GREAT GLEN WAY | Cicerone hiking guide

hiking guide

Guidebook to walking the Great Glen Way, a 124km (79-mile) national trail that runs along the Great Glen between Fort William and Inverness, in either direction. The Great Glen is one of the most remarkable features in the Scottish landscape – a ruler-straight valley along an ancient fault line through the Highlands. The glen is threaded by the scenic Caledonian Canal, which links Loch Lochy and Loch Oich with the famous Loch Ness.

The Great Glen Way stretches alongside the Caledonian Canal, passing several lochs, undulating forest tracks, lakeside paths, old drove roads and military roads, as well as contrasting stretches over heather moorlands or through city suburbs. The route is an ideal introduction to long-distance walking, with a range of facilities listed along the way. Walkers can enjoy the scenery and wildlife, delve into the history of the Highland clans, visit crumbling castles, or keep an eye open to spot the elusive Loch Ness Monster! The Great Glen Way can easily be walked within a week, and most walkers will aim to complete the route in five or six days.

The route in this handy guidebook is described both ways, and given the connection with the West Highland Way at Fort William there is no reason why both trails shouldn’t be walked together in one long journey between Glasgow and Inverness, or vice versa.