south, any walk here will be a bit rugged. This is, after all, the homeland of Rob Roy MacGregor, the red-headed renegade who resisted the government for half his life and was celebrated by Sir Walter Scott.
Distant three-peaked Beinn Bhuidhe, outside the national park, lies above the Corbett Meall an Fhudhair (Route 27). On the right are the four summits of Ben Lui (Routes 32–39).
As well as the lochs and oakwoods, ‘Trossach’ implies a sort of midget mountain. From Ben Ledi and Ben Venue down to Ben A'an, these hills are tough but tiny, each carrying enough crag to clothe a hill of double the size.
The national park has two mountains called Ben Vorlich. This is the one above Loch Earn (Route 21), not the one at the head of Loch Lomond (pictured in Route 49).
Oakwood wandering and mini-mountains: but when it's time to get serious, there are some high-altitude hills as well. For its final quarter hour, Ben Lomond gives a taste of real Scottish mountain ground, as the ridgeline narrows, and drops on the right to an untrodden corrie. But it's on the Arrochar Alps, and above Crianlarich, that you savour the special sort of hill found here in the south. Ben More, the high point of the park, is a tough mountain, steep on every side; but the rambling range to its west, from Cruach Ardrain to Beinn Chabhair, mixes grass and rock for a day of rugged ridges and wide views. This is ridge-walking of a friendly sort, as the path winds among knobs and terraces of the crinkly schist rock. And in the northwest of the area, Ben Lui is a full-sized mountain in both altitude (1130m, Scotland's 28th) and seriousness.
Bluebells and River Forth on the Fairy Knowe at Aberfoyle (Route 5)
With their easy access, convenient shops and accommodation, and public transport by road, rail and water, these slightly less savage mountains make an excellent introduction to the Scottish Highlands. From Lomond's bonnie banks to the Hill of the Fairies, from Arrochar Alps to lowly Ben A'an, and whether you take the high road or the low, here is some of Scotland's best – and best-loved – hill country.
Walking conditions
For low-level walking, Scotland until recently has offered only the plod through the bog or the smooth and stultifying forest road through the spruce. Here in the national park this is gradually getting better. Commercial plantations are being cleared and natural oakwoods restored. Footpaths are being improved – sometimes over-improved into smooth and rather boring bike tracks, but even those are immeasurably better than the bog and brushwood they replace.
In the Trossachs in particular, the footways used daily by Rob Roy and enjoyed by Sir Walter Scott and the Wordsworths are re-emerging from under the Christmas trees. The West Highland Way, along the east side of Loch Lomond, is even better if you arrive romantically on a lake ferry.
The mid-level hills here are particularly rewarding. Because they are close to the cities, and rise rockily out of lovely lochs, they have helpful, followable paths. Ben Venue is probably Scotland's best-loved low hill (although conceivably Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh might steal that title); but with it come Conic Hill and the Luss Hills, and Ben A'an.
Even away from their paths, these smaller hills are grassy rather than harshly heather. This is down to overgrazing by the clansmen's cattle and then by sheep – but the result is that you can wander solitary in remote corners of Cowal, working your own route across unvisited small mountains, with crags around to add seriousness, but without the vegetation hell you'd find elsewhere in the Highlands. The southwest of the area is the place to look imaginatively at the map and experiment with hill routes of your own invention. The Luss hills are relatively gentle, excellent for a first-ever attempt at a self-guided walk; the Lochgoilhead and Cowal ones are more severe.
The Luss Hills offer gently grassy walking with outstanding views of Loch Lomond. Just above Luss village on Beinn Dubh (Route 48).
Mountains of 750m and upwards are conventionally distinguished as Munros (above 914.4m or 3000ft) and Corbetts (762–914m, or 2500–3000ft). Over the Highlands as a whole, it's the Munros that are pathed and peopled, and that makes them actually easier than the slightly lower Corbetts. Here, however, the Corbetts are as well walked as the higher ones; and deservedly so. Ben Ledi is every bit as good as Ben More. The Cobbler (884m) is arguably the finest hill south of Glen Coe (I shall argue with anybody who says it isn't). So in this book the ‘mountain’ designation starts at 750m.
When to go
April is still winter on the summits, but low-level routes already offer good walking then and in May. The leaves are breaking and birds are at their noisiest. Low-level routes are also excellent in October as the birch leaves turn gold.
May and June are enjoyable at all altitudes. July and August can be hot and humid, with less rewarding views and midges infesting the glens. West Highland midges can be pretty grim; the trick is to keep moving, and when you stop, stop high.
Midges hang on until the first frost, normally some time in September. October often brings clear air and lovely autumn colours. In between times there'll be gales. Over Ben Lomond and the southern approaches to the Arrochar Alps there are no access restrictions during stag stalking. Elsewhere, from mid-August (sometimes July) to 21 October, responsible access includes avoiding disturbance to deer stalking. Most estates offer email or phone contact points, or advise walkers to stick to the main paths and ridges (see Appendix B).
Winter is a time of short days and foul weather. Snow can lie on the high tops from December to April. Well-equipped walkers skilled in navigation and with ice axe love the winter most of all, for the alpine-style ascents of Ben Lui and the 100km views through the winter-chilled air.
Safety in the mountains
Safety and navigation in the mountains are best learnt from companions, experience, and perhaps a paid instructor; such instruction is outside the scope of this book. For those experienced in hills further south, such as Snowdonia or the Lake District, these hills are only slightly larger but noticeably more rugged.
The international mountain distress signal is some sign (shout, whistle, torch flash or other) repeated six times over a minute, followed by a minute's silence. The reply is a sign repeated three times over a minute, followed by a minute's silence. To signal for help from a helicopter, raise both arms above the head and then drop them down sideways, repeatedly. If you're not in trouble, don't shout or whistle on the hills, and don't wave to passing helicopters.
To call out the rescue, phone 999 from a landline. From a mobile, phone either 999 or the international emergency number 112: these will connect you via any available network. Reception is good on most summits and ridges, and on hillsides that happen to have line of sight to Crianlarich or Arrochar. Sometimes a text message to a sensible friend can get through when a voice call to the rescue service can't. You can pre-register your phone to send texts to the emergency services at www.emergencysms.org.uk. And if you don't use GPS, the smartphone OS Locate app (free) pinpoints your exact location as a grid reference.
Given the unreliable phone coverage, it is wise to leave word of your proposed route with some responsible person (and, of course, tell that person when you've returned safely). Youth hostels have specific forms for this, as do many independent hostels and B&Bs.
