West Highland Way: Day 2

The rain arrived in the night and is still falling as I pack the tent, ready for the 20 mile hike along the east bank of Loch Lomond to Inverarnan.

I enter the forest — swallowed by a hushed canopy of green — water dripping everywhere. The luminous moss carpets every rock and tree.

The forest has reclaimed a shieling.

The densely packed trees offer shelter from the rain for a welcome coffee break.

It’s tricky to take photos in the constant rain as I need to take my gloves off each time and dry the lens, which is fogging over.

The trail divides between an easier higher road and a more difficult lower path that hugs the loch. The high road or the low road? It has to be the lower track, which is supposed to be more interesting. Now I’m in trouble, with a certain song playing endlessly in my head.

The Inversnaid falls are dramatic with all the rain. They are also busy, including a large group of about 20 young hikers. The subsequent path is the most difficult so far; all slippery rocks, boulders, and trip-me-up-roots. It’s slow going, having to concentrate on foot placement. Crossing a couple of wet, sloping, stony sections, a slip will see me fall into the loch.

I manage to work my way past the large group, even though the path is only wide enough for one person in many places. Unfortunately a group of them pick up the pace, and I feel like a hare being chased by a pack of hounds. It keeps me warm.

The path finally heads inland, away from the loch, following the River Falloch. The rain still falls. Surely it’s not far now to the campsite? Wrong! The track seems to go on forever, past a packed bothy, with people hanging out the door, smoking.

I’m so happy to see the welcome sign for Beinglas Farm campsite. There are about 20 tents in the field; all huddled together against the elements. I planned to walk the short distance to the Drovers Inn, but I’m too wet, cold, and tired to even think about walking any further.

The campsite has a cosy bar serving food and beer. It’s busy, convivial, and steaming with damp hikers. Gerrard and Derek are already there, so I take a table next to them. They are pretty down after a tough day and then discovering their tent is wet on the inside. I hope they continue. I’m soon huddled over a bowl of soup, sucking in the warmth, followed by a huge curry.

After a late night shower, I collapse into my sleeping bag. That was a hard day, taking nine hours in the rain to cover 20 miles. I discovered in the bar that I was not alone. Most people found the final section by Loch Lomond slow going. The good news is that my feet are happy feet and my waterproofs worked well. They needed to!

Walk distance: 20 miles.

Total distance: 41 miles.