ROWARDENNAN TO INVERSNAID
Having just spent half a day wandering the wooded shore of Loch Lomond, today will consist of – wandering the wooded shore of Loch Lomond. The shore of Loch Lomond is delightful and it’d be a shame to miss it. On the other hand, perhaps we don’t need quite so much of it as 30km or 20 miles. Especially when Ben Lomond, one of Scotland’s best-loved mountains, looms over the loch.
There are two ways to do Ben Lomond. On good paths, there’s a circuit returning to Rowardennan over the Ptarmigan. Or there’s the wild country option, descending the untrodden north ridge and crossing some rough moorland to pick up a track down to the loch again at Cailness.
WH WAY: ROWARDENNAN TO INVERSNAID
| Distance | 11km (7 miles) |
| Approximate time | 3hr |
| Not the WH Way | 2 Ben Lomond |
| 3 Hill Crossing: Ben Lomond to Inversnaid |
On stormy days – or ones that are merely dreich and damp – the lochside is less demanding. Indeed, the lochside is just great as wind sweeps the branches overhead and waves rattle against the shoreline rocks. From Rowardennan car park follow the shoreline past a granite war memorial in the shape of a stone ring. Just beyond it there are some glacier scratches in the shoreline rocks. Then join the track of the WH Way.
After passing above Ptarmigan Lodge, the WH Way divides. The main route continues along the vehicle track, 50–100m above the loch. The going is easy, but uninteresting; there are occasional views of the water. The little-used alternative path turns down to the lochside, with a solitary waymark post at the bottom. It continues along the shore, and is not easy at all. In fact it allows you to re-enact the lochside journey of September 1716 made by Montrose’s redcoats on their way to raid Rob Roy at Inversnaid. The redcoats did it from Drymen overnight, in a rainstorm; but even by daylight it’s something of a struggle. However, it can be enjoyed by those not trying to cross it quickly.
WH Way path beside Loch Lomond
After 4km the lower path passes Rowchoish bothy, and soon after that rejoins the track above. This track shrinks to a wide, well-made path, and descends to the shoreline at Cailness. Here the high line over Ben Lomond rejoins the WH Way.
The final 3km to Inversnaid is a ramble along the shoreline. The path is well made but not too well made, winding under oak trees and stepping over a boulder. There are glimpses across the loch to the Cobbler and the other Arrochar hills. Even on a dismal wet day there’s shelter under the trees and the sound of waves along the shoreline, not to mention the warm Inversnaid Hotel just ahead. It’s a delightful moment of the Way: and one quite different from the various mountain moments still to come.
2 Rowardennan Outing: Ben Lomond
| Start/finish | Rowardennan pier car park |
| Distance | 10.5km (6½ miles) |
| Ascent | 1050m (3500ft) |
| Approximate time | 5hr |
| Maximum altitude | 974m Ben Lomond |
| Terrain | Wide, smooth path up: steep rough one to start the descent, then a small but comfortable one |
Ben Lomond used to be Scotland’s most ascended mountain. In recent years it has been overtaken by Ben Nevis – but Ben Lomond’s better. It has lovely Loch Lomond views, and a gentler slope, and a little ridgeline along the top. Plus, it doesn’t go on upwards for the grumble-inducing extra 370m.
My son when walking the West Highland Way attempted Ben Lomond by its more ambitious Ptarmigan route, and was turned back by strong winds. To avoid such disappointment, this excursion uses the busy and straightforward south ridge path for the ascent. The descent will be by that dramatic northeast ridge and the Ptarmigan. From the top of Ben Lomond you can assess the first few metres of this ridge, contemplate the wind speed and the slipperiness, and decide to return by the easier southern route.
The ascent is on a wide, smooth path from the inland edge of the car park. Already by the 1860s this path was large enough to be marked on Ordnance Survey maps, and by the 1940s was an eroded eyesore – but has now been well rebuilt along a single line. The plantations that hemmed in the path have recently been clear-felled, so the views over Loch Lomond to the Lowlands are outstanding right from the start.
The path leaves the plantations at a gate, bends right onto the wide southern ridge, and goes up through another gate. Only at the final half-mile does the ground become mountainous, along a steep-sided and mildly rocky ridge.
From Ben Lomond summit trig point are views ahead of several dozen more large mountains including, on a clear day, Ben Nevis looking – from 71km (44 miles) away – depressingly distant.
The northeast ridge descends directly behind the trig point. The small gravelly path zigzags down among small rocky outcrops. The top section is as steep as any, so if conditions are too harsh you find that out straight away.
Ascending the south ridge of Ben Lomond
At 768m the ridge levels off. At this small shoulder, turn left, southwest. Route 3, the Ben Lomond crossing, turns down to the right here.
The fairly small but clear path winds along the Ptarmigan ridge, bending to the left as it gently descends. At about 600m altitude, the path eases down onto the right flank above Loch Lomond. It slants down to a fence gate, then passes below the Sput Ban waterfall. With the stream on its left, it heads directly downhill to join the track of the WH Way. Turn left for 800 metres, past the youth hostel, to the Rowardennan car park.
3 Hill Crossing: Ben Lomond to Inversnaid
| Start | Rowardennan car park |
| Finish | Inversnaid |
| Distance | 18km (11 miles) |
| Ascent | 1200m (3900ft) |
| Approximate time | 7hr |
| Maximum altitude | Ben Lomond 974m |
| Terrain | Smooth path up; small rocky ridge path down; grassy ridges and moorland, rough moorland, and a track |
This route contrasts wild mountain ground that is part of a standard Munro-bagger’s route with wild mountain ground that isn’t. One of the widest and busiest paths in Scotland takes you up Ben Lomond. But on the other side is a small rugged ridge that’s far less trodden, followed by a green ridge and some brown moorland that aren’t trodden at all. On the complete crossing of Ben Lomond you’ll discover that there are more interesting – there are even more interesting