The Great Glen Way with Hammocks

[Rory7368]

Day 1 - Fort William to Gairlochy

I walked the Great Glen Way over 5 days, using hammocks, from August 18th to 22nd 2024 with my brother. On the 18th we got up nice and early and got the bus up to Fort William, once we picked up a few supplies (a McDonalds lunch primarily ) we set off at just about 15:00. The walk out past Caol and towards Corpach and to the start of the canal was basically totally flat, nice and calm. It was quite good weather if a bit windy but the sun was shinning and we were feeling good.

View towards Fort William down Loch Linnhe

First Way Marker

Canal Side View

Once we set off beside the canal it was easy going, this continued past Benavie and towards Gairlochy where we were hoping to spend the first night. The sections of the way following the canals are basically, as you expect, totally flat so there nice, if a bit boring. We arrived into Gairlochy at bout 19:00 which was quite, slow walking I know, but we were enjoying ourselves and we set off really quite late.

We spend the first night in the trees just beside the campsite in Gairlochy, There were a few other people camping also and there was tables and stuff that made preparing dinner quite nice. Our set up consisted of the hammocks suspended over each other between two trees with a tarp over us, we were also in some nice 4 season sleeping bags to make up for the cold wind.

Day 2 - Gairlochy to Invergarry

The following day we got up at about 08:00 and set off for 09:00. The walk was fine as it stuck close to the cost and made its way around the shore of Loch Lochy.

View up Loch Lochy

As the path went past Clunes, it switched to a forestry road as it started to fluctuate in elevation more. It also seemed, at least to us, to go on for ever and it was quite exhausting, although you did get some nice views.

View Back Towards Gairlochy

We started that path at Clunes at just about 11:30 but didn't get to Laggan until about 15:30. We were thinking about stopping here as we were quite tired but there really isn't much there, mostly people who are on the boats and using the locks. We had read about a shop but it was more like a Kiosk, selling some cans, hot drinks, and some hot rolls (although they were out of those when we got there )

Laggan Locks

We decided that we wanted to have a proper dinner so we made the decision to carry on in hopes of making it to the Invergarry pub. As we left Laggan you follow the canal for a short while and then have the option to take either side of Loch Oich, however the east side was closed for repairs or something like that when we were there, and plus we were hoping to head to Invergarry. As we continued on we decided we were definitely making it to Invergarry and so phoned ahead and booked a table for dinner.

After you cross the canal the Great Glen Way technically goes up onto the side of a hill and comes in to Invergarry from the north west, we couldn't be bothered doing this as we were pretty tired from the long day and really looking forward to the Pub, so we decided just to walk road-side into the Invergarry which cut a lot of walking out. We eventually got into Invergarry at just about 18:30, we then enjoyed a few pints and some food at the Hotel Pub. I have to say it was quite expensive but I when your that tired and hungry you don't really care.

Once we (eventually ) came out of the Hotel, we continued on the path in search of somewhere to camp. After Invergarry the way goes up some switchbacks in a forest and so after a few hundred meters, we pitched up here.

Day 3 - Invergarry to Invermoriston

My View from the Hammock

Our Campsite

We once again got up and set off for about 09:00 as we followed the way long the forestry road. It stays in that path, which wasn't too bad, until it comes down to meet the road at the bridge of Oich.

Forestry Road after Invergarry

We got to the bridge of Oich, and subsequently the canal, for about 10:00. We then set off towards Fort Augustus. This part of the path was surprisingly long, probably the allure of a nice lunch and rest in Fort Augustus made it seem even longer, however the sun was shinning and it was a lovely day. So nice actually, I found myself lying down on the grass verges beside the canal for breaks.

The Canal towards Fort Augustus

We arrived into Fort Augustus for just about 13:00, so we found a nice cafe (expensive, of course) and had some lunch. It was here that our pristine weather we'd had up to now took a turn, it started to rain and really quite heavily. This stretch to Invermoriston was quite long and horrible, it seemed to keep going on and on, the only saving grace was the view of Loch Ness.

Loch Ness

We also decided that day to deviate from the way again as just before Invermoriston we took a road that came of the forestry road and went down to the actual road; we then followed this road in. The weather was really bad here and we were drenched through, all our waterproofs had been totally saturated and all we were thinking about was getting to Invermoriston.

We eventually arrived at about 19:00, found a place to put the hammocks up just beside the road in a pine forest, then dumped our stuff and headed to the Pub . After a few pints to nurse the feet back to good heath we set off back to our campsite and called it a night.

Day 4 - Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit

Invermoriston

This penultimate day was quite long and basically the same path as we'd been walking the whole way. This time however it ascended a bit higher and didn't particularly stick Loch-side.

Loch Ness, Looking towards Fort Augustus

We did set off at about 09:00 again but we were hoping to push past Drum as much as possible as it would cut into tomorrows walk which was going to be immense. We weren't making that good time and we got to Grotaig just before 16:00 and went into the wee café there. We were worrying about our timing and seriously considering some gear carrying services or stuff like that to make the slog of a last day go easier, we were saying all this to the lovely owner of the café and she said that actually she was closing and she could give us a lift to Drum. We were so thankful for her offer and accepted it, so she drove us into Drum and dropped us off right in the centre of it. We were so thankful for this and it assured us that we could finish the walk properly, so as was customary we had a few pints, some food and chilled for a bit.

We then set off out of Drum and went about 4km into the following days walk, ascending about half of the switchbacks after Drum. This put us in a good place for the following day and I booked our bus home, so we needed to be in Inverness by 18:35.

Day 5 - Drumnadrochit to Inverness

So due to the length of the last day, we set off earlier at about 08:00. This made sure that we were going to have enough time to cover the hefty distance to Inverness. This day went surprisingly well, maybe it was due to the fact it was the last day and we were going to be sleeping in our own beds that night but I thought it was the best day. We were making quite good time and the walk is quite uneventful with some nice views all the way to Inverness.

Nice Path

I must say however, once you descend into Inverness, you've still got like 4km to go. We got to the outskirts for about 15:30 but didn't actually get to the end until 17:00. However once we got there it was such a relief, we just sat down for a few minuets then hobbled over to McDonald's. Stocked up on some sweets for the bus and then got the long nus ride back down to Glasgow.

Overall I'd say I enjoyed the walks and it was quite fun using hammocks, although it was quite boring. The same views mostly the whole way and quite repetitive, although it was good. We passed loads of cyclists so maybe that's the way to go in the future, who knows but still, I enjoyed the experience.