Walk of the week: Cashel,Loch Lomond

In 1996 the Royal Scottish Forestry Society bought Cashel Farm on the east shore of Loch Lomond and started to transform 3,000 acres of hillside into native woodland.

Today, it is a beautiful spot covered in trees from birch to hazel, oak to juniper, but not so many as to restrict views across Loch Lomond and its islands which are with you all the way. Higher up you can gaze across moorland to the popular Conic Hill above Balmaha. There are usually fewer people at Cashel, allowing you to immerse yourself in bird song and the current sight of heather bursting into purple bloom.

The high point of this walk has been named Queen’s View after the Queen of the Netherlands who was brought to the spot by her ambassador after she had inspected the farm’s pedigree Galloway cattle. The cattle are still around, in fields near the car park, but the rest of the farm has been transformed into a real country idyll.

It is worth popping into the forest centre at the start of the walk to pick up a very good leaflet describing this (the longest) and other walks in the woodland. n

DISTANCE 4½ miles.

HEIGHT CLIMBED 1,000ft.

TIME 2 to 3 hours.

MAP OS Landranger 56.

PARK The Native Forest Centre at Cashel is two and a half miles beyond Balmaha on the B837 and has a car park (£2 charge).

IN SUMMARY Head past the forest centre and go straight on, up a path which joins a track and enters woodland. The track makes wide zig-zags as it heads up - ignore paths going off to both sides. Further up you can cut the walk short by following a path off to the right, indicated by a red arrow on the other side of the way. The route described, however, continues uphill, following green arrows.

Higher up a sign indicates the way down, right, along a path but it is worth continuing to Queen’s View - go up the track for about 100 yards and take a path on the left.

The path down is slightly overgrown with grasses but obvious. Look for a viewpoint over Loch Lomond on the right then, lower down, a reconstructed sheiling. These structures were home to women and children during the summer when they looked after cattle on higher ground. A few yards past this go left on a clearer path. It is quite hard to go wrong from here - follow the path down to the back of the centre, ignoring a path to the right near the bottom.

NOTE This walk can be done in either direction but the way up is easier.

REFRESH The Oak Tree Inn at Balmaha is hard to beat, especially when the weather is good and you can sit outside.

WHILE YOU ARE IN THE AREA Views are everything in this part of Scotland so head to the bonnie banks and paddle in Loch Lomond. Boat trips are also a good idea and run from Balmaha and Balloch.

NICK DRAINEY