There are many ways to hike Scotland’s often challenging 96-mile West Highland Way, between Milngavie and Fort William.

You can walk until you tire and pitch a tent. You can stay in posh hotels. You can stay in bunkrooms. You can stay in budget B&Bs. You can carry all your possessions in a backpack. You can have your luggage shipped to the next night’s lodging. You can dine in decent restaurants. You can eat in pubs. You can stock up on Ramen, fruit, and power bars at convenience stores.

One thing everyone has to do is walk the walk.

It can be done in less than five days. Many people choose seven or eight. My friends and I took ten in early September 2024. In fact, this should probably be your first decision: How much time should I commit to the West Highland Way?

I’m a dawdler, not a power hiker. I’m not the athlete I once was. And importantly, I can commit the time to slow walking. Here’s my day-by-day story of slow-walking the WHW. Each day’s report comes with no less than 30 photos. Hopefully, this will inspire you. And if you have no desire to walk, perhaps it will entertain. Thank you for reading.

Just click on the links to open the stories and pictures.

Day 1: Milngavie to Drymen  
Distance: 12.5 miles  Difficulty: Modest, long but level
Stay: Kip in the Kirk, The Old Church, 11 Stirling Road, Drymen.

I’m walking the West Highland Way — 96 miles of some of the best sign-posted trail in the world — with four companions and somehow I took the wrong route at the first fork in the road. They kept on a walking. For an introduction to the WHW, this first day could not be more benign. Distance is the biggest challenge, breath-taking beauty is the balm. I made it to Kip in the Kirk in time for some of our wonderful host Frances’s famous scones and tea. Just beat the rain, too.

---

Day 2: Drymen to Balmaha
Distance: 7 mi. Difficulty: Gentle rise to the daunting Conic Hill
Stay: Oak Tree Inn

Today gives us our first glimpses of Loch Lomand, a huge body of water that will be our constant companion over the next few days. There is a better view from the top of Conic Hill, the first seriously challenging piece of business on the trail.

The steep trail makes it feel a lot farther to the top than it actually is and the fierce winds add to the challenge. But the view. Wow.

---

Day 3: Balmaha to Rowardennan
Distance: 7.5 miles. Difficulty: Ups and downs but a short day
Stay: Rowardennan Hotel

The meaning of the term “undulating trail” becomes very clear today as we follow the shore of Loch Lomond. There are lots of climbs and descents, mostly on the easy side, through pine and birch forest with plenty of enticing views of the Loch.

Again, it is a short day and the Rowardennan Hotel’s pub makes a fine lunch.

---

Day 4: Rowardennan to Inverarnan
Distance: 13.5 miles. Difficulty: The. Hardest. Day. Ever.
Stay: The Drovers Inn

Nothing you’ve heard will prepare you for the difficulty of this day’s hike. The hills push right up against the shore and the trail is carved into the oscillating contours with little effort to smooth them out. There are rock and tree-root stairs and they come at you one after another.

The second half of the hike is way harder than the first. A hiker called it “Green Hell.” He wasn’t joking.

As for the Drovers Inn — “Named Scotland’s best pub … in 1705” — it has its charm, mostly under centuries-old piles of dust.

There’s a nice hotel at the mid-point, Inversnaid. I’d book it if athleticism is not your thing.

---

Day 5: Inverarnan to Crainlarich
Distance: 6.5 miles Difficulty: A short recovery walk
Stay: Best Western/The Crianlarich Hotel

After yesterday, this is a welcome stroll along the mid-reaches of bucolic Glen Falloch with a roiling river of the same name below putting on a display of waterfalls and rapids. There is a crisp feeling of Autumn in the air and soon enough the day turns uncharacteristically warm and inviting.

Many hikers continue on to the next town but we drop down off the trail into Crainlarich. The hotel’s rooms are large and light and they serve a fair meal.

---

Day 6: Crainlarch to Tyndrum
Distance: 7.5 miles. Difficulty: Sheer magic.
Stay: Tyndrum Inn

One of the most magical walks on the whole journey, through ancient pine forests in a fine drizzle. The ground is saturated, the vegetation is satiated, and my soul is sanctified. I didn’t want to leave the cover of trees.

We cross to the other side of the glen and stroll through farmlands and finally wooded parkland that leads to Tyndrum. There is a pricy laundromat behind the Green Welly store and I do not hesitate to use it. We’re halfway!

---

Day 7: Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy
Distance: 7 miles. Difficulty: An easy stroll on a mostly level trail
Stay: The West Highland Way Sleeper

The Highlands begin to reveal themselves as we walk through the glen in a classic morning drizzle. There are clearly bigger mountains ahead, and that becomes more apparent as the sun burns off the low clouds and fog. The hills have far fewer trees. The land is far more open than in previous days.

By mid-day, it is t-shirt weather and blue sky. I meet my first hiker wearing a full-kilt outfit. Impressive We bunk in a renovated train station but eat at the nearby Bridge of Orchy Hotel.

---

Day 8: Bridge of Orchy to Kingshouse
Distance: 9.5 miles. Difficulty: The day flew by.
Stay: Kingshouse Hotel Bunkhouse

Like every other day, it starts with an uphill climb. Nothing strenuous — or am I getting stronger. Again the trail follows the contours of a Glen on the Old Military Road but this time it is different. Towering rock mountains appear on the horizon and seem to grow with every step. They feel more ancient and primeval than the gentle mounds behind us. We pass through saturated moors and fields of wildflowers.

I was surprised when Kingshouse loomed in the distance. Already? The bunkhouse is fairly new and its facilities are first-rate. The adjacent Kingshouse Hotel has excellent dining options.

---

Day 9: Kingshouse to Kinlochleven
Distance: 8.5 miles. Difficulty: Challenging Devil’s Staircase but easy afterwards
Stay: West Highland Lodge

An easy walk to Devil’s Staircase then a grueling slog up switchbacks and rocky trail to the highest point on the WHW trail. It is worth it. Hikers are rewarded with breathtaking views and excellent trails all the way into Kinlochleven.

The endless descent into town and sea level shows you how elevated the trail was. The town has a threadbare charm. So does the lodge, more threadbare than charming. But hikers always sleep well.

---

Day 10: Kinlochleven to Fort William
Distance: 15.5 miles. Difficulty: Longest but last hike of WHW.
Stay: Cosy Cottage in Inverlochy (via AirB&B)

The last day’s walk is a microcosm of all that has come before. It feels like the film is reeling in reverse as we walk on Glen hillsides, fields of wild flowers, through moors, over rocky trails, through pine forests, and down Old Military Roads to, in the end, walking beside a public road — which is exactly how the hike began nine days ago.

The difference is the formidable presence of Ben Nevis. Once it catches your eye, we can not stop watching the U.K.’s highest mountain as the trail takes us closer. Fort William is quaint and has loads of shops, pubs, and restaurants but we got to spend too little time there.