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We were staying in Cameron House Hotel for a few days - there was a spa appointment booked for my girlfriend so I decided I'd have a crack at Ben Bowie in the meantime as it was nearby. The weather the day before would have been the best day Loch Lomond had seen all year so far, but the day of the walk was overcast and hazy; however, still dry.
I left our room for the day and headed onto the A82 - this was the worst part of the walk as there was no path on the roadside (for the most part) and my legs were having a hard time warming up (probably from the number of baths we were having
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Eventually made it onto the lovely 'geese roundabout' and joined the Upper Stoneymollan Road - I have always wondered where it goes, while passing on our way up to our caravan. Passing Fasgadh Farm, the road turns into a rocky dirt path and signs that you're on the John Muir Way and Three Lochs Way begin to appear as you walk along the border of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. The treeline suddenly stops and the views open up very quickly (had there had been any).
The general gist on the path with a few dogwalkers (I saw no-one else for the rest of the walk):
The very well maintained path essentially becomes a forestry track as the conifer plantations of Darleith Muir begin:
The imposing view of what's ahead is quite daunting but it is not nearly as steep as it looks. When ascending the esker-like geography on the far side of Killoeter, you are presented with some hauntingly mossy plantation conifers - one of which is straight out of a fairy tale.
Inside the plantation path:
Eventually you will join the path just west of Gouk Hill and it will take you around past a couple of quarry ponds. Keep going as you continue along the JMW and TLW - this will take you to a junction. Take the left turn and you'll be taken along the bealach between Killoeter and Ben Bowie.
A Roe Deer along this section of the path:
Upon reaching a well-maintained gate, you can either go left and join the boggy path to Killoeter or go right and join the equally boggy path up to Ben Bowie. I chose to add an extra half hour to my walk and get Killoeter out of the way - I'd regret it later if I didn't.
Boggy path up to Killoeter - this is the corner you turn right at to start following the ridge along to the top.
The faint path would be very bad in rainy conditions but it was pleasantly dry for me.
Helensburgh from summit of Killoeter:
Ben Bowie from the summit - it looks miles away but is only really 30 minutes there and back at my pace:
I followed the path back to the gate and took the right side up the dry stone dyke. I'd recommend taking the left hand side route and cross it at the top as the ground conditions looked much better from the other side. The summit is only a few seconds walk from the apparent (and featureless) summit.
The actual top with a few big stones:
At this point, most people would go down the way they came but I was up for a bit of an adventure. I took the path of least forestry-related resistance and arrived at a windblown area of trees. This seemed a bit extreme so I followed a small gap down the right hand side of the clearance:
This took me into a small heathery area and then back down onto one of the paths. I nearly followed it along before realising I had one more bit of forestry to go through. Anyone else could turn right and follow the path round if they so wished.
The creepy Red Burn after just passing into the second area of forestry:
The forestry got steep very quickly and was a bit of a hassle but I was back onto the correct path in no time. The path goes left through into a birchy section and then onto a very faint path:
I only followed this faint path briefly as I was determined to get onto the Goukhill plantation clearing. I once again went off the path to the right through a very brief bit of forestry and ended up at another extremely faint path that took me right and finally onto the grassy clearing.
I crossed this area while following it down, once again following a barely visible grassy trail. I had intended to join the path at the far right corner past Goukhill Farm but continued into thick Rhododendron bushes and a burn. I joined the forestry track as soon as possible as the track I was on was so overgrown to the point that it seemed essentially impassible. I was instantly very glad that I'd went this way because Goukhill Farm is an amazing spectacle:
I spent 5 minutes looking in the haunted buildings and continued on my way. The road from here takes you back onto the A82, passing the Auchendennan cottages:
From here it was a 25-minute stroll along the motorway pavement and along the Duck Bay esplanade back to Cameron House. A magically impromptu walk that packed as much fun into 3 and a half hours as possible - and to make it even better, I arrived only 10 minutes after my girlfriend got back!
