EP 16: "The West Highland Way" with Jane McGeary from The West Highland Way

[00:00:00] This is 63 Percent Scottish, a Scotland Appreciation Podcast

[00:00:07] Welcome to 63 Percent Scottish. My name is Eamon OFlynn and I'm your host.

[00:00:12] Thanks to Braveheart, Rob Roy and Outlander, when most of us think of Scotland we have a very specific

[00:00:16] vision of the country. It isn't Edinburgh, it isn't Glasgow, it's rugged mountains, hills,

[00:00:23] and glens. It's a landscape that can be as beautiful as it is often punishingly wet and

[00:00:27] miserable. My personal experience includes very little camping, hiking, and hill walking,

[00:00:33] I'm not known as an outdoors type, but there's something magnetic about that landscape that

[00:00:37] draws my interest. How would I explore it? One way is through books, as always. I stumbled on Sam

[00:00:44] Hewitt's semi-autobiography Waypoints which tells the story of his life and career so far

[00:00:49] intercut with a journey through the Highlands on foot. A journey along something I'd never

[00:00:54] heard of before, the West Highland Way. If you've been to Ireland, you may have heard of the Wild

[00:01:00] Atlantic Way, a series of roads you can drive on to see the island's west coast. The West Highland

[00:01:05] Way is not that sort of thing. Instead it's a 96 mile, 154 kilometer for Canadians, walking

[00:01:12] route that starts in the suburbs of Glasgow and crosses some of the most iconic landscapes

[00:01:16] in Scotland. The endpoint is at Fort William near the foot of Ben Nevis, having passed through

[00:01:22] Loch Lomond and the Trossax National Park, across the Bridge of Orchie and the eastern edge of Glen

[00:01:28] Coe, scaling mountains, skirting locks, and crossing Glen's all the way. It seems a bit

[00:01:34] intimidating to tell the truth but it's also exciting, a trail that lets you see the best

[00:01:37] of the Highlands? Yes please. To tell us more about it, perhaps to convince me that it's

[00:01:42] something I could do, we're welcoming Jane McGarry to the show. Jane is based at

[00:01:48] Loch Lomond and the Trossax National Park but works across the whole of the West Highland Way.

[00:01:53] Welcome to the show Jane. Thank you. So first let's talk a little bit about you,

[00:01:58] how did you get involved with the West Highland Way? I can't remember quite when I first heard

[00:02:04] about it but I have friends who've walked it maybe 10 years ago. So I applied for a job

[00:02:12] at the end of 2019 for a project celebrating the 40th anniversary of the West Highland Way

[00:02:19] and this started in January 2020. The aim was to have anniversary celebrations but also

[00:02:30] about securing a more sustainable future for the West Highland Way. Of course as we all know,

[00:02:37] the pandemic hit in 2020 and so nothing went quite according to plan but we found other ways to

[00:02:46] celebrate the anniversary. One of those things was a virtual exhibition where we asked people to

[00:02:56] contribute some of their memories and stories of walking the West Highland Way and

[00:03:02] some of those special times that they had sent on the route. So we heard from all sorts of people,

[00:03:11] walkers, runners, cyclists, charity fundraisers, some who walked the route back in the early days,

[00:03:19] in the 80s or 90s, some who've run the whole route. That sounds crazy. Yeah,

[00:03:28] believe it or not, people do that for pleasure. There were some people who got engaged or married

[00:03:34] or met their partner on the way and or met good friends or perhaps done the walk for charity

[00:03:45] or in memory of a loved one and there's also people who have walked the way many many times so

[00:03:53] one of those is a gentleman called Robert Marshall who has now walked the way 87 times.

[00:04:03] Yeah, he does it roughly once a month and yeah so quite amazing just to kind of

[00:04:10] five days. How long does it take? He does it in five days and he also paints and does

[00:04:19] sort of paintings afterwards. So we heard from all these people back in 2020 and we put together

[00:04:27] an exhibition which is available online and a highlights film. So that was a good way to

[00:04:36] mark the occasion but then my role's been about sort of building on the sustainability

[00:04:45] of the the trail and looking at ways to help support it with fundraising and merchandise

[00:04:56] and that kind of thing. I think, you know, we don't have to go into depth here but is

[00:05:00] is there any history we should cover and like even just basically where the way came from

[00:05:06] originally? I'm kind of curious. Sure, so in England and Wales there was actually

[00:05:15] an act which was 75 years ago it's celebrating 75 years this year about sort of establishing

[00:05:23] access to the countryside. Things came a little later in Scotland and it was I believe in

[00:05:33] 1967 the Countryside Scotland Act so that was the sort of legislation that gave the power to

[00:05:40] identify and set up the the route. And there was a gentleman called Tom Hunter

[00:05:48] who was a keen walker and he first came up with the idea for the West Tannamway post World War

[00:05:55] II to ensure that countryside remained open and accessible for walkers of future generations.

[00:06:04] So the late 60s and 70s were all about kind of surveying the route and finding

[00:06:11] the best path and there was a variety of people that that did that

[00:06:16] and then the route was officially opened on the 6th of October 1980 and that became the first

[00:06:26] officially designated long distance route in Scotland. And there was a quote because when

[00:06:33] we were putting together the anniversary exhibition then we dug into the archives a little

[00:06:39] and Lord Mansfield who opened the route said that I believe that the West Tannamway will become

[00:06:46] popular with walkers from both this country and abroad and that it will take its rightful place

[00:06:53] among our tourist attractions. So yeah that was on the opening in 1980 which was also

[00:07:00] suitably on a rainy day in Belfar and yeah it's gone from strength to strength since then.

[00:07:09] There was a former folk singer Scottish folk singer called Jimmy McGregor in the 1980s who

[00:07:18] also did a lot to make it popular because he did some radio programs and then TV and a book

[00:07:26] and so on and I think that inspired a lot of people to walk it as well.

[00:07:32] Maybe something that would be of interest that you might not know is that in 2010

[00:07:37] the West Tannamway became the first European chapter of the international appellation trail.

[00:07:43] So running across from North America sharing some of the geology.

[00:07:52] Interesting. That's very interesting and I know you've noted to me before like it is

[00:07:58] very popular like it's something a lot of people walk it in a any given year correct?

[00:08:05] Yes I mean estimates are now that there are over 45,000 people that actually complete the whole

[00:08:13] route each year and then at least the same again who do sections of it.

[00:08:20] Some of the sort of particular spots so near to Glencow or around Loch Lomond they attract

[00:08:28] yeah a lot more sort of quarter a million people or something each year so

[00:08:32] yeah a lot of people do like to get out and about on it.

[00:08:38] What was my description of the route pretty accurate and maybe can you tell us what some

[00:08:44] of the highlights are you just mentioned Glencow but what are some of the other highlights

[00:08:47] that people might see on their journey across the way?

[00:08:52] Yep so the West Tannamway does start in the edge of Glasgow which is Scotland's largest city

[00:08:59] and it goes to its highest mountain which is Ben Nevis and via its largest Loch

[00:09:05] which is Loch Lomond. So the starting point which is a suburb of Glasgow is Mulgye that confuses a

[00:09:13] lot of people with the pronunciation because it's spelt M I L N G A V I E so yeah there's quite a lot

[00:09:22] of names along the trail that confuse people a little and I think one of the best things

[00:09:30] about the the trail is that each section is different so each day is different if you

[00:09:35] the majority of people probably walk over seven days so yeah you you walk along the

[00:09:44] Lost Side and you have some hill climbs, some forests, nature reserves, triple s eyes which are

[00:09:51] sites a special scientific interest, there's sections of temperate rainforest,

[00:09:57] you cross over the Highland Boundary Fault and that's the view you see from Connick Hill which

[00:10:04] is one of the first hills you come to and that looks across a chain of islands across Loch Lomond

[00:10:12] and so then you really get into the Highlands there's varying wildlife and biodiversity

[00:10:20] and mile after mile of lovely stunning views. Yes so there are sections of it that are a little bit

[00:10:31] challenging but yeah I think everyone enjoys different aspects of it, yeah lots to see.

[00:10:42] Yeah I was just about to ask you know is there a certain skill level for walking this or is it

[00:10:49] just there are certain sections that are a little bit more challenging than others and

[00:10:53] you can kind of choose to a degree which you're going to tackle. Yeah I think it's yeah it's

[00:10:59] more the latter, you probably need a certain level of fitness, you shouldn't underestimate

[00:11:08] the West Hallamway and make sure you've done some preparation but at the same time for a lot

[00:11:15] of people it is achievable in around seven or eight days. You don't need to be a highly experienced

[00:11:24] hill walker but there are some sections that are a bit more challenging so along the East side of

[00:11:31] Loch Lomond for example there's a lot of sort of up and down and tree roots and boulders and

[00:11:37] so on which some people actually find harder than going up a hill like Connick Hill or

[00:11:44] the Devil's Staircase which is the highest section between King's House and Kinloch Leven

[00:11:52] but yeah I think part of its appeal though is that you can do it in around a week and

[00:12:00] yeah so for a lot of people it is achievable. And the part of the reason I asked is because my

[00:12:06] entire exposure to it really is through Sam Hewins book and Sam seems like he's in pretty

[00:12:11] good shape but he also seems to struggle at times and I think that's maybe also partly a

[00:12:16] preparation thing because it's very much a I've decided to do this, I'm doing this two days later

[00:12:22] kind of thing for him and but he does seem to struggle with bits of it and I think it's

[00:12:28] also time of year he went did not help either correct? Yes yes I've read Waypoints as well so

[00:12:37] I think it's good in a way that he didn't just you know perhaps find it all

[00:12:42] entirely easy and straightforward so yes you do need to do some preparation, make sure you've

[00:12:50] got the right kit with you. You certainly need comfortable boots or trail shoes depending on

[00:12:57] the time of year and what you're used to wearing. The key thing is don't buy new boots just

[00:13:04] before you set off because they're never going to be comfortable. And then yes so at different

[00:13:11] times of year you need to remember the hours of daylight because if a stretch takes longer

[00:13:17] than you expect you may find it's getting dark so a head torch is essential as is a map in case

[00:13:26] your phone runs out of charge, a lot of people expect to be able to use that. The

[00:13:33] West Island Way is pretty well signposted but you still need to make sure that you

[00:13:39] know where you're going in case. Yeah I hadn't even thought of the daylight thing either because

[00:13:46] I'm in Canada, I'm in Ontario near Toronto and we're much further south than Scotland is.

[00:13:53] Our days are much longer than Scottish days for the most part. Well that's the thing yes

[00:14:00] because in the summer it doesn't get very dark or only for a few hours and that's when

[00:14:12] you have some of these races take place, the West Island Way race which is across the 95 miles

[00:14:19] and they do that in June around the longest day so that is light for most of it. But yes on the

[00:14:26] flip side of that most people tend to walk between March and October because over the winter

[00:14:34] you have the shorter hours of daylight so it's not necessarily a weather question in that

[00:14:41] the weather can vary at any time of year so you know you could have a perfectly nice November

[00:14:48] or February and walk it but it's making sure that you either know how to walk in the dark or

[00:14:59] are used to doing that or that you only do a few hours or go at a time of year where it's

[00:15:07] going to be light for longer. So I think I'd mentioned oh sorry go ahead go ahead.

[00:15:11] I was just going to say people vary a lot as well in terms of what they do and where they

[00:15:18] stay and so on as well because some people camp and in Scotland you can wild camp apart from

[00:15:26] a few places around Lohlomond where there are restrictions or bylaws in place but other than

[00:15:33] that then some people carry their tent and everything they need on their backs and

[00:15:39] so they really get that kind of wild wilderness experience whereas others go from

[00:15:46] one hotel to another and people will carry your bags in between each stop so that you're not having to

[00:15:52] carry all your luggage around with you. So yeah there's different ways of doing it depending on

[00:16:00] kind of experience you're after. You read my mind that was my very next question was

[00:16:04] I was just about to say I said I'm not an outdoorsy type of person is there somewhere

[00:16:09] indoors I can stay so that's perfect and also I like the idea of people

[00:16:14] carrying my luggage as well and not having to do that that sounds great.

[00:16:22] What kind of you know I just mentioned that the whole Sam Hewitt thing he kind of just

[00:16:28] leaps into it in fact he actually kind of mocks or derides walking poles at first because he

[00:16:33] doesn't he's like I don't need these I'm Sam Hewitt haven't you know who I am West Highland Way

[00:16:39] but what are some of the essentials people should have for tackling this route is there

[00:16:44] you know essential kit that they should bring? Yeah I mean personally I would highly recommend

[00:16:51] hiking poles because you know all the sort of ups and downs it's actually probably going downhill

[00:16:57] that you need them more so yes that's a must. As I say you can end up with unexpected

[00:17:10] sunshine so you need sunscreen you obviously tend to need waterproofs as well, first aid kits

[00:17:20] and some sort of tape is useful for any emergency repairs on boots or sleeping bags

[00:17:29] a torch as we said a head torch depending on the time of year some kind of high energy snacks to

[00:17:38] keep you going and water or good refillable water bottle or you can get these kind of filters

[00:17:45] for using some of the streams along the way because you certainly don't want to end up

[00:17:52] with that with not keeping hydrated enough. There's some sort of safety things you know a

[00:18:00] whistle and as I say a phone but also a phone charger so that you don't run out of power

[00:18:09] and then yeah the kind of kit that you're comfortable walking in and then things like

[00:18:16] mid-repellent depending on the time of year Scotland's often known for that

[00:18:22] so yeah those are some of the essentials definitely. I know I hesitate to make this too much of the

[00:18:29] talking about Sam Hewan and his stuff but did you see like an uptick in traffic

[00:18:35] when his book came out because it does seem like he's extremely high profile

[00:18:41] type of person so it seems like on the surface at least it'd be the best possible PR for something

[00:18:48] like the West Island way. Yes I think there has been an increase in outlander fans and maybe

[00:18:57] interest from the states in Canada, Australia, New Zealand. I mean people actually come from all

[00:19:05] around the world already to do the West Island way but we have had a few my peekers as well if you

[00:19:12] know about Sam's mypeak challenge so yes I certainly don't think it did the profile of the

[00:19:19] West Island way any harm. I guess one of the important messages for us to get across though

[00:19:25] is that yeah people need to be prepared and also think about how to be a responsible walker

[00:19:34] to leave no trace and the impact of all these feet on the environment and

[00:19:42] the effects that climate change is having as well so that's making maintenance for the trail

[00:19:49] more of an issue as well. So I think yeah I mean it's great that the West Island way is so popular

[00:19:57] but there's quite a lot to do to make sure it's sustainable and that

[00:20:03] yeah the bridges, the sections of paths and everything are kept well maintained and that

[00:20:08] you know it's something that people are going to have an enjoyable experience of in the future

[00:20:12] as well. You mentioned early on that part of your focus is things like fundraising are there

[00:20:20] ways for people to support the way? Yes we're actually looking at the moment of setting up a

[00:20:27] charity but there's already ways on our website to help support the West Island way so

[00:20:37] there's a we have a passport as it's called so this means you can collect stamps at different

[00:20:46] locations along the way so you can kind of record your journey as you go. There are also ways to

[00:20:54] buy t-shirts or official merchandise that supports the trail and we've had a few

[00:21:00] individual fundraisers as well who've actually walked and raised money for the trail too

[00:21:06] so it is something that we are going to be increasing to look at just because of the

[00:21:12] same need for maintenance and so on as well. It does really and the reason I ask is because

[00:21:19] I'm sure that there are people who will listen to this episode who may not ever intend to walk it

[00:21:26] but I think would do understand the value that it has in terms of opening the door to the Highlands

[00:21:34] really to anyone who does want to walk it and it's that's not something that can just exist

[00:21:39] without support without someone kind of looking into its maintenance. Yeah I think people don't

[00:21:46] often give a huge amount of thought to who's responsible for these things but

[00:21:53] yeah I can assure you a lot of hard work goes on with members of staff and volunteers

[00:22:01] and when I say members of staff the West Highland Way itself isn't an organisation

[00:22:08] at the moment as I say we're looking at setting up a trust or a charity to sort of help support it

[00:22:14] but at the moment it's people within the Loch Lomond and Trussex National Park

[00:22:18] and within Highland Council and Argyll and Butte and Sterling and Easton Bartonshire which are the

[00:22:24] sections of the that the trail goes through so yeah there's people who do a lot on signage and on

[00:22:35] yeah repairing bridges clearing bracken making sure drainage ditches are clear

[00:22:43] we've had volunteers help with that and there are companies there's a company called Max Adventure

[00:22:50] who's been supporting us as well they they organise trips on the West Highland Way and

[00:22:57] they've been yeah helping to support the trail both with five pounds or ten dollars per person

[00:23:06] that walks it but also through helping with volunteering and so yeah clearing ditches

[00:23:15] lots of work goes on gates and yeah signposts when you look at 96 miles in detail there's a

[00:23:25] lot of paths to cover I would say 96 miles across some of the most rugged parts of Scotland

[00:23:30] it does that does feel like there's much there there'd be much to do yeah

[00:23:35] if people want to learn more about the West Highland Way where do they go is there a website you can

[00:23:40] direct them to or relevant social media channels yes the website is westhighlandway.org so

[00:23:51] you can find out a lot there's a lot of information there about if you're looking

[00:23:56] to to walk it and we'll want to learn more about it and we also have Facebook Instagram and X or

[00:24:06] Twitter as well I still say Twitter I refuse to say X I know everyone kind of goes yeah

[00:24:13] so yes um so there's links from our website to all of those so that yeah the main thing is

[00:24:19] westhighlandway.org all right thank you so much for joining us today no thank you for very inviting

[00:24:26] me it's been great thank you thank you for listening to 63 Scottish check us out on Instagram

[00:24:37] Facebook or Twitter also known as X you can also listen to every episode for free at 63

[00:24:44] Scottish dot com if you listen on Spotify Apple podcast or another service please subscribe

[00:24:49] to the show it really helps a big thank you to friends of the podcast including the Toronto

[00:24:55] Sanders Society the Scottish Society of Ottawa the Scottish Banner and Scottish Studies at the

[00:25:00] University of Guelph your support is never taken for granted until next time goodbye