West Highland Way - Rannoch Moor

Tyndrum to King’s House

The next morning I woke up to a stop in the rain. None of my clothes had dried however, and so I put them in the dryer before I left. There is something amazing about clothes right out of a tumble dryer. I guess it’s because I’ve gotten so used to hanging up clothes to dry. On my way out of town I stopped for food at the last market for 28 miles. With three tins of sardines, tuna, dried pasta, cheese, and more chocolate bars I was ready to head out. I also bought some waterproof over trousers.

Tyndrum marks the beginning of the Rannoch moor. By some it might be considered bleak, boggy grass, heather, hills, and little stream cut across the land. I thought it was absolutely beautiful, and kept having to turn around and look in all directions as I walked. As you go over a small hill, the view always changes. It is very empty though. Walking through I had this feeling of complete insignificance, and at the same time of great power. I had already walked over 50 miles, and was carrying everything on my back. I could do anything. And yet, in the cosmic scheme of things, I am tiny. Maybe this feeling was helped by the fact that I’ve been reading Sophie’s World along the way.


From Tyndrum northward, the way mostly follows an old military road, making it much easier walking than the banks of Loch Lomond. The seven mile walk to Bridge of Orchy was one of the easiest sections of the way I think. It was mostly flat, and mostly not raining. I got there much faster than I expected. The first thing you see when you get to Bridge of Orchy is the train station, followed by the town, and last, the bridge. I guess before they built the bridge, everyone had to go miles around, because people weren’t able to ford the river, and building the bridge made the route over the moor much faster. The village is very small and cute, but they are selling the primary school. I wonder where the kids will go to school now.

Just after I left Bridge of Orchy, the weather took a turn for the worse. It’s only two miles to Inveroran, but it seemed as long as the previous seven miles. The path is basically up over a line of hills, and then down the other side. I think the view at the top could have been amazing, but by the time that I got there, I was completely enclosed in fog. I sat at the top, on the cairn, needing a break, but freezing and soaking wet. I think it was sheer will power that got me down to the inn at Inveroran.


Just past the inn is a grassy spot next to a bridge – a free camping spot. When I arrived the Germans from the night before were already there, as was the group with the dogs. Everyone tried to get their tents up as quickly as possible, and then we sat in the wind and rain and cooked dinner. I love my waterproof trousers!! On the other hand, my raincoat had long before soaked through, and wasn’t doing much good. Eating the heaviest things first, I had rice and baked beans.


And then we all went back to the inn to sit in the warm and the dry and drink. The Germans had a plan to try all the whisky on the list. Sarah (the American with the Germans) and I taught them how to play the game bullshit, which was pretty funny. The dog walkers gave their dogs corona. And by the time we left the rain had mostly stopped and our things were drier.

The next morning the rain held off until I got my tent down, but then started off again. I was cold, my raincoat was still wet, and I was grumpy. I was going to do the eight mile hike to king’s house and it was going to rain the whole way and everything was wet, and it was gray.

There was a break in the rain, and I sat down near some trees hoping that they would block some of the wind. No good. By the time I finished my sardine and cheese sandwiches (mmm) I was freezing. Thank goodness for chocolate bars. I averaged one a day on the trail.

But then, as the rain continued, the sun came out behind my back, and I saw the most beautiful and perfect rainbow of my life, just in front of me. And soon it was a double rainbow. And I couldn’t help it. All the grumpiness vanished. And then there was the sunshine on my back. I just wanted to jump up and down and smile.

That rainbow kept me going for the next couple hours. And then in the distance there was another rainbow. And then another. And another. And as I once again got to the top of a pass and started down, I could see my destination in front of me, bathed in sunlight. The king’s house hotel was actually a bit farther on than I thought, and the last twenty minutes of my journey were also accompanied by a rainbow, but this time without the rain. And every time there was a rainbow, I would have to look at it every few minutes, to see how it changed as I walked.

The king’s house is a famous hotel, and is especially popular with climbers. A river goes past the king’s house, and out back, next to the river is free camping. Among clouds of midgies I set up my tent, and then headed into the climbers bar to read my book, drink tea, and charge my phone and camera battery. The chairs inside the bar were absolutely amazing.

Returning to the outside I cooked my oh so exciting dinner of pasta ‘n sauce (dried and all in one packet, perfect for backpacking) mixed with tuna and walked around the whole time to avoid the midgies. Back in the bar I started talking with two guys that were planning to climb one of the nearby mountains the next day. According to them, all of the greatest climbers have been Scottish, including the first guy to climb Everest. They pointed out all the photos on the wall. And the place has a climber’s bar and another bar because climbers apparently have a tendency to get drunk and rowdy. Although that night the bar was extremely quiet.

I visited the other bar for a bit, and met up with the Germans once again. Also spent some time talking to the South Africans I had met up with on the banks of Loch Lomond. Proving once again, that once you see someone on the trail, eventually you see them again. They were very happy to see me in one piece, as they were worried about me picking my way over rocks in the rain that day. I had some amazing bread pudding in custard, returned to the climbers bar for a bit, and then went back out to my tent to stuff paper in my shoes in an attempt to dry them out and then slept.