Nordic Walking The West Highland Way: Day Three
Rowardennan to Inverarnan
When: Tuesday 15th September 2026
Miles walked: 14.88
Steps taken: 25,662
Moving time: 6:14:08
Elevation gain: 1619 ft
Todays walk is from Rowardennan to Inverarnan
13 ¾ miles
The leg they warned you about…
As we went to bed last night we noticed it seemed a bit damp in our awning, this morning we woke up to a flooded awning, with dirty water surrounding us on our pitch and under us. Our breathable groundsheet was one big muddy puddle and inside the floor of Isaac’s bedroom pod was wet as well as his airbed. So we had to sort all that out before we could pack up and leave, thankfully the campsite were very helpful and a guy took some of our stuff washed it and dried it! Much later than planned we were able to set off for Rowardennan.
Steve dropped us off at the Rowardennan Hotel as yesterday was so wet at the end that we forgot to get our stamps in our passports, so today we got one in the hotel and one in the shop! I noticed this poem on the wall of the bar as we passed, Holiday Fellowship is better known these days as HF Holidays, but this is something we should all pride ourselves on ‘leave no trace’, sadly not always the case. After a quick selfie in the car park we set off along the road towards the Ben Lomond Bunkhouse and get distracted by another honesty shed, this time called Ben’s Bakes, where we purchased a couple of hard-boiled eggs and a couple of cans of coke to go with our lunch.
This leg is notorious for being a demanding walk, with rugged, variable terrain, if done in it’s entirety to Crianlarich it’s a 20 mile leg, however we are camping at Beinglas Campsite for the next two nights and so are stopping at Inverarnan. Still, there is a further choice to be made as this first part of todays walk has two paths - the lower one by Loch Lomond which is known to be tricky terrain or the higher one which is mostly broad forestry track before the two paths meet again. We opt for the higher track as we know that the section from Inversnaid later on is also renowned for it’s difficulty. In hindsight I am so glad we opted for the higher path - there were a lot of waterfalls and a beautiful light through the trees!
The broad trail eventually turns into a pleasant woodland path crossing small burns along the way, we are still in The Queen Elizabeth Forest Park at this stage. We also get small glimpses of Loch Lomond along our way.
We pass a small stone cairn dedicated to the memory of Bill Lobban, a teacher who drowned in the Loch in 1975 whilst trying to rescue some of his pupils who had fallen into the burn at Cailness. We safely cross the Cailness burn by the large footbridge which has replaced at least two others previously demolished by being swept away. After the footbridge we come out into a clearing where the isolated Cailness Cottage stands, here there is now a new business called Cailness Cottage Café - a welcome oasis in the middle of nowhere. We chatted to the owner who also had a stamp for our passports! She bought the cottage earlier in the year and is almost finished renovating it and has plans to move the café from its current location in a sturdy gazebo up into the barn next to the cottage - subject to renovation!
The path continues to wind its way around or over rocky outcrops, crossing small burns with the path weaving through rocks and meandering close to the shore before reaching Inversnaid and its impressive waterfalls. We have to climb up before crossing the first of two bridges across Snaid Burn. The main waterfall here is known as Arklet Falls and is quite the sight crashing down into the Loch. The sound of water is as immense as the volume of the water gushing down the fall.
Above: Arklet Falls, Inversnaid.
We cross the second bridge and have a good look at Arklet Falls before finding ourselves in the car park for the Inversnaid Hotel, we could get a stamp here for our passports, but you have to remove your boots and leave your rucksacks in a lobby before going into the ‘Walkers’ entrance, we can’t be bothered as we don’t want to eat here as we have been carrying a packed lunch with us! I fill up my water bladder from the handily placed tap outside and we continue on our way. We are looking for somewhere to stop for lunch, but the weather is a little inclement right now. We carry on to a boathouse and there’s a cute little stone beach with some trees overhanging which Isaac suggests might give us shelter. There are the remains of a tent on the beach and several campfire spots sporting burnt tent in them! We settle ourselves on my handy tarp, under said trees and admire the gorgeous view whilst enjoying our lunch. The sun even decides to make an appearance!
The next section of todays walk is deemed the hardest part of the entire 96 mile Trail, so it is with some trepidation that we leave our lunch spot to continue. Shortly after we had continued we came across this set of acorn leaf benches which would have made a comfortable lunch spot! We cross another footbridge and the terrain is becoming increasingly more rugged, Isaac hops off the path to what I think might be Rob Roy’s cave, but we didn’t know that at the time as we were following the waymarkers rather than reading the guide book along the way!
Here the tiredness of three long days walking combined with the tricky terrain is starting to really slow me down, I am finding it hard to negotiate with any speed the scrambling required to clamber over boulders and rocks along the path, see the third picture below! However there are some gorgeous vistas of the Loch along the way to make up for it, I do think I am becoming quite grumpy though - sorry Isaac.
I am really having to concentrate so hard to place my foot, not hurt my knee as I am hauling myself up and over obstacles also placing my poles in order to help! The terrain is gruelling. Even parts of the path with only small rocks still need careful consideration because as I tire lifting my feet clear of jagged rocks in the path becomes more difficult. I do not want to face plant, trip or fall! I have already painfully stubbed toes in various places along this stretch today!
Eventually the rocky terrain gives way to a wider, more open path through bracken and marshy areas with great views across the Loch, passing by a ruined cottage and a Bothy. You might be forgiven for thinking that the journey soon must be at an end, but no. This unforgiving stretch continues uphill on uneven paving slabs only broken by the distraction of a frog hopping along the path!
Lochside views are the only thing keeping me going right now, I am so glad it is not raining! It is really beautiful up here. This last section of the route today is also very wet underfoot, like we are walking in a shallow riverbed at times. Isaac is waiting for me at the top of the hill, leaning nonchalantly on a memorial post to Dario Melaragni, who appears to have been a keen runner of the West Highland Way Race, who passed away in 2009.
I’ll have to be honest and say I don’t remember much from the very end of today as I was concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other and getting to Beinglas Campsite, our end point and overnight stop. There is usually something quite nice about walking to your destination, but today I am not feeling the joy at all. I think the walk today may have been the hardest walk I have ever done, I am a bit broken.
We made it!
