As much as I could spend a week just relaxing inside of the lodge, there is a whole world right outside of the lodge to explore and its absolutely breathtaking! Lots of guests are often looking for a short walk rather than a whole day out hiking. Incredibly, The Triangle Lodge sits directly in the middle of The Great Glen Way - which is a famous walk stretching from Inverness right down through to Fort William. It goes along some of the most scenic of paths you will ever see, but for some, it's just too far. So I have come up with two perfect circular walks that go through & along side The Great Glen Way.
The Great Glen Way, Woodland Stretch (Approx. 1 Hour) -
The woodland stretch is the shortest of the two, taking about 1 hour walking at a good pace. You can walk either way to begin with, personally I would walk alongside the Loch on the left first, as it connects you to the gravel path on the way back - going the other way it might be a bit trickier to find the path that takes you back on yourself (but not impossible!). So let me talk you through it as if you were going directly alongside the Loch edge first.
You will start off at the Lodge which is where the pin drop is in the above image, you will walk all the way through the site which gives you a great opportunity to have a look around in those first few days. Head along the road towards the last lodge of the site and there will be a little car park you walk through. You will see the woodland in front of you on the lower level heading towards the Loch, head straight through there and you'll begin to see the footpath taking you alongside the Loch. Keep heading alongside there and you'll reach some gates, go through the gates continuing on the footpath which takes you along the Loch edge. This is my favourite part of the walk, so peaceful and beautiful! You can head off on certain parts to take in the Loch views, with a tiny little beach at one point with a rope swing usually there. Continue on and you'll reach a point where the path begins the turn and go up to the higher level - this is where you are going to start to go back on yourself. This was the old railway line...in fact, they are currently renovating the Railway Station which you will see at the end of this path. Head along that gravel path right the way to the end and it will take you back on the the site where you can make your way back to the Lodge!
The Great Glen Way, Canal Stretch (1.5 Hours) -
This has to be my absolute favourite and if I don't manage to get out of the lodge for the day, I will always make sure to fit this in to get some fresh air and move my body! The views are incredible the whole way through, with them changing constantly. It is an easy walk but the distance is greater than the first, making it slightly longer. This is the route I regularly will go for runs or even go for a bike ride with the children (My four year old can do it, but will begin to flag 10 min before the end!). This one you can go either way and it is easy to pick up the route no matter which way you go, personally though - for no reason at all I will always head up north above where the drop pin is and turn left on to the route first but you can decide that yourself! On this walk, again you start off where the drop pin is at the lodge then head back out towards the main road and you walk north along the A82 alongside a newly made path, this takes you across a working canal bridge, head along this road for 5 minutes and cross over towards the bus stop. Then take an immediate left around the back of the row of houses. You then stay on that winding quiet road, there are small hills going up and down throughout, then once you get to a steep long downhill descent you will see lodges that are identical to The Triangle Lodge, this will be called Glengarry Lodges, you want to make a U-turn through the front of these lodges and head towards the canal at the end, cross over there and take an immediate left up alongside the canal. You can stop off for lunch at the 'Eagle Barge' and eat a wonderful meal on a boat - I offer my guests 10% off so please contact me to get that!
See the path that goes alongside the right of the above picture? Head straight along there and you'll get to a woodland, you continue through the woodland along the footpath, going across a small wooden bridge (perfect pooh stick spot!), keep going along the path and you'll eventually make your way back to the entrance to the Lodge.
Not everyone has bikes or is able to bring them to the lodge, if you're able to plan ahead you can always hire bikes from Girvans Hardware - based just 15 minutes away from The Triangle Lodge. Get in touch with them and see if you can set up a fantastic adventure for you and your party!
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