The third section of the Great Glen Way is one of the finest. Two beautiful sections of the Caledonian Canal sandwich the lovely walk along the wild side of Loch Oich with its magnificent natural woodlands.
Easy canal tow-path plus a well made shared cycle path on the east side of Loch Oich.
Laggan Locks are passed by the Citylink buses between Fort William and Inverness.
Car park at Laggan Locks.
This section begins at Laggan Locks just off the A82(T) at the east end of Loch Lochy; there is a good sized car park, whilst acommodation is available a short distance along the route at the Great Glen Hostel (see Fort William hostels). After you've had a look at the view down Loch Lochy, the walk begins along the nearside of the canal, which was built by Thomas Telford and opened in 1822. Beside the locks there is a public toilet on the far side, and also a delightful picnic area and a floating pub on a Dutch barge called the Eagle. Continue along the canal-side path, sloping up onto the track on top of the embankments when it forks (the canal side path ends just beyond the last boat berths).
Follow the track above the wide canal into the pinewoods ahead. The track rises slightly as the canal passes through a wide, deep cutting here - the highest part of the Great Glen. The walking is very pleasant with good views of the canal down through the trees. At one point a path goes off right to meet the A82 - ignore this, and cross over a stream on a footbridge. As the woods are eventually left behind there is a great view back down the canal with a glimpse of the Loch Lochy Munros. Ignore the next path off to the right, keeping on the canalside route (marked with Great Glen Way markers).
Further on the path finally emerges onto the A82 close to Laggan swing bridge. Cross straight over the road (carefully - beware speeding traffic), heading down the minor lane opposite signed for the Great Glen Water Park. Branch right off the road (GGW marker) by the no entry signs at the exit from the Water Park. You are now on a shared cycle path, with literally hundreds of purple orchids in the summer. The route follows the line of the old railway from Spean Bridge to Fort Augustus that was built between 1896 and 1903. It was intended to eventually make a cross-country link to Inverness but this never materialised; the line closed to passengers in 1933 and was last used during World War Two before being dismantled.
The route now follows the eastern side of Loch Oich for several miles passing through the fine native woodland of the Leitirfearn Nature Reserve. After a couple more kilometres the path passes the abandoned cottage at Letterfeirn itself; there is a bench here and some composting toilets and it makes a great spot for a picnic, looking across to the ruins of Invergarry Castle and the impressive Glengarry Castle Hotel. Continue on the path/cycle route eventually heading through an old railway tunnel with bat boxes at each end. Towards the end of the loch the route goes over the bridge across the Calder burn.
At the end of the loch the route follows the Caledonian Canal to reach the A82 at Aberchalder Swing Bridge. It is worth detouring across the bridge to have a look at Oich Bridge, which is maintained by Historic Scotland. This beautiful double-cantilevered bridge was built by James Drudge in 1854 and is now happily free of traffic. The walk continues back on the south side of the canal, passing the Bridge House Tea Garden, following the towpath before crossing to the north side at Cullochy Lock.
The way now continues on the towpath on the far side of the canal. There is beautiful woodland beside the canal and a steady stream of pleasure boats on the water and cyclists on the track. Down to the left there are occasional glimpses of the River Oich, cutting into the cliffs of Creag Torr Dhuinn at one point. After almost another three kilometres Kytra Lock is reached. This is another beautiful spot with a pretty lock-keepers cottage and a bench for walkers to enjoy the views.
Beyond Kytra the canal broadens out through a series of wider pools and appears quite natural. Another three kilometres leads on to the first of the locks at Fort Augustus. This large village is centred on a high flight of locks second only to Neptune's Staircase. It has all shops and facilities and a good choice of accommodation options. At the foot of the locks the canal exits into the waters of mighty Loch Ness.
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