A pleasant breakfast was followed by our retracing our steps through the village, past the train station, and up the long hill through the pine forest back to the West Highland Way. We had been too tired the night before to notice it, but Crianlairich is bounded to the north by a range of very substantial, spiky mountains, and they lifted our spirits as we walked.
The path kept us high above Strath Fillan for the first couple of miles, walking through conifer forests with very few views.
When we finally descended, we crossed a river and entered a large area run as a government agricultural research station, including two substantial farms.
The first farm, Kirkton, is built around the remains of St. Fillian’s Priory, a community founded by one of the first Irish missionaries.
The fields were green, very lovely, and full of sheep.
The second farm, Auchtertyre, contains the Strathfillan Wigwams complex, like Beinglas Farm a locale for walkers with camping, wigwams, and a restaurant. It was too early for lunch, so we passed on, crossed the road again, and found ourselves in the Tyndrum woods, the site of a horrible battle between Jacobite and loyalist forces. In a small tarn in the woods Robert the Bruce is said to have lost his sword.
It was sprinkling on and off, and we had some of the dreariest weather since the walk to Drymen. The woods were a bit ragged, and we longed for the moor and some highland scenery. The walk between Beinglas and Tyndrum is by no means unpleasant, but the scenery just isn’t as riveting as that of the walk along Loch Lomond–to say nothing of the mountain scenery to come.
We paused to chat with a charming young French business student who was doing the path by himself, and then passed on into Tydrum after crossing the distressing site of an abandoned lead mine. The Real Food Cafe actually offers real, homemade food. The soup was so good that we had some of their house baked desserts, and they, too, were good. We sat by the fire, which took some of the damp chill off, and finished off with steaming mugs of tea.
Down the road we found the Green Welly, a big complex with a restaurant, a famous whisky department, and a big outdoor clothing and equipment selection. Sue found a great glasses strap here–even better than the croaky!
The path led up a nondescript hill out of the village, and we seemed to be in for more of the same–though at least the rain had stopped. It was gray and the clouds were low, but we had dried out. At the top of the rise, though–our first crossing of the British watershed–everything changed! We were suddenly in a narrow highland valley with enormous, steep, gully-marked peaks on our right.
As we walked our way around to the right, Bein Dorrain, the enormous pyramid above Bride of Orchy came into view. Every step was beautiful, with deep glens opening between the peaks and isolated farms huddled at the feet of the mountains.
About halfway to Orchy we passed the lovely farm Auch, at the head of a deep and mysterious side glen. The afternoon passed by too quickly, as we walked accompanied by giants.
We didn’t know what to expect at Orchy. It really isn’t a village: just a train station, a schoolhouse, a couple of homes, and the hotel. The hotel sits right on the road, and looks like a lot of rural hotels in Scotland.
Once in the door, though, we were stunned. The hotel has been redone as an exceptionally stylish, exceptionally comfortable holiday base. The reception areas and lounge are modern, with interesting art on the walls, the bar retains the character of a good snug, and the dining area is a bit like Prospect House: three walls of glass looking out over the river, bridge, and mountains. We were greeted warmly and shown to our room, which was spacious, handsome, and organized around a wonderful bed. I’ll say it right now: the hotel generates such a feeling of well being that we actually thought about staying for two nights and taking our rest day right then and there.
After our usual rest, I had a beer recommended by the nice Romanian kid at the bar; and Sue had one of the best wines of the trip, a Romanian pinot noir! We made our dinner reservation then strolled down to look at the river. They have just added a series of modern rooms to the hotel and were laying sod around them. Dinner was excellent: we shared smoked salmon rolls stuffed with prawns, Sue had roast lamb, including a confit of the shoulder, and I had a venison steak.
We drank a dram in the bar and hit the hay. The only downside was that the exceptionally amiable manager, a scot with a wispy pony tail, was unable to open the case in the reception area and sell me the ordnance survey maps I so craved!