Walk of the week: Invertrossachs and Loch Drunkie

Being a blustery, showery day, not ideal for the high tops, the Mountain Lamb and I, while very happy to go along with that, wanted a slightly longer circuit to visit the curiously named Loch Drunkie. After an uneventful but enjoyable outing both targets were achieved.

As it happens, Invertrossachs Estate, lying within Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park, has a plethora of paths, mapped and unmapped, ideal for my purpose, and the private Tarmac estate road of level gradient is perfect for scooters. Furthermore, the scooter route could be extended by continuing west on a smooth track, part of National Cycle Route 7, Lochs & Glens (North), that goes from Glasgow to Inverness.

Start from the parking area at the east end of the loch, map ref 599061, on the minor road south-west of Callander, to enter Invertrossachs Estate by the warning sign – cyclists keep left, beware cars and pedestrians use this road.

Stroll through a mixed woodland, albeit predominately coniferous higher up on the flanks of the Menteith Hills – a lovely sheltered walk on our blustery day, but with frequent open views to the loch. Pass Venachar Sailing Club on the right, with many boats now out of the water ready for winter, then a Scout campsite and activity centre.

Continue to the junction, map ref 565050, where the cycleway turns right on to the newish broad, smooth track – our return route. Straight on is Invertrossachs House, graciously vacated in 1869 by the owner to allow Queen Victoria to stay.

However, turn left up a gently rising gravel track going south-west adjacent to the Drunkie Burn and passing a small loch on the left. Once past the loch, turn right (north) on a forestry track which then becomes a pleasing, curving, old estate route. Go right at a wide turning point, then immediately left, on the small grassy mapped path through a forestry clearing.

The clearing is long and the path, at least on our day, was somewhat wet after days of rain. With lovely views to the conical peak of Ben A’an, the path descends north-west to reach the northern end of Loch Drunkie, a hillside loch at 125m/416ft above sea-level, and the smallest of the five Loch Katrine lochs. The loch is not entirely natural. It was raised 25ft by the (then) Glasgow Corporation to supply compensation water for the River Teith on which Deanston cotton mill near Doune depended. Today it is an excellent brown trout stretch of still water. With a picnic table by the charming dam, this is a beautiful, tranquil spot, ideal for a food stop.

Loch Drunkie is a corruption of the Gaelic Drongaidh, meaning ‘loch between the ridges’. One ridge can be clearly identified from the map, namely the line of the Menteith Hills. Indeed, you will have earlier passed a sign – footpath access across Menteith Hills (Highland Fault Line) – a five-mile approach to Braeval on the A81, and on to Aberfoyle.

Notwithstanding the mapped path (now gone), go to the far end of the dam and turn right on to a well-made, old unmapped estate path which descends through semi-open woodland to regain the lochside cycle track, circa map ref 548054.

To extend the walk we turned left (west) for an out-and-back visit to where the cycle route meets a gate and a road mapped Forest Drive and strolled back by the lochside.

Map Ordnance Survey map 57, Stirling & The Trossachs

Distance 9 miles

Height 100m

Terrain Private road, track and path

Start point Parking area, east end of Loch Venachar, map ref 599061

Time 3 to 4 hours

Nearest town Callander

Recommended refreshment spot The Harbour Café, north shore, Loch Venachar