On The West Highland Way: Day Four – Doune Bothy To Crianlarich

The original idea was to just find a suitable spot along the route near Tyndrum and wild camp. However, by now I knew that I did not want to pitch my tent again and so was hoping to find a bed and breakfast once we’d arrive in the village. Even though we did not walk today as far as we had planned, I had allowed for a shorter walk on day five. This was deliberate to allow us to catch up with our timings if we were delayed for whatever reason.

Saying Goodbye Doune Bothy And Loch Lomond

As I wrote yesterday, I was tossing and turning throughout the night in the bothy. I had yet another very, very bad sleep. I was grateful that I didn’t have to put my tent up, though, and that we had a roof over our heads for the night. When we woke up, it was raining heavily. We could have only imagined what the morning would have been like trying to pack our tents in the downpour. The bothy has emptied very quickly and as before, we were the last ones to linger before setting off on the day’s hike.

We left when the rain has eased a little, around half past ten. The walking was not bad even though the continued drizzle was annoying for sure. Leaving the shores of Loch Lomond, the trail wound its way through the lovely forests, climbing steadily. We were definitely getting into the highlands now. The trail became more challenging. Not in an exhausting way though. I noticed we were covering much more marshy land. I am sure if it had not been for the rain, the views of the surrounding rugged mountains would have been breathtaking.

We Missed A Shop Stop

Because of the rain I did not have my map out at the ready and we missed a stop at Inverarnan. We needed to make a slight left turn to Beinglas Farm Campsite to stock up in their wee shop. Last time our water bottles were filled was at the Inversnaid Hotel and we had no water left. Without the map, we just followed the thistle sign marker for the West Highland Way. I knew something was not right when the shop and campsite were not coming up in front of us. When we got the map out, it then told us that we were about 20 minutes beyond the farm already.  What to do – should we turn back, adding 40 minutes of walking in the drizzle to our day or should we press on without water? Or perhaps one of us should turn back while the other waits?

In the end, we decided against going back. Instead, we found a relatively sheltered spot under a tall branchy pine tree right next to a small brook coming down the hill. There are many streams in this area feeding into the Falloch River. Jane, because she is amazing and because she did not fancy risking lime disease, had a water purifying filter in her backpack! We filled it with the clear mountain water and waited for it to filter through while we ate the last of our provisions. We knew we could restock when we got to Tyndrum.

Crianlarich – Halfway Point On The West Highland Way

After the break we set off towards our destination. The rain has gradually eased and the air was not cold. The hiking could have been good from now on. Unfortunately, Jane’s knee started hurting. She kept going as well as she could but eventually she could not really walk downhill in any big way. So we stopped often and walked really slowly. The much slower tempo was making the hike really tedious and slow.

Even though Jane was putting on a brave face and wanted to keep going all the way to Tyndrum, I persuaded her that we should call it a day at the next village, which was Crianlarich. When we arrived at Crianlarich Crossroads, a sign informed us that this was the halfway point on the West Highland Way! We did not even know. We were delighted with ourselves and this piece of knowledge gave us a new spur to keep going. Despite her knee, Jane really did not want to abandon the hike.

Crianlarich is a lovely historic village a short walk off the West Highland Way. My guidebook said there were shops, restaurant and many accommodation options. So I was going to try our luck and book into a B&B if we could find one available, to give Jane a rest. The other option would be to see if the youth hostel had free beds. We turned off the trail and walked downhill into Crianlarich village. I sat my co-hiker on a bench and went looking for accommodation.

Overnight In Crianlarich

The first guesthouse I tried was fully booked but the second had one last room available and it was a twin! I went back to get Jane and we checked into the super lovely Craigbank Guest House. The owner was an absolute gent and gave us lots of information on where to get a hot dinner and also told us about a chemist, that would be open in the morning, where Jane could get a brace for her knee and anti-inflammatories. Our room was perfection – large beds, fluffy duvets, super fresh pillows and a proper ensuite bathroom. After two nights in a tent and a night in a bothy, it felt like a five star resort!