Drovers’ Tryst Walking Festival

Ben Vrackie is a well known Corbett and a familiar sight above the popular town of Pitlochry.  The walk starts from the car park above the village of Moulin and follows good paths and tracks to the summit.  From Ben Vrackie (841m) there are excellent views of the town of Pitlochry and the south, the river Tummel in the west and Beinn a’Ghlo to the north.  The descent will take a scenic path off the hill and back to our start point.

The ‘Praying Hands of Mary’, also known as Fionn’s Rock, is a mysterious rock formation in Glen Lyon. It consists of two large stones that rise together as if they were hands praying. Relatively easily accessible and close to Bridge of Balgie, the site is a gem, as it takes your imagination back deep into Scotland’s Celtic past. It is said that the rock was split in two by an arrow fired by the legendary Celtic hero Fingal, or Fionn mac Cumhaill (Finn McCool).

Walter Scott once described Glen Lyon as the ‘longest, loneliest and loveliest glen in Scotland’. Glen Lyon is arguably the longest enclosed glen in Scotland, extending neraly 40kms from Fortingall in the east to the eastern end of Loch Lyon in the west. A single-track road runs down the glen, passing through incredibly beautiful countryside. The ‘Praying Hands of Mary’ are about halfway along the glen on the Southern side of the road (but not visible from the road).

Near the hamlet of Camusvrachan is a cluster of old stone cottages at Balmenoch. We will follow a rough track up Gleinn Da-Eigg from Balmenoch, beside Allt a’ Chobhair, and will eventually see the striking rock formation resembling a pair of hands in an attitude of prayer, perched on a hill about 600m up from the glen floor. After a break (and possibly lunch there – weather dependent), we will return via the hamlet at Balnahanaid and back past the Meggemie Outdoor Activity Centre, to the car park.

There is also a quite excellent tea room at Bridge of Balgie. Depending upon the wishes of the Group – we might even stay for a cream tea!

This has proved to be a very popular and fascinating walk. Pitlochry historian and Wade expert, Colin Liddell follows General Wade’s second Road North through the Sma’ Glen.  It is a route steeped in military and droving history which for the majority of the way follows the original military road.  From Newton Bridge the route goes north via Corriemuckloch to Amulree the site of an original Kingshouse.  The route continues north via Newton of Ballinreigh into Glen Cochil as far as the roadbridge at Scotston.

These mountains, which stand above Strathearn, form a dividing line between the mountains of the North and the central lowlands of Scotland.

The walk will take in two Munros and a Corbett as we travel south towards Callander. Meeting the minibus at the end the journey  will afford us the luxury of completing a linear route to the three summits.

We’ll set off from Ardvorlich, up the the northern ridge of Ben Vorlich (hill of the bay) on a well worn path, which will give us plenty time to take in the views unfolding to the west. From the trig point on Vorlich summit, a steep stony path to the south west will lead to Bealach an Dubh Choirein and to the start of the vegetated staircase path that winds its way up the steep rocks guarding Stuc a’ Chroin (peak of the sheepfold). Some confidence on steep ground will be required here and some easy scrambling will be necessary.

From the top, after a quickish descent, we’ll traverse the knolls in a gentle curve round to Ben Each with the final ascent again being a weaving steep path between crags. Once here though the hills take on a different, more gentle, nature encouraging us on downwards to Glen Ample, the minibus and the cafes of Callander.

It will be a rewarding day demanding hill fitness and confidence on some steep ground and which will give everyone a challenging and fun day out.

MINIBUS

A walk mainly along formed tracks and paths and generally straightforward access along gentle terrain but some paths will be unsuitable for wheelchair users and there will be some walking off-road into woodland areas to view particular specimen trees.

The walk will be based entirely within the designated Historic Garden & Designed Landscape surrounding the historic Drummond Castle. With trees and garden features dating back to the 17^th century, a long history of planting specimen trees and woodlands, and a number of tree ‘champions’ (in terms of height and girth), the policies and woodlands offer an incredible insight into the history of tree introduction and planting in Scotland.

NB  Included in the walk cost is a fee which will give additional access to the formal gardens and grounds before or after the Tryst walk event.

A lovely walk through the hills, taking in Glen Lochan, Glen Shervie,Glen Almond and Gleann a Chilleine along a section of the Rob Roy Way. The route climbs gently with some small descents along the way and a final descent to Loch Tay.

Starting at Croftmill there are views back to Loch Freuchie in Glen Quioch. The route then continues into Glen Lochan and on the NE side of the glen rises the spectacular cliff face of Coire a’ Chearcaill below the summit of Meall nam Fuaran. The way through here is on pleasant small paths passing several lochans before the descent to Glen Shervie and Auchnafree in Glen Almond. Auchnafree House is an impressive site.

From here the route climbs following the River Almond to the watershed at Dunan cottage, passing a war memorial and providing views of the surrounding hills. Beyond here a collection of drumlins left behind after the ice age can be seen. The route now descends through Gleann a Chilleine to Ardtalnaig passing old sheepfolds and patches of woodland with wonderful views of Loch Tay and the mountains beyond.

Some sections may be boggy and there are some burns to cross.

This walk explores the ancient Crannog sites of Loch Tay.  Our visit will include the Scottish Crannog Centre as well as a walk on the hill of Acharn overlooking Loch Tay.  We are fortunate in having Rich Hilden from the Crannog Centre as our guide.  He will lead us through the ancient history of Loch Tay and describe the local community that would have lived in the Acharn and Kenmore area. Please be aware that parts of the actual Crannog burnt down after our trip there in 2021 – so the programme will be amended accordingly. But we are assured that the local team will still provide a comprehensive & interesting insight into these ancient Crannogs. 

We will start at the Crannog Centre where you will be introduced to the Crannog community and will be taken on a guided tour around their museum (after a free warm drink). We will be told of the story of the people of the Crannog 2500 years ago. An important part of  the Centre is the story of how the Crannog sites have been rediscovered, excavated and interpreted.  We will discover how people built these amazing structures, how they used them and adapted them to suit their way of life.  We will also have the opportunity to learn about the many skills of the people of the times, how they made implements and clothing, what they ate, their stories and music and how they lived as a community.  We will also be taken around the site and see several traditional crafts including woodworking, textiles, cooking and more.

Following the visit to the Crannog Centre, we will then head up Kenmore Hill and go on a circular walk from the Crannog. On this walk you will be greeted to views of Loch Tay where further discussion on the placement and locations played into their history, as well as visiting one of the many stone circles in the area, passing nearby an area of known cup and ring mark stones and coming back down to the lovely village of Acharn via the wonderful Acharn falls and the ‘Hermit’s Cave’.  While on the walk the leader – Community Archaeologist Rich Hiden will provide local information about the history and archaeology of the area and what can be seen on the walk along the way.

The ticket price for this walk includes full entry to the Crannog Centre site.

This walk will be a fantastic day out to get four Munros for the price of one! Well, that’s an exaggeration but we will be able to get four ticks on that list in one go.

It will demand a certain level of endurance as we will be on our feet for over eight hours walking, a lot of it over trackless land and down steep grassy slopes.

From the cars we climb up Carn an Tuirc, easily at first and then picking our way over the boulder field to the top. The descent east to the bealach is straight forward and from there we take a bearing across the spongy grass to above the coire at the head of Glen Callater. Picking our way now over peat hags we will reach the slopes up to Tolmont for Munro number 2.

Tom Buidhe to the south is, shall we say, not the prettiest of hills and seems nothing more than a wee lump above the moor but we will walk over to it undeterred; Munro number 3.

On the way back now, we cross back over the plateaux and up to the boulder field on top Carn of Claise, by which time we will be a bit weary and so the quickest descent to the start will be down the steep grassy slopes of Sron na Gaoithe.

An enjoyable & informative jaunt around Crieff taking in many historic sites & learning something of the history of the grand old town of Crieff & it’s people from the earliest days to the present day .

We will take a slow and steady walk starting at St Fillans and following the Loch Earn Railway Path to Dalchonzie and then we will follow the back road into Comrie. Apart from a slight ascent at the beginning to join the railway path, the walk will be mainly on the flat.

There is much wildlife to see along the route including birds of prey, resident passerines and summer warblers along with birds and mammals associated with River Earn. We will look out for signs of some of these elusive riparian mammals and listen out for dippers and kingfishers whilst also spotting wildflowers in bloom along the route. We will stop for elevensies and hopefully arrive in Comrie in time to pick up some lunch or coffee and cake before the minibus arrives to take us back to Crieff.

This linear walk goes through the spectacular Glen Ogle at the top of Loch Earn.  The minibus will take walkers to the walk start point at Killin.  From Killin we will spend time admiring the spectacular Falls of Dochart before heading south out of Killin along the Rob Roy Way.  We start to climb up through the forestry and join the Old Military Road built by Wade in the 18th century.  At the Lairig Cheile (our highest point) we enter Glen Ogle and join the disused railway line as we walk south towards Lochearnhead, where the minibus will pick up walkers and take them back to Crieff.

A beautiful linear walk with fantastic views through Glen Artney over to Loch Earn. We start at the church at the end of Glen Artney where the minibus will drop us off. From here we follow good tracks out and down into Gleann an Dubh Choirein. We follow the river where we will have good views of both Ben Vorlich and Stuc a Chroin. We will bypass both these mountains and leave the tracks for approximately 4km until we pick up another that comes off Ben Vorlich. We head along this until we come to the road near Ardvorlich House where we will meet the minibus for our return to Crieff. This walk will involve minimal ascents but due to the terrain in parts good walking boots are essential.

This ‘Road, Rail & Trail’ excursion will see walkers being taken by mini bus to Crianlarich to then catch the train to Rannoch Station.

From Rannoch Station our route heads SE / E across Rannoch Moor, flanked by the Black Corries to the North and Loch Ladden and numerous lochans to the South. Ahead are the classic buttresses of the Buchaille Etive Mor, guiding us across Rannoch Moor, on fairly established tracks, to the Kingshouse Hotel (GR 259/545). We then get our mini-bus for our return trip to Crieff

Please note: The train time (currently 10.21am / 11.08am) may change and if so we’ll update the website details ASAP. Currently the single ticket costs £10 and this is the responsibility of individual walkers to purchase.

Ben Lawers – the tenth highest mountain in Scotland (1214m) – is the focal point of the 12 x imposing Munros in the sprawling range of hills on the northern side of Loch Tay. It is one of the most popular hills in Scotland and is served by a large car park (capacity circa 50 cars) on its SW flank . A second Munro – Beinn Ghlas – is crossed en-route towards the summit of Ben Lawers.

While the terrain consists of a clearly marked and accessible path to the summit, please remember this walk is on a high level route and can be very exposed in bad weather.

From Kirkmichael cattle were driven in two directions. Until the 17^th century, caterans would take beasts stolen from Strathardle and neighbouring glens south to Blairgowrie and beyond. In the following two centuries, drovers took legally-acquired cattle west towards Ballinluig to cross the rivers Tummel and Tay before being taken on via Amulree to the Crieff Tryst. This walk starts with a short stretch of Cateran Trail south from Kirkmichael before heading uphill west towards where the drovers brought their cattle down into the Tay valley. The route takes us past Lochans Oisinneach Beag and Mor, ending at Tulliemet. On tracks or paths throughout, sometimes very rough and potentially very wet underfoot.

While Càrn a’ Chlamain is a relatively minor stony summit rising above a spacious and very remote plateau, the approach is up scenic Glen Tilt, one of the Highlands’ most beautiful glens – and it is this that makes the walk a minor classic.  This walk gives the opportunity to ascend a munro win the South Western Cairngorm range, and can be described as decidedly ‘off the beaten track’.

The Tryst have ascended Càrn a’ Chlamain is previous years – however in 2022 we are looking to introduce a ‘mountain bike’ approach option (there is a long approach up Glen Tilt before we branch off and start the ascent. The whole walk is circa 26 kms (16.25 miles) – of which 70% is on a well maintained (and suitable for mountain bikes) approach up the Glen Tilt track.

The walk starts from the car park near the Old Bridge of Tilt (NN874662) and we head up Glen Tilt. The approach walk takes us through the scenic glen where we will have excellent views of the River Tilt and surrounding hills. We continue up the Glen passing Gilbert’s bridge and then Gaw’s bridge before reaching the All Craoinidh (this is where I plan to chain up our bikes).  At this point we start our ascent of of Car a’Chlamain as the gradient steepens.  The path is generally good going with lateral detours available for some sections of the climb.  The path reaches a significant track that continues steadily up the broad ridge, taking a wide detour to the right to pass a steeper section at 800m. The track is followed until it cuts just to the right of the stony dome that is the summit of Carn a’Chlamain. Here the track is left and we follow a stony path to complete the final short section of the ascent to the summit at 963m.

The return route is to retrace our steps off the mountain and back down Glen Tilt where a variety of paths offer a different and varied walk back to the car park.

While the walk is not technically difficult, it has been classified as ‘Extra Hard’ in previous years, due to the distance and walk duration. However with a mountain bike, this should reduce the overall walk time by circa 2 hrs – and hence we have reclassified as Hard on 2022.  Nonetheless, only walkers/riders who are fit, experienced and have undertaken similar walks/rides in excess of 20 kms, should consider taking part.

Beinn a’ Ghlo is a beautiful, mysterious hill of many remote corries. It comprises 3 munros, with the highest summit being the last of the day. Starting from the end of a minor road above Blair Atholl, after a short walk on a large track heading towards the hill, a path goes directly up steep slopes to reach the first summit of Carn Liath, which is an excellent viewpoint. The path now follows a delightful ridge curving left, then right, and left again to reach a bealach. There is then a steep climb to the second summit of Braigh Coire Chruinn-Bhalgain. Next follows a substantial descent to a further bealach before a lengthy climb on very bouldery ground to reach the final summit of Carn nan Gabhar. This gives great views into the wilds around the head of Glen Tilt, whilst sitting above the strangely named, remote Loch Loch. The return is made by retracing steps along the ridge of Carn nan Gabhar before descending the steep slopes of Airgiod Bheinn into a corrie. There is a section of rough, heathery ground and then a boggy stretch, and a stream to cross in order to join a path leading back to Loch Moraig several miles away.

This walk starts at the Lawers Hotel and is a traverse over the main 5 peaks of the Lawers range, Meill Greigh, Meill Garbh, An Stuc, Ben Lawers and Beinne Ghlas, before finishing at the Ben Lawers National Trust Car Park. The walk will mainly be along paths, but with a short scramble up An Stuc and some boggy sections between Meall Garbh over Meall Greigh