The Great Trossachs Path

The Great Trossachs Path is a 30-mile (48 km) one-way walk from Callander to Inversnaid on Loch Lomond. It links the Rob Roy Way at Callander with the West Highland Way at Inversnaid, but the appeal is the changing ground in between: old railway, woodland tracks and open hillside give way to a long road beside Loch Katrine. Make it a two- or three-day trip. Allow about 12 to 13.5 hours of walking in total, before longer stops or transport waits. The route is waymarked and much of it follows well-made tracks, though a few rises are steep. You come for a long, varied crossing, not a summit hike.

Leave Callander from the Riverside car park and follow the old railway path through farmland and the town edge toward Kilmahog; this first 1.2 miles is mostly tarmac. The next 5.4 miles, from Kilmahog to Glen Finglas Visitor Gateway, follow a well-made off-road path through ancient woodland, open hills and replanted native woodland. The steep bits are short but noticeable. The six-mile section to Trossachs Pier passes through dense woodland and Brig o' Turk, switching between forest tracks, short stretches of roadside pavement and a narrow boardwalk. There are cafes and a pub at Brig o' Turk, with another cafe and toilets at Trossachs Pier, so these are useful breaks between the longer sections.

At Trossachs Pier, the slowest middle stretch begins: 12.4 miles (20 km) of tarmac single-track road along Loch Katrine's north shore to Stronachlachar. The line is easy to follow, but you share it with vehicles and the steady road walking can feel long if you expected a soft woodland trail. The lake has a place in Scottish story: Walter Scott's poem The Lady of the Lake helped make the Trossachs famous. You'll pass Ellen's Isle, named in the poem, and the MacGregor burial ground, where headstones dating from 1699 to 1800 sit behind a stone wall and gate. Stronachlachar's pier and cafe mark the end of the 20 km shore section. Overnight stops are limited between villages, so book ahead if you're breaking the route into days.

From Stronachlachar, a 3.8-mile path crosses open hillside, with a couple of short steep sections, to the RSPB Inversnaid Visitor Gateway. The final 1.2 miles head past Arklet Falls to Inversnaid Pier. The path narrows, climbs and drops on steps, and has some boggy ground before a short piece of public road. Give yourself time at the falls: water drops through a wooded rocky gorge to Loch Lomond, and the footbridge above the cascades makes a strong photo. Cafes and pubs are listed at Callander, Kilmahog, Brig o' Turk, Trossachs Pier, Stronachlachar and Inversnaid; check current opening before relying on a particular stop. This is point-to-point, not a loop. Plan your return before setting off: buses serve Callander and a boat bus links Tarbet with Inversnaid, but schedules vary. Camping Management Zones cover designated lochshore areas from 1 March to 30 September; check the park map and book a permitted area if you plan to camp. These rules affect camping, not walking the route. Dogs are allowed under access rules, but keep them on a short lead at Inversnaid from 1 April to 15 August and wherever livestock is present.