WHW Day 3 – Rowardennan to Crianlarich

It was always going to be a tough day so after a quick breakfast at the Bunkhouse we started out at 8:20. The walk was going to be made up of three sections really, all of about 6 or 7 miles. The middle one being the toughest.

We opted for the higher road option at the start to limit the amount of scrambling required down by the Loch shore. This was a fairly gentle walk along a mountain track and we covered the ground at a good pace.

After a few miles the two tracks joined up again at the Loch shore and the scrambling began. You really had to watch were you were putting your feet. Also, if you were wearing a wide-brimmed hat, perhaps a Tilley, and were concentrating on your feet, you might not see a tree branch sticking out and might bang your head. If you were really daft you might do this twice.

Eventually the Lochside section was over and we could look forward to walking along the old military road that climbed up to Crianlarich. There was a constant call of cuckoos and a couple of nice stonechat along the way.

We made the mistake of stopping for a pot of tea at a Campsite with a bar. The service wasn’t what you would call welcoming and the £6 for a pot of tea for three (2 teabags) seemed a little excessive!

The long trudge along the military road eventually ended and we arrived at the Youth Hostel just after 5.30pm. The Rod and Reel pub in Crianlarich kept an excellent pint of Harviestoun Bitter and Twisted. A few of these and a veggie currie and the lumps on my head didn’t seem quite so painful.