Scottish

Towns

Corrour to Rannoch Station

Length: 9 miles (one way) Height climbed: 330ft/100m Grade: A Parking: Rannoch Station Toilet facilities: Rannoch Station Rannoch Moor is a bleak but fascinating place. During the ice-age it acted as a vast reservoir of glacial ice, originating in the surrounding hills, which was then forced down the valleys of the River Tummel, Loch Ericht, Glen Etive etc, which radiate from Rannoch Moor. Subsequently it was covered in thick pine forest, the remains of which can still be seen in the Black Wood of Rannoch - only old stumps preserved in peat now remain, embedded beneath the wide blanket-bog which the area has become. It is crossed today only by the West Highland railway line. To reach the moor, drive west along Loch Tummel on the B8019 to Tummel Bridge and continue along Loch Rannoch on the B846 to Rannoch Station. Leave your car here and take the train to Corrour (be sure to check the train times before setting off. Leave plenty of time to reach the station as the approach roads are narrow). The train journey takes about 10-15mins, passing through the characteristic landscape of small, heath covered mounds, surrounded by burns, lochans, bogs and peat hags. The unstable peat is so deep in places that the railway line has to be supported by "floating" it on bundles of brushwood! Once at your destination (there is no road to Corrour and only one house), walk eastwards on the track to the Youth Hostel at the southern end of Loch Ossian - a place of great beauty set in a ring of high peaks. Continue, past the Hostel and along to the east of Loch Ossian (not the track nearest the water's edge but the one above it), veering away from the loch and cutting east; between the craggy stump of Meall na Lice (1906ft/583m) to the right and the massive rounded bulk of Carn Dearg (3080ft/939m) to the left, along whose flank the easily followed pathe now runs. About 3 miles from the Youth Hostel, you pass the ruin of Corrour Old Lodge. At this point the railway runs across the moor below you to the right. Beyond the moor is the Blackwater Reservoir. Beyond the reservoir are the mountains around Glencoe, with Ben Nevis and its attendant peaks to the north of them. Continue along the path, crossing Allt Eigeach to reach the B846 to Rannoch Station where the road passes Loch Eigeach. Turn right along this road for 1.25 miles to regain the station. The local hotel is close to hand, providing welcome refreshment and relaxation at the end of the walk.

©