While the link may seem tenuous, I got inspired by the movie ‘Wild’ to walk a long distance nature trail. I looked up ‘easy hikes in Europe’. That’s how I found out about the Scottish iconic hike, the West Highland Way. I do not regularly hike, so I was looking for something challenging but suitable for a newbie. Now that I have completed the one hundred mile hike, happy and in good health, I am sharing what are, in my opinion, the four post important considerations to ponder before you decide whether WHW is for you.
Is The West Highland Way Suitable For Non-Hikers?
This may be the first question that comes to your mind before anything else. In my opinion, it is. I am a non-hiker and I loved it. Obviously, do your research. Consider your abilities. I am healthy with decent physique but no athlete for sure. If like me you’re a hiking newbie, do not underestimate the weather. After I’ve come back, I heard from an acquaintance that he set off on the trail in October and had to abandon it due to snowfall and extremely low temperatures. Compared to me, he would be a very seasoned walker. Sure, October snowfall does not happen every year but it can happen.
That is not to say that if you are a seasoned hiker, the West Highland Way is not for you. Of course it is. You can challenge your abilities on the route in different ways:
- You could aim to cover longer distances each day.
- You could extend the hike at Fort William with The Great Glen Way all the way to Inverness. Additional 79 miles that would take you along the Caledonian Canal and Loch Ness.
- You could walk the WHW both ways, there and back, making it a two hundred mile hike.
- In addition to the trail, you could walk up some of the numerous Munro mountains along the WHW.
Know Your Non-Negotiables Before You Plan Your West Highland Way Hike
Embarking on the West Highland Way does require planning to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience. You want to make the most of this adventure and mainly, you want to finish it in good health. So, think about and know your non-negotiables. Do you want to shower every evening or is every third day ok? Do you want to sleep in a bed each night or are you happy pitching a tent? Do you need a cooked breakfast before you set off in the morning and if so, are you happy to cook it yourself on a campfire? Do you want to walk on your own, with a friend, or as a part of a larger group?
Do you want to carry your backpack each day or do you want to pay for a luggage transport service from one accommodation to the next? Yes, you can do this – we met a number of hikers with but a tiny knapsack happy in the knowledge their luggage would be waiting for them in the evening in their next destination. They usually whizzed by us! Once you know what kind of non-negotiables you have, you can plan the kind of a hike you want.
What Is The Route Of The West Highland Way
The route stretches 96 miles from Milngavie, just north of Glasgow, to Fort William on Loch Linnhe at the foot of Ben Nevis. The trail weaves through some of Scotland’s most stunning scenery. So many times I just had to pause to take the stunning landscape in. The vast majority of the trail is off-road. It takes you past picturesque lochs, through lush forests and peaceful villages, across expansive moors and majestic misty valleys.
We have been to Scotland a number of times and have driven around the Highlands before I decided to walk the West Highland Way. However, taking the beauty of the countryside in while on foot was an incredible experience. I loved every day of the hike.
Understanding The Trail And Your Pace
Understanding the trail and its logistics is important. The West Highland Way typically takes six to eight days to complete, depending on your pace and preferences. Yes, you can do it faster and you can take longer. Some people even run it in one go, taking around 24 hours. Not my thing. Think of transportation logistics How will you get to the trailhead and how will you travel back from the endpoint? If coming from abroad, will you fly into Glasgow or Edinburgh? There are public transport options to reach the start and end points of the West Highland Way from both cities.
Invest in a decent guidebook, preferably a recent edition, and read the official West Highland Way website to understand the terrain and elevation changes. This will help you gauge the level of difficulty and plan your daily distances accordingly. Decide in which direction you want to walk the trail. Will you start in Fort William and walk down through the Highlands into the Lowlands? Or will you start at Milngavie and walk up into the Highlands? It’s up to you, it’s your hike.
How I Did It
I purchased a guidebook (this one to be exact and it was very good) and read it in full. I studied each section of the trail on the map and also researched online. I wrote down notes where shops, campsites and places to eat were. Eventually I decided on completing the trail in eight days starting at Milngavie. I booked return flights from Dublin to Glasgow. I researched trains from Glasgow to Milngavie and public transport from Fort William back to Glasgow. My husband could not hike with me at the time, so I asked my friend Jane to join me.
At first, the idea of hiking in the other direction, from Fort William, was appealing to me because the indication that you are walking ‘down’ from Fort William makes it seem easier than walking ‘up’. But my research suggested that the rise in elevation is very subtle and you are actually not walking up hills all the time. Besides, I wanted some challenge, not a walk in the park. Also, I decided to save the Highlands, in my opinion the prettiest part of Scotland, for the latter part of the hike. Perhaps as a kind of reward, a carrot at the end of the stick, so to speak.
Why Did I Settle On An Eight Day Hike?
When you say ‘I’m going to walk a hundred miles’, it sounds huge, almost impossible (at least to me), right? You need to approach it as if eating an elephant, a bite at a time (Desmond Tutu’s very wise quote). One hundred miles over eight days works out cca 12 miles a day. Perhaps six miles in the morning, two to three hours depending on the terrain. Then another six miles, two to three hours, after lunch.
Now, when you put it like that, it actually sounds manageable, doesn’t it? In hindsight, I feel I could’ve walked the trail in seven days and still enjoy all the sights. Anyway, eight days on the trail it was, including a travel day to Scotland (day one), plus one day (day nine) to travel from Fort William back to Glasgow and get on the flight back home.
Understand that your hiking days will differ as places of civilisation are not neatly dotted every six miles in the Highlands. Rannoch Moor, which is on the West Highland Way, for example, is one of the largest wildernesses in Europe and the remotest area in the whole of the UK. I decided we should cross it in one day and not spend the night on the moor. It felt too remote and potentially unsafe for two women. So allow that some days you might have to walk further and some a little less. Unless you’re happy wild camping, indeed. I was not – one of my non-negotiables.
Is the West Highland Way For Me?
Now you have done your basic research and considered the points above, you have an understanding of the main features of the trail and your own level of comfortability with it. It should give you a sense whether this amazing hike is for you or whether you are better off looking for something more or less challenging. Personally, I am so glad I discovered the WHW, it was the perfect hike for me and I loved it. Next, I am going to share more of my preparation for the trail.