ROB ROY WAY | Rucksack Readers hiking guide

HIKING GUIDE

The Rob Roy Way is one of Scotland’s Great Trails and is very popular with both walkers and cyclists. It runs through many places linked with Scotland’s most famous outlaw, Rob Roy MacGregor (1671-1734). The route starts at Drymen (near Glasgow) and ends at Pitlochry in the eastern Highlands, so it takes you away from the crowds following the West Highland Way to some of Scotland’s finest lochs and glens. Its main spine runs for 79 miles (127 km) and is waymarked. There is an optional extra 17 miles if you take the wilderness extension through Glen Almond and Glen Quaich. Most walkers complete it in 6-8 days and most cyclists in 3-4 days.

The route goes through Loch Ard forest to Aberfoyle; heads east and north beside Lochs Venachar, Lubnaig and Tay; and passes through superb scenery, with interesting aqueducts, viaducts and a 3600 year-old stone circle. The terrain is a mixture of forest tracks, cycleway, disused railway trackbed and moorland footpaths. The Way passes through a succession of friendly villages with welcoming pubs and B&Bs.

Our fourth edition has more content, with full coverage for cyclists and detailed description of the Glen Quaich alternative. It is now longer, 80 pages in place of 64, with 111 colour photos, many of them fresh. However thanks to its robust perfect binding it is 10 grams lighter than the previous edition and more pocketable.

This guidebook contains all you need to plan and enjoy the Rob Roy Way:

• details of distance, terrain and food/drink for walkers and cyclists
• eight-page section for the extension via Glen Quaich
• visitor attractions, side-trips and mountains to climb including Ben Ledi
• planning information for travel by car, train, bus or plane
• concise biography of Rob Roy MacGregor
• background on pre-history, heritage and wildlife
• detailed mapping on 18 pages at 1:50,000
• in full colour, with 111 colour photos
• rucksack-friendly and on rainproof paper.