After a hearty breakfast Wyn and I left Forest Lodge at 8.35.  Laura and Lorraine could not have been better hosts.

Initially we made our way warily along the A82 to get back to Laggan Locks.  Once there, the path followed the canal amongst woodland, until it crossed the A82 and joined an old railway line at Invergarry station.  The railway opened in 1903, joining Invergarry and Fort Augustus.  It was designed to be the first section of a line linking Fort William with Inverness.  Unfortunately the timing was wrong, none of the other sections were built, and the line closed in 1946.

The railway goes through Leitirfearn Forest Nature Reserve, running parallel to the shore of Loch Oich, with occasional views across to the far shore.  Evidence of General Wade’s military road can be seen below the railway.

At Aberchalder Swing Bridge we crossed the A82 and followed the canal to Cullochy Loch. We were looking forward to coffee at the teashop by the bridge – but naturally it was closed.

From Cullochy, the trail follows the canal to Fort Augustus.  This section lacked interest, except at Kytra Lock where we stopped for an early lunch.  A boat was coming through the loch, and I was surprised it was called the “Orlik”, the surname of my brother-in-law.

At 1.30 we arrived at Fort Augustus, walking into the town alongside the flight of five locks which form the entrance to the canal for boats leaving Loch Ness.  Our hotel was very near, so we treated ourselves to a reviving beer before settling into our room.

Fort Augustus is obviously a tourist centre, with crowds flocking to the locks and the souvenir shops.  After the solitude of the path, it is quite a contrast.  We have been surprised how quiet the Great Glen Way has been, compared with the West Highland Way.

 

Yesterday was a quiet day catching up on things in Fort William.  A very helpful laundromat sorted out my washing and I managed to get a haircut.  Wyn arrived soon after 4.00pm and we both enjoyed our meal at the Alexandra Hotel.

Breakfast with several coach tours was a bit of a scrum but we managed to escape to the quiet of the bistro.  As the hotel lift only took two people, and as the people on the tours all seem to have two huge cases each, we took to the stairs and departed at 8.45.

The path through the housing estates of Fort William, Inverlochy and Caol was fairly uninteresting. The original Fort William and Inverlochy Castle are on the route but little remains of either.

At Corpach we reached the Caledonian Canal near the sea lock and walked up to Neptune’s Staircase, a series of eight locks. We had a brief stop at the top and then set off towards Gairlochy.

There were almost no boats using the canal and it was therefore very exciting when a large yacht appeared. The walk was easy and as the day progressed and the low cloud lifted the north face of Ben Nevis started to appear.

At Moy there is a very attractive swing bridge. This was installed so that the farmer can access his riverside meadows. It has its own keeper as only one side of the bridge can be opened manually at a time. The keeper uses a small boat to cross the canal and open the other half.

Just after 1.00 we arrived at Gairlochy Locks and stopped for lunch. Our accommodation for the night was at Spean Bridge which involved another 6k of road walking.

This took us past the famous Commando War Memorial at Spean Bridge which was justifiably very busy with tourists.  We reached the Spean Bridge Hotel at 3.15 and have a comfortable cabin for the night.  As we are getting old we have sorted out a taxi for tomorrow morning, rather than reverse the walk back to the canal.