Trekking Scotland’s West Highland Way

The West Highland Way is one of Scotland's most iconic walking trails, winding its way from Milngavie in the south to Fort William in the north through moors, woodlands, and mountain foothills. Although the route is well-trodden, Wilderness Scotland will soon launch a tour allowing travelers to experience the trip in a different way—specifically, in a luxurious way.

The West Highland Way trail is about 96 miles, but travelers on this 10-day itinerary, the Highlights of the West Highland Way tour, will only walk some of the highlights—a grand total of about 35 miles. Expect some car and ferry transfers on your route, but don’t expect camping! This is a luxury walking itinerary for a reason, and you’ll be kicking your feet up every night in accommodations that fit the ethos of the trip, from a mansion on the banks of Loch Lomond to a country home near Glenfinnan Monument.

Here’s a preview of what you can expect to see on the trip, which begins and ends with stops in Glasgow.

You’ll walk here from Milngavie, toasting your day with a tour of the distillery and a tasting of their slow-distilled malt whisky. The distillery is historic; it’s been in operation since 1833, and the process for making the whisky is almost identical to how it first began. Each cask takes six years to prepare.

On the eastern edge of Loch Lomond, Conic Hill spikes up into the sky about 1,184 feet, with the top marked by a small cairn. The walk is a gradual but steep ascent, leading to a wide-open view of several islands and the waters of the loch.

You may know this character from Sir Walter Scott’s novel, “Rob Roy,” but the man was more than just myth and legend. Rob Roy MacGregor was a Scottish outlaw-turned-folk hero who lived from 1671 to 1743. When his family was evicted from their home in the early 1700s, Roy turned to cattle theft for revenge. He fought in the 1715 Jacobite rising, adding treason to his list of charges. Near Inversnaid, there’s a rocky cave where Roy supposedly hid out to evade capture after the rising. You’ll visit it on Day 4 of the trip.

Don’t worry—it’s not as bad as it sounds. The path zig-zags slowly up the ascent, which was once a dirt path used to take cattle from pasture to market. It became a road in 1752 when two English generals wanted an easier way to deploy troops to watch over the highlanders. Those 18th-century soldiers nicknamed this particular path The Devil’s Staircase because of the hard work it took to pull a gun carriage up to the top.

This steep-sided rocky valley is known for waterfalls, epic hikes, and rock climbing. Glencoe, the village, is in the valley. Travelers will explore an eco-friendly visitor center before hiking around. You may recognize some of these natural vistas from movies; in Skyfall, James Bond’s family home is here in Glencoe. In town, guests on the tour will be able to speak to a local climber at a traditional climbers’ pub, who will explain all the folktales surrounding the area—think dragons, fairies, witches, and ghosts.

On the edge of Loch Shiel, a stone tower marks the spot where the Jacobite rising began in 1745. It was here that more than 1,200 highlanders pledged fealty to Prince Charles Edward Stuart, a man they believed was the rightful heir to the British throne. Scottish history buffs know that this ended in tragedy during the Battle of Culloden in 1746 when the prince fled to France, and highlanders were ruthlessly murdered for following what the English considered to be the wrong leader.

Reaching just over 390 feet tall, Steall Falls, also known as An Steall Bàn (which means “the white spout”), is the second-highest waterfall in Scotland. It’s close to Ben Nevis, Scotland’s tallest mountain. Trails up to the waterfall are well-maintained but have steep edges at some points, so just try to stay in the middle of the path. You’ll probably recognize this location as well if you’re a movie buff, as it was a filming location for the Harry Potter movies.