What to see and do Outdoors in Scotland.

Looking to do a 2 day (carrying a tent) walk somewhere in the highlands

Not planning on driving, so being able to start near a train station is a must

Looking for something super scenic, not necessarily easy.

Sorry vague question.

My son is 7 and very active. We went up Ben lomond via ptarmigan a few weeks ago and he loved the scramble towards the end. He wants to climb more.munros but I'm keen to keep to the more interesting ones to stop him losing interest - like more An Teallach and less Ben Chonzie. That said I'm obviously also conscious of the need to be safe, and in particular we avoid bad weather (for the dual reason of safety and enjoyability)

I suppose my question is - do people often get into difficulty and or injure themselves doing scrambles in good weather? I don't really get the impression this is the case.

Would love to explore the highlands around there, what are some of the best walks/hikes/castle to do in that area? Thanks!

Hi everybody!

I have long wanted to try out wild camping, and have been considering trying it out from towards the end of July to the end of August. However, I may also be able to do the end of September if that is a better time. I am pretty fit, but have never really ‘hiked’ before. My preference for the trail would be one that is not super busy, feels quite out of the way (without being so rural that I risk putting myself in a bad position due to my inexperience), but still potentially having a nice town or village to pass through occasionally (potentially to stay at and recharge depending on route length). I would also like to experience the Caledonian Sleeper on the way there, so any routes that are accessible from that would be great! In terms of how long to spend there, I am not too fussed, but of course with being a beginner I do not want to overextend myself.

Many thanks guys!

I'm on my way to the island (I will be there in a couple of days) and I would love to walk the Skye Trail but my backpack is heavy and I'm not in the best shape after surgery. Are there nice strategic spots where I could (wild) camp and have access to trails for day trips? I assume somewhere in the centre of the island would make more sense but I'm open to any suggestions! Mostly I'm looking for places where I can commune with nature, write, meditate, but also not be tooooo far from shops/supplies. Thanks in advance! And if anyone is planning something similar do holler!

Does anyone have experience hiking the skye trail in October? What’s the weather like (if predictable 😄)? How’s the midge situation?

So I am from Thailand and apparently I have never seen snow before so I wanted to see snow during my October trip to Scotland. However I am not sure if there are any places (mountains or lakes or anything) that snows in October. I did a quick google search and apparently most places start snowing in November but snow in October exist but kinda rare. I was thinking of going to Cairngorms because I heard from some people that they snow there in October sometimes but I am not fully sure. If it does then I will because it is close to Edinburgh. So can anyone tell me if there are any places in Scotland that snows in October?

Anybody have any recommendations for walking/hiking groups going out to the highlands regularly? New to Glasgow and have been getting out every weekend now, regularly doing Munro’s and 15km+ hikes in the Trossachs, Glencoe and the Cairngorms but would be nice to join a few like minded people who like to push it further each time. Thanks

Second update: I survived dry and comfortable in my tent, although the storm dropped a lot of water. Thanks guys for your advice. It is/was highly appreciated!🙏

Update: Judging by the comments here and the updated weather forecast I’ll take my chances. Cross your fingers that I won’t be zapped by Thor.

I am currently in this moment en route in the train from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh and supposed to head off on Skye Trail northbound tomorrow. Much to my dismay the weather forecast for tomorrow has a yellow warning for heavy showers and possibly thunderstorms. Supposedly up to 20-30 mm rain per hour and up to 30-50mm over two hours leading to surface water flooding. The warning seems to be for the entire western part of UK from north to south.

What to do? I am doing the trail northbound and hence will not be at any significant height tomorrow. On the other hand at the time of the supposed heavy showers my only respite from the weather is my wild camping kit, ie tent, as I will not be near any civilization before reaching Torrin which will not happen until 15-16 o’clock.

I’d rather not postpone my departure due to logistical reasons but I also obviously do not want to endanger myself or jeopardize my hike this early on.

What would you do given the above information?

Hi, so we thought we found a beautiful place near seal island and we are not allowed to stay here, any advice? Where to best camp around Fort William?

Hello, please remove if not allowed.

Originally from South Africa where ticks weren't much of a problem due to the dryer environment. Recently moved to the Highlands, specifically to the Dornoch Firth area. Lately, I have been finding ticks inside my home (I have 2 German Shepards who are both on Bravecto, so the ticks are mostly dead when found).

Lyme is scary. Our garden is quite large, and we have deer in the area. I'm looking for advice on methods my family can take to minimize these devils. Feeling a bit out of our depths as foreigners. Help is greatly appeciated.

Hello!

I have a night booked at the Loch Ossian hostel and I'm trying to figure out what hikes to do while I'm there.

The three I'm looking at are Beinn na Lap, Leum Uilleim, and the Loch Ossian circuit.

My train arrives on a Sunday at 3:30pm, and I'm scheduled to leave on the 6:25pm train the next day.

As much as I'd love to do all three of these hikes I don't think I'll have enough time, so I'll need to prioritize lol. My current plan is to relax, have a nice dinner at the station, and maybe meander partway around the lake Sunday night. Then on Monday wake up early to hammer out Beinn na Lap in the morning, then do Leum Uilleim in the afternoon. I've checked walkhighlands and these don't look particularly difficult, but I'm wondering if this is a reasonable plan or if I'm cutting it too close to catch my evening train (which I cannot miss).

For context - I'm an experienced hiker from the Canadian Rockies, though not in my best shape after a somewhat crappy winter. A 20km day is big but absolutely reasonable for me, especially if I wake up early.

I would appreciate advice on if my plan is sound, or if there's better alternatives for my short time in Corrour.

Thank you so much, and I'm so excited to visit your beautiful country!!

​

Transport on Sundays

Hi all I’ll be hiking the Skye Trail from this weekend on and am struggling to figure out transport to the northern starting point (ie. the phone box). I am supposed to travel from Kyle of Lochalsh to the trailhead on Sunday but I cannot find any bus timetables including Sundays which leads me to think there is no bus service on Sundays. Is that correct? If yes are there any other ways for me to get to starting point on Sunday? Any private coach or similar options that are not a taxi running on the meter?

Alternatively I could do the trail northbound instead of southbound but then I’ll potentially run into the same problem when wanting to get back to Kyle of Lochalsh.

Thanks in advance.

Looking to canoe the length of loch Lomond and camp out overnight along my route. Can't find any decently priced places to rent a canoe from. Does anyone have any advice?

I'll be heading to Blair atholl and cycling into cairngorm from there on the 11th of May, staying for two nights and head back on the Monday. Any advice would be appreciated and curious if anyone else will be there at the same time.

This summer I'm doing a supported hike of the West Highland Way with a friend, and then a solo pack trip of the Skye Trail. I'm not sure what to do with my daypack/travel gear while on the Skye Trail. Ship them back to the states? Is there somewhere I could pay to leave them?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Walking ben nevid in 3 weeks time, which is the best map please

Hi,

Tldr: tourist on a budget, going from Edinburgh to John O'Groats, then back to London through air or rail

I'd like to plan the following trip:

Trip 1: Edinburgh to John O'Groats (By air or rail)

Trip 2: John O'Groats (through Wick Airport or Inverness airport) back to London

I'd prefer to reach John O'Groats during the daytime, either return the same night or the following morning.

I'm a budget traveler, so I'd prefer more affordable options (I don't mind night trains).

Since it's a somewhat remote location, information is limited (and I'm not a native, so I need some guidance).

Is this trip doable relying solely on public transport? Is it safe for a solo traveler? Or should I call it off?

I know the price varies depending on mode of transport But how much I'd be looking at?