimously voted for the hill hoping our efforts would be rewarded with views of Loch Lomond, and we weren’t disappointed.

We reached our first night accommodation, The Oak Tree Inn in Balmaha around 7pm, just in time to freshen up and grab some well-earned dinner and drinks – I can highly recommend the chicken pie!

We started day 2 in high spirits but with only a couple of niggling blisters across the group from the previous day. This stretch tracks along almost the entire 24-mile length of Loch Lomond which we knew we would be covering that ground on this day.

The first half of the day was really enjoyable, the terrain was relatively easy underfoot with small openings in the trees leading to small “beaches” with stunning views across the loch. We stopped for a lunchtime pint at The Clansman where we were able to soothe our tired feet in the loch and have a swim in the loch. The water was freezing but very refreshing!

The second half of the day was tough! The weather wasn’t on our side and the terrain is much more challenging with lots of rocks and ups and downs meaning you need to have your wits about you. We misjudged the time it would take and the 6 miles from the Inversnaid hotel to the Beinglas campsite where we stayed, took us over 3 hours.

When we arrived at the campsite, the staff told us that that stretch is affectionately called the “WHW obstacle course” so we didn’t feel so bad that we’d found it the most difficult part.

Perhaps fueled by the knowledge that a mere 6 miles stood between us and our finish line, we set off with a spring in our step on day 3, despite an ever-growing list of ailments. Although not the most enjoyable leg for scenery, it was relatively easy underfoot compared with the previous day. We ended in Crianlarich and enjoyed a nice lunch at the Crianlarich Hotel where we had almost the entire restaurant to ourselves.

If I was to do the walk again, I think this would be the route I'd follow. It’s a bit more even and means you’d break up the Balmaha to Inverarnan stretch and be doing some of it after a good night’s sleep.

Day 1 – Milngavie – Balmaha (20 miles)

Day 2 – Balmaha – Inversnaid (14 miles)

Day 3 – Inversnaid – Crianlarich (13 miles)

The West Highland Way is an extremely popular walking route, and if you plan to walk in peak season (May – September), booking your accommodation well in advance is advised. Starting the walk on a Saturday, as we did, is also the busiest for accommodation but we still managed to book suitable options in each rest stop about 4 months in advance.

The Oak Tree Inn in Balmaha has multiple properties across the village so we had one double room, one single and a family room which slept 5. In Inverarnan, we stopped at the Beinglas Campsite, where we had some really lovely bell tents for the night. There were a lot of options available there to suit all budgets so it’s a great option.

Along the route, I asked our group for their top tips. Here’s what they said:

• Pack multiple pairs of socks for each day especially if it’s raining.
• Apply blister plasters or zinc tape preventatively before you set off each day to avoid any nasty blisters – no matter how good your boots are.
• Know how to fit your bag before you set off, especially if you’re not used to hiking with a daypack – read our handy guide.
• Pack a microfibre towel in your day pack and some swimwear so you can take advantage of a cold water swim in Loch Lomond.
• Start early – it takes the pressure off when you go through more challenging periods and means you still get a bit of time to relax at the end of each day.