The path up Conic Hill from Balmaha will be closed from today, Wednesday 11th January, until Friday 31st March. The contractor has advised that site preparation will require the path to be closed ahead of the scheduled stone uplift next week. The timber steps on the hill have been removed this week and as such, the path will be closed a few days earlier than planned.
Conic Hill is enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. The volume of visitors now being seen demands that the path be widened and strengthened to make it more robust and ensure the hill can continue to be enjoyed in the years to come.
As such, the National Park Authority is investing in maintenance and improvement works over the next three years. This work is being delivered in stages and will be carried out during the quieter winter months to minimise disruption from the associated path closures.
The first phase of these works begins this week and will be completed by Friday 31st March, ahead of the Easter weekend. This aligns with work by Forestry & Land Scotland to remove trees from the Conic Hill path infected with Phytopthera Ramorum, which is due to take place across February and March 2023.
The path will remain closed for the duration of the work, with no access to Conic Hill from either side. The West Highland Way will remain open but users will have to follow the low-level route down Creityhall Road to Milton of Buchanan and along the B837.
Signs will be in place advising that the path is closed, along with Heras fencing and communications from the Park Authority. We will use the closure to promote alternative locations on East Loch Lomond, including Cashel Forest.
Further works are planned for later this year, after the end of peak visitor season.