Balmaha to Inverarnan

*** To help you follow the route with confidence we provided these route notes to help you. The West Highland Way is well waymarked, but we strongly suggest that you follow the GPS tracks in the Macs Adventure smartphone app to ensure you have a safe, enjoyable and problem-free day.  The daily maps can also be printed from the web version of the app should you wish to take paper copies with you. ***

Before leaving Balmaha you’ll pass a statue of the well-loved Tom Weir – a hardy walker who hosted the TV programme “Weir’s Way” to popularise hiking in the highlands, in which he almost always wore the same red knitted beanie hat. From Balmaha follow the well way-marked trail as it flits between hugging the shore of Loch Lomond and following the country road towards Rowardennan.  Enjoy the peaceful paths through woodlands which have been restored to allow native species to thrive. 

At 12.10 km arrive at Rowardennan Hotel – a casual country inn located between the road on the eastern shore of Loch Lomond and the loch shore itself.  

Pick up the trail from Rowardennan Hotel as you leave the car park and turn left onto the road to follow the thistle way-markers (take care of traffic on this short section of the Way as you walk with the road on your left-hand side).  In 300m pass some public toilets and the Rowardennan War Memorial then follow a well-defined, but undulating and rocky path, through the forest with Loch Lomond on your left-hand side.  Make sure you keep on track here and ignore any signs for Ben Lomond – a popular Munro accessed from this car park. 

At 15.00 km you’ll reach a junction – if you have found the underfoot conditions up to here challenging we recommend you take the right-hand fork to follow a wide gravel track through forest, a straight-forward although somewhat less scenic route compared to the left-hand fork which hugs the loch shore and winds its way through the forest on a rocky and undulating path. Our route description follows the left-hand fork (the right-hand fork rejoins this route at 19.70 km).  

Continue along the loch shore to cross the little bridge over the waterfall next to Inversnaid Hotel.  Here you can leave your boots in the porch and pop in for some refreshments if you have time before following the thistle way-markers along the loch shore once more.  Take your time on this rocky section of trail, taking special care during or after rain, and keep an eye out for Rob Roy’s Cave and Doune Bothy at 30.40 km, followed by Ardleish in a further 1 km where the ferry for Ardlui Hotel arrives at a small jetty. 

At the end of the loch the path bears left and passes through Beinglas B&B and campsite heading for the A82 (the main road on the western shore of Loch Lomond) where you’ll find the Drovers Inn and further south on the road the Ardlui Hotel.  Check your tailored accommodation sheet for details of your overnight stay.