This is a pleasant walk combining sea views with a visit to an attractive hill loch.
Summary
The route is waymarked with posts but the path itself is sometimes indistinct and can be boggy.
Terrain
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1. Mallaig is very much a working fishing-port which had its origins in the herring boom of the 1800s and then benefited from the construction of the West Highland railway. Today it is a bustling, working port with few pretentions but a pleasant enough place. Park at the East Bay car park; this parking area runs right round the harbour front. The start of the this walk is next to the bungalow which is adjacent to the 'Springbank' Guest house; it is signed for 'Circular walk'. The path is roughly paved surface at first; as it passes up behind the bungalows it goes through a gate.
2. As the path gains height there are a couple of benches with views back over Mallaig. The route then enters an empty, peaceful little valley completely hidden from the town; at the far end is a signposted indicating a path off to the right for Loch an Nostarie. Take this path which climbs and contours round the hillside, giving great views across Loch Nevis to Sleat on Skye and the Knoydart peninsula.
3. The path curves round to the right and passes through a gate in a deer fence. Once across a minor watershed there are views down to Loch an Nostarie ahead, and the path becomes very boggy. Pass through another gate as you descend towards the loch, eventually reaching a wooden signpost at a very soggy path junction. Take the right fork on the path, signed for Mallaig via Loch an Nostarie. The path eventually slopes down close to the loch shores. The loch is an attractive sheet of water, clothed with lillies at this corner in season. It is in the centre of an area of moorland ringed by low but rugged and rocky peaks. The otherwise sombre scene is relieved by the woodland both on an island in the loch and on the slopes of the hills beyond.
4. Follow the path west from the end of the loch. This path used to be very boggy, but has been upgraded to a smooth gravel surface. Look out for the remains of a WW2 Bren Gun carrier, used in the construction of Mallaig's water supply. After crossing a very minor rise the path descends to reach a track beside a large house. Continue down this track which leads under the railway and joins the tarmac road in Glasnacardoch. Turn right along this road which passes Mallaig school and then heads downhill, becoming Mallaig's main street. Turn right at the bottom to return to the start.
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