West Highland Way

Scotland's first long-distance route, from Milngavie by Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor and the Devil's Staircase to Fort William: planned here on the official itineraries, with the villages and single hotels you sleep in, the Loch Lomond camping rules, and the trains, coaches and ferries along the way.

Compare with others
152kmMapped distance
3,471mMapped ascent
8Walking stages

Best season: Spring and autumn; walkable all year. The official site says the Way can be walked at any time of year and recommends spring and autumn; May is the busiest month, so avoid Saturday starts then. Midges are worst from June to August. From November to March it is for fit walkers with winter navigation skills: snow can hide the path in the north, and an ice axe and crampons may be needed. Before you go

Loading your plan…

Plan your days

Your dates

Checking the seasons, closures and current conditions for today…

The official site publishes a 5-day, a 6-day and two 7-day itineraries, and its eight route sections make an 8-day plan. Choose one, or pick your own start, finish and nights below; each night is a village or a hotel on the official lists.

7-day plan

Loading topographic map…
100m200m300m400m500m600m050 km100 km150 km547m7m
Flat (<5%) Gentle (5–10%)
Each day in its own colour, numbered where it starts; the rest of the West Highland Way in grey. Select a day for its elevation and 3D flyover.

Make your own plan

Changing the pace or where you stay suggests a new number of days: the fewest that keep each day under 8 h of walking and in daylight, where a place to stay allows.

Choose your nights (6 nights)

Days end where the route has a stay, a camp or a village.

Day by day

  1. Day 1

    Milngavie to Drymen

    Stage 1, Stage 2 (part)

    Distance
    19.2 km
    Climb
    +213 / −211 m
    Walking
    4 h 26our walking estimate

    Stage 1: From the obelisk in Milngavie through Mugdock Wood and along the old railway by Dumgoyne. The mapped section ends where the Way crosses the A81 below Killearn, with no beds; Drymen, the usual first night, is 5.5 km on.

    Stage 2 begins here; its notes are with Day 2, which walks most of it.

    The Way passes about 0.8 km east of the village square; Drymen Camping is on the Way at Gartness Road. Bus 309 to Balloch and Balmaha. The National Park's camping byelaws start just after Drymen.

    Or a room in the village. OpenStreetMap lists at least 11 places to stay within about 600 m; TrailSplits has not checked which are open.

    Day 1 GPX Open in Planner

  2. Day 2

    Drymen to Rowardennan

    Stage 2 (part), Stage 3 (part)

    Distance
    23.3 km
    Climb
    +623 / −658 m
    Walking
    6 h 14our walking estimate

    Stage 2, of which this day walks part: By Gartness and Drymen (the village is 0.8 km off the Way; Drymen Camping is on it), through Garadhban Forest and over Conic Hill, 358 m, to Balmaha. From 1 April to 31 May dogs are kept out of the lambing fields on the approach to Conic Hill, by a signed route that adds no distance. From Drymen the National Park's camping byelaws apply from 1 March to 30 September: camp only at campsites or in permit areas.

    Stage 3, of which this day walks part: The east shore of Loch Lomond: Milarrochy Bay and Cashel campsites, Rowardennan (a hotel, a youth hostel and a small bunkhouse), then the forest track and the lochside path to Inversnaid. North of Rowardennan the line here keeps to the forestry track, as the Way's own description of this section has it; its route map also draws a lower path by the loch as far as Rowchoish. The National Park's page says both that its Sallochy campsite is open for bookings and that it is temporarily closed; check before you count on it. At Inversnaid the only beds are the hotel, which releases unsold coach-tour rooms about four weeks ahead, and the bunkhouse 800 m up the road.

    A road-end hamlet: one hotel, a youth hostel and a small bunkhouse. Nothing more until Inversnaid, 11 km on.

    Or a room in the village. OpenStreetMap lists at least 1 place to stay within about 600 m; TrailSplits has not checked which are open.

    Day 2 GPX Open in Planner

  3. Day 3

    Rowardennan to Inverarnan

    Stage 3 (part), Stage 4 (part)

    Distance
    21.9 km
    Climb
    +405 / −379 m
    Walking
    5 h 20our walking estimate

    Stage 3 continues from Day 2, where its notes are.

    Stage 4, of which this day walks part: The slowest stretch of the Way: the rocky lochside path north of Inversnaid. Ardleish Bridge has been out of service since March 2026 and walkers cross on stepping stones, which can be hard in spate. Beinglas campsite and the Drovers Inn at Inverarnan, then Glen Falloch to the junction above Crianlarich; the village is 1 km down a signed path.

    Beinglas campsite is on the Way; the Drovers Inn is across the river by the A82, where Citylink coaches stop.

    Or a room in the village. OpenStreetMap lists at least 4 places to stay within about 600 m; TrailSplits has not checked which are open.

    Day 3 GPX Open in Planner

  4. Day 4

    Inverarnan to Tyndrum

    Stage 4 (part), Stage 5 (part)

    Distance
    19.2 km
    Climb
    +461 / −284 m
    Walking
    4 h 55our walking estimate

    Stage 4 continues from Day 3, where its notes are.

    Stage 5 begins here; its notes are with Day 5, which walks most of it.

    The last shops before Kinlochleven. Two stations (Upper and Lower) and Citylink coaches.

    Or a room in the village. OpenStreetMap lists at least 26 places to stay within about 600 m; TrailSplits has not checked which are open.

    Day 4 GPX Open in Planner

  5. Day 5

    Tyndrum to Kingshouse

    Stage 5 (part), Stage 6

    Distance
    30.1 km
    Climb
    +569 / −543 m
    Walking
    7 h 28our walking estimate

    Stage 5, of which this day walks part: Through Ewich Forest, where forest road works bring temporary closures and local diversions until early October 2026, by Strathfillan to Tyndrum, the last shops before Kinlochleven, then on the old military road to Bridge of Orchy. Strathfillan Wigwams is closed.

    Stage 6: Over the shoulder to Inveroran, one hotel with nine rooms and a camping area 400 m past it with no facilities, then across Rannoch Moor on the old road with no shelter until the ski centre, to the Kingshouse Hotel (rooms and a bunkhouse).

    Rooms and a bunkhouse, the only beds at Kingshouse; they fill early. Citylink coaches stop at the Glencoe Mountain road end, 2 km back.

    Day 5 GPX Open in Planner

  6. Day 6

    Kingshouse to Kinlochleven

    Stage 7

    Distance
    14.3 km
    Climb
    +355 / −586 m
    Walking
    3 h 58our walking estimate

    Stage 7: The Devil's Staircase to 550 m, the Way's high point and exposed in bad weather, then the long descent to Kinlochleven.

    Kinlochleven Town or village

    A village with a hotel, hostels, cabins and campsites, a Co-op and a post office. Shiel Buses to Fort William.

    OpenStreetMap lists at least 22 places to stay within about 600 m; TrailSplits has not checked which are open.

    See the area on OpenStreetMap

    Day 6 GPX Open in Planner

  7. Day 7

    Kinlochleven to Fort William

    Stage 8

    Distance
    24.3 km
    Climb
    +564 / −569 m
    Walking
    6 h 20our walking estimate

    Stage 8: The old military road through the Lairigmor and Glen Nevis to Fort William. A waymarked high route round Cow Hill opened in June 2026 as an option; the finish is still Gordon Square.

    Day 7 GPX Open in Planner

Longest day: day 5, 7 h 28.

How these plans are made

Days end at a stage end with a refuge or a village, or in a village the route passes through. Walking times are our estimate from distance and climb: no time is published for these stages. Running times use 7.5 km/h plus one hour per 700 m of climb: a steady reference, not a prediction. Daylight is sunrise to sunset where the day starts; the time left is for breaks, meals and delays.Refuge dates come from the operator's own pages; when they are not published, we say so. For villages we count the places to stay OpenStreetMap lists; we have not checked which are open. A plan is not a booking: reserve every night before you commit to these day lengths.

Huts and stays, stage by stage

Where each stage ends, the 2026 and 2027 seasons the operator publishes, and how to book. Read from the operators' pages on 24 September 2026; each stage page shows the sources and the grade profile.

StageNight at20262027Booking
1. Milngavie to the A81 by KillearnA81 by Killearn · no hut at this point
2. The A81 by Killearn to BalmahaThe Oak Tree Inn 2026 dates not publishednot publishedBook online
3. Balmaha to InversnaidInversnaid Hotel 2026 dates not publishednot publishedBook online
4. Inversnaid to CrianlarichCrianlarich Youth Hostel no exact dates publishednot publishedBook online
5. Crianlarich to Bridge of OrchyBridge of Orchy Hotel 2026 dates not publishednot publishedBook online
6. Bridge of Orchy to KingshouseKingshouse Hotel no exact dates publishednot publishedBook online
7. Kingshouse to KinlochlevenKinlochleven · OpenStreetMap lists at least 22 places to stayEach host has its own seasonBook with a host
8. Kinlochleven to Fort WilliamFort William · OpenStreetMap lists at least 41 places to stayEach host has its own seasonBook with a host

Weather this week

Loading the forecast for low point (6 m) and high point (550 m)…

Weather by month

Typical weather on this trail: at the lowest point (6 m) and the highest point (550 m). Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.

Monthly climate averages and daylight
Month
WeatherMixedMixedMixedGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodMixedMixedMixed
High point, day / night4°/0°4°/0°6°/0°9°/2°12°/4°14°/7°15°/9°15°/8°13°/7°9°/4°6°/2°3°/-1°
Low point, day / night8°/3°8°/3°10°/3°12°/5°15°/7°17°/10°19°/12°18°/11°17°/10°13°/7°10°/5°8°/2°
Rain, mm302217204130129128135175185248243275
Snow at high pointPossiblePossiblePossibleFrost––––––FrostPossible
Daylight7 h 259 h 2911 h 4214 h 1116 h 2317 h 4617 h 1515 h 1712 h 5310 h 318 h 126 h 50

Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. These values describe the whole trail's lowest and highest points. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.

Before you go

Prepare for the West Highland Way

Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.

Choose your nights

Book every night ahead at any time of year: the official site says some areas have few beds. Inversnaid, Inveroran and Kingshouse each have one hotel (and at Inversnaid a bunkhouse) and fill first. Campsites are on the Way at Drymen, Milarrochy, Cashel, Beinglas, Tyndrum, the ski centre, Kinlochleven and Glen Nevis.

Book the beds early

The official site says to book accommodation at any time of year, because some areas have limited beds, and to avoid Saturday starts in busy periods; May is the busiest month. Inversnaid (a coach-tour hotel that releases unsold rooms about four weeks ahead, and a bunkhouse 800 m off the Way), Inveroran (nine rooms) and Kingshouse fill first.

West Highland Way: questions and answers

Camping by Loch Lomond

From 1 March to 30 September the National Park's camping byelaws apply in its management zones: camp only at campsites or in permit areas, with a permit per tent per night (the Park's pages give £4.50 and £4.30), bookable up to four weeks ahead, at most three nights in one area; fines reach £500. On the Park's map the East Loch Lomond zone runs from Drymen to a little north of Rowardennan, with a band in lower Glen Falloch; the official Way site says Drymen to Crianlarich. Elsewhere the Scottish Outdoor Access Code allows lightweight camping for two or three nights in one place.

National Park: camping permits

Works, a closed bridge and the lambing fields

Forest road works in Ewich Forest north of Crianlarich bring temporary closures until early October 2026. Ardleish Bridge north of Inversnaid has been out of service since March 2026; walkers cross on stepping stones, which can be hard in spate. From 1 April to 31 May dogs are kept out of the lambing fields before Conic Hill, by a signed route round them.

West Highland Way: notices

Weather, midges and ticks

Rannoch Moor has no shelter until the ski centre, and the Devil's Staircase, at 550 m the Way's high point, is exposed in bad weather. Midges are worst from June to August, at dawn and dusk and on calm days; carry repellent and a head net, and check for ticks each evening.

West Highland Way: Inveroran to Kingshouse

Water and fire

Treat stream water, filtering and boiling it or using tablets, especially near livestock such as on Conic Hill, or fill up at Scottish Water fountains and taps. Light no open fires or barbecues in dry spells; use a stove.

West Highland Way: drinking water

Closures and notices last checked 24 September 2026: National Park: camping permits · West Highland Way: notices. Check them again before you set out.

Getting there

Connect your journey

Choose a stage or journey above to narrow the travel searches.

Directions to this start Travel from this finish

Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.

Along the Way

The West Highland Line stops at Ardlui (across the loch from the Way), Crianlarich, Upper Tyndrum and Bridge of Orchy. Scottish Citylink coaches between Glasgow and Fort William stop at Inverarnan, Crianlarich, Tyndrum, Bridge of Orchy, the Glencoe Mountain road end for Kingshouse, and Glencoe. McColl's bus 309 serves Drymen and Balmaha from Balloch; Shiel Buses run from Kinlochleven to Fort William.

National Park: by bus or train

Ferries on Loch Lomond

The Tarbet to Inversnaid waterbus runs from 27 March to 1 November 2026, and the Rowardennan to Tarbet waterbus from 2 May to 27 September 2026 on a few days a week. The Ardlui Hotel runs an on-demand ferry to Ardleish on the Way.

Cruise Loch Lomond: Tarbet to Inversnaid

Take your trip with you

Offline maps

Prepare each section while you have a connection, and test it offline before you set out; there is no signal on much of Loch Lomond's east shore and Rannoch Moor.

Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.

  1. Open this trail in the app. Install TrailSplits, then open this trail there. On iPhone, downloads in a browser may not be available in the installed app.
  2. Choose your route or stages. Choose Prepare offline above. Wait for the route and maps to finish downloading.
  3. Try it before leaving coverage. Switch offline, close and reopen the app, then use My Hikes to start navigation. Repeat for every part you will need.

Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.

Route & sources

About this map

The official route is 96 miles (154 km) from the obelisk on Douglas Street in Milngavie to Gordon Square in Fort William, normally walked south to north. The line here follows the route on OpenStreetMap, 152 km, and reaches Gordon Square. Its eight sections are cut by distance and transport, not at the official section ends, so the plans below end each day at the villages of the official itineraries: Drymen is 0.8 km off the Way and Crianlarich 1 km down a signed path, and a night there counts that walk.

Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 24 September 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.

West Highland Way: the official site

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · Source relation

More long-distance trails

Tour du Mont BlancHut to hut round Mont Blanc, June to September.LaugavegurFour days hut to hut across Iceland's highlands, in summer.Fishermen's TrailAn Atlantic coast walk in Portugal, best from autumn to spring.