“Breathtaking” – Day 5, Bridge of Orchy to Kinlochleven
Of all the walks I’ve done anywhere it’s difficult to find one as spectacular as the stretch of the West Highland Way that goes through Glencoe and then onwards to Kinlochleven. I would run out of superlatives if I tried to describe it but it felt very special walking through it. So much so that, a few years later, I took some of our South African family and a UK friend through the stretch that goes from the Inveroran Hotel to the King’s House Hotel and they too were in awe of it.
Day 5, at over 20 miles, was the longest of the day walks, mainly because the King’s House Hotel was closed for renovation and I decided to carry on up the Devil’s Staircase and across the moors down into Kinlochleven. At school in the 1960s I learned about the hydro-electric power station at Kinlochleven which powered the aluminium smelter. Sadly it was closed in 2000 though the power plant does now supply the national grid.
So I wandered through Glencoe in not such bad weather with spectacular views all round, reached the Glencoe Mountain Lodge outdoor pursuits place and onward to the King’s House Hotel where I met Noelene. Then it was up the Devil’s Staircase (quite a climb) and onward to the afternoon’s destination.