Highland Challenge
Committed public transport user Paul Lamarra goes head-to-head with his car-driving friend in a race to climb two peaks around Loch Lomond in one day. Along the way, he discovers the damage weekend road-trippers are doing to Scotland’s most celebrated wild places…
Last year I sold my car and didn’t replace it. And despite much weeping and gnashing of teeth among friends, loved ones and earnest strangers, I have stuck with it and become a public transport evangelist. Inevitably, doubts have lingered and I’ve wondered where the limits to my new car-free existence lay. Could I, for instance, continue to climb my favourite hills around my Glasgow home with the spontaneity and frequency I was used to? So, in a rush of blood to the head I challenged David Series, friend and guitar teacher to my daughters, to climb Ben Lomond and the Cobbler in a single day – David in his car and me relying entirely on public transport.
Two-peak challenge
Climbing Ben Lomond – a Munro lying to the east of Loch Lomond – and the Cobbler – a Corbett lying to the west at the head of Loch Long – in a single day may seem contrived. But like any challenge it had to push the boundaries, and in choosing these mountains I hoped to test the role of the national park authority in promoting sustainable access. For the driver, the most difficult part of the challenge would be the long drive around Loch Lomond, linking the two mountains – especially the congested road up the eastern side of the loch. For the walker the biggest problem would be the necessary seven-mile walk from Balmaha to Rowardennan. Setting off rather bleary eyed at half-past-six in the morning, David rushed off to fill up with petrol and I jumped on the punctual 06:35 train from Anniesland, the station nearest my home, and settled into a snooze. When the train arrived at Balloch (on time) and I made the very tight connection with the 07:16 bus to Balmaha, I had high hopes of winning the contest. Disconcertingly, I was the only passenger, but the driver assured me that later buses would be packed with ramblers.
In less than an hour’s public transport travel from Glasgow I was on the remote eastern shores of Loch Lomond and wide awake to the challenge. On such a perfect morning, the brisk walk along the West Highland Way (WHW) from Balmaha to Rowardennan was no hardship and I blew away the cobwebs with the cool morning air. Despite David phoning to say he was already making his way up Ben Lomond, I didn’t adopt an unnatural haste. I would catch up later. The WHW has always been a popular route between Glasgow and the Highlands and has been used by walkers since the 1920s. Forced to remain at their factory jobs until Saturday evening, many had to walk through the night and use rowing boats to cross the loch to climb on the Cobbler or reach Rowardennan further north by Sunday morning. Of course, the journey had to be reversed in time for work on a Monday morning or else face the sack. But the risk was worth it and it is clear from contemporary diaries that their difficult journeys brought an enormous sense of privilege. Walking the WHW around Loch Lomond, I too feel a real sense of privilege. A fresh air paradise of small pebbly bays, fine mountain views and ancient woodland – its allure to Glaswegians is obvious. But, unfortunately, greater car use, cheap supermarket tents and the increased publicity that comes with national park status has led to problems. The narrow and difficult road from Balmaha to Rowardennan is often overwhelmed with traffic. And the beaches within easy reach of a parked car have become favourite spots for drunken barbecues.
Dying sense of privilege
On one level I commend their good taste, but on another I have to condemn their abject laziness and lack of respect. Everything is abandoned: bottles, cans, food containers, those tinfoil barbecues and even their tents and sleeping bags. Trees are hacked and the green wood lies half-burned in fire pits. The national park’s response has been to ban wild camping in 14 square kilometres/5½ square miles of the eastern shores and corral it into designated areas. The move has been made under pressure to find a solution, but it is one that could undermine wild camping elsewhere and the adventure of walking the WHW, punishing the well meaning. It also rather misses the point. My contention is that the true problem is it’s just a little too easy to reach Rowardennan, which undermines the mindset of privilege and seclusion that people have about the place. It seems obvious that it is the loch itself that holds the key. An increased provision of ferries and a restriction on the number of cars using the eastern road to Rowardennan could be offset with the introduction of a shuttle bus service from Balmaha.
Ramblers Scotland also feels that Scotland’s national parks have to prove their worth by leading the co-ordination of sustainable solutions that enhance the wildness of the parks. Helen Todd, development officer at Ramblers Scotland, points out that curbs on cars have been part of the solution elsewhere. “This is the way that places like Zion National Park in the USA have dealt with excessive motor traffic and consequential damage. It’s time for Scotland to learn those lessons,” Helen says. “Better regulation and management of traffic along the road to Rowardennan would probably go a long way to solving the camping problems instead of blanket prohibitions on everyone, including those who are camping responsibly.” Ramblers Scotland is also pressing the Cairngorms National Park Authority to close the road that goes to over 610m/2,000ft on Cairngorm, and that the mountain’s controversial funicular railway should be accessed by a new gondola or shuttle bus starting from further down. The proposals have been rejected by Cairngorm’s local politicians. But in Loch Lomond there is recognition that new ferries are part of the answer, and there are plans to introduce new services between the bizarrely incongruous shopping centre known as Loch Lomond Shores and various points on the loch. As Fiona Logan, chief executive of the national park, conceded: “Water is a key draw for visitors to the area but Loch Lomond is currently an underutilised resource. A strong tradition exists, particularly with day visitors, of choosing to visit by car. But as visitor numbers to the Park have increased, so have associated traffic and visitor management problems. The provision of the waterbus service will be a key resource in tackling this issue.” At first the services will be limited and relatively expensive, though crucially there will be no ferry service between the railway terminus at Balloch and Rowardennan.
A point proved
I made good time while I thumped out my polemic in my head. However, still some three miles short of Rowardennan, David phoned to say he had reached the top of Ben Lomond. When I did finally reach Rowardennan, I was struck – as ever – by the beauty of the place. A plaque placed on the wall of Rowardennan Hotel by the Holiday Fellowship in the 1930s reminds everyone, in a gentle poem, to take their litter home and the long-standing special status of the small hamlet among walkers. The late evening ferry at 16:45 determined my unhurried ascent up Ben Lomond, and I even had time to enjoy a beer in the hotel. The ferry was perfectly punctual and the journey a pleasant new perspective on the loch. However, as I disembarked from the dilapidated pier, it became clear that the gentle message of the plaque was no longer enough. I watched as huge tents were pitched, barbecues lit and mountains of food and drink were assembled on the loch shore. Only a car can facilitate these logistics and in this case the car is clearly key to the problem.
At Tarbet on the western shore I met up with David again and, despite the long drive around Loch Lomond, he had completed the Cobbler climb before I had even begun and was now heading back to Glasgow. It would be dusk before I hobbled exhausted into the station waiting room at Arrochar, having cut short my ascent of the Cobbler just shy of the summit. But, gratifyingly, the 22:45 Caledonian Sleeper service – ultimately bound for London – was bang on time and returned me to Glasgow on the stroke of midnight. David had won the challenge with five hours to spare. At 27 years old, he had youth and an engine on his side. But he also experienced none of the usual traffic jams or problems parking we’d predicted – perhaps because it was a Friday. “When I was climbing the Cobbler I was very tired and had to sing to myself to keep going,” David admitted. “The 40-mile drive around the south end of Loch Lomond felt long and tedious and, rather than a complete day out, it felt like I was climbing two hills.” Ultimately, I felt my day had been successful and far more enjoyable. At every point of my journey, each mode of public transport was on time, clean and comfortable, and I’d managed to (very nearly) climb two of my favourite local peaks in one day. Although I’d failed the challenge, my decision to abandon the car had been vindicated.
Quick guide to Scottish public transport
FERRIES:
Calmac (✆ 01475 650100, www.calmac.co.uk)
Sail to 27 Scottish islands and combine well with bus and rail services for car-free walks. Island rover tickets start from £48.50 and a pre-planned ‘hopscotch’ ticket from £7.
TRAINS:
Scotrail (✆ 08457 48 49 50, www.scotrail.co.uk)
Scotrail’s train services form the backbone of the Scottish transport network, and the Highland lines offer scenic journeys to the most popular walking destinations including Fort William, Aviemore, Fife and Pitlochry. Services in the south-west are limited and there are no services in the Borders. Two children can travel free with each adult purchasing an off-peak return, and there are often £15 anywhere returns for over 55s.
Caledonian Sleeper service
(✆ 08457 55 00 33, www.scotrail.co.uk/caledoniansleeper)
The sleeper visits Inverness and Fort William, so you can go to sleep in London and wake up in the Highlands. From £19 one way.
COACHES:
Scottish Citylink
(✆ 0871 266 33 33, www.citylink.co.uk)
Buses that go where the train doesn’t, including Skye, Ullapool and Kintyre.
TRAVEL INFO:
Traveline Scotland
(✆ 0871 200 22 33, www.travelinescotland.com)
An excellent resource when it comes to planning journeys involving several modes of public transport.
GLASGOW:
Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (✆ 0845 601 6499, www.spt.co.uk)
Co-ordinates travel in an extensive area around Glasgow, offering the integrated Daytripper ticket that’s ideal for walking linear routes. It allows unlimited travel on trains, most buses as well as the Helensburgh-Kilcreggan-Greenock ferry in the Strathclyde passenger transport area from just £9.80.
NATIONAL PARKS:
Loch Lomond & Trossachs
Details of Loch Lomond & the Trossachs’ summer 4B (boat, bus, bike and boot) initiative and other public transport options are available at www.lochlomond-trossachs.org.
Cairngorms
There are fewer details for the Cairngorms, but the relevant pdf can be found by searching under publications at www.cairngorms.co.uk.
