West Highland Way Second Day:Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy

West Highland Way Second Day:Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy

Introduction to today’s stage of the West Highland Way

Today was the second day of my hike along the West Highland Way.This was a relatively short stage taking just 3.5 hours albeit in persistent rain.

Gold panning in Scotland

One of the highlights was a chance meeting with a couple of gold panners at breakfast in Tyndrum. They were hobbyists as, whilst there is gold in ‘them thar hills’, recovery is small scale. In fact, panning is technically illegal. Here is a statement from the Crown Estates (government):

“It is an offence to remove gold found by recreational panning without permission from both the owner of the rights (e.g. Crown Estate Scotland) and the owner of the land (to gain access to the stream or river).”

Here is an image of gold grains which the hobbyists have recovered.

Gold recovered from panning

There is, in fact, a gold mine just a couple of miles from Tyndrum which is operated by Scotgold. This company accesses the Cononish mine under a lease agreement with the Crown Estate Commissioners. The agreement allows the company to mine the property for ten years from the completion of the planning phase. To the best of my knowledge this is the only functioning gold mine in Scotland. There are very few viable precious metals deposits in the British Isles.

West Highland Way

After leaving Tyndrum I moved on through increasingly rugged terrain with scenery in sharp contrast to that of yesterday. The images below tell their own story.

Leaving Tyndrum
Trail
The sign on the gate is something of an anachronism
One of the many streams coming off the mountains
One of the 15,000 types of fungi in Britain
Landscape
When taking this pic I was attracted by the colours which in turn are probably due to lichen. However, look on the right side of the rock and there is an almost perfectly proportioned silhouette of a human face. In entirety, the image has appearance of a medieval knight.
Sheep of the day. The sheep population in Scotland exceeds that of humans.
Landscape scene
Another stream coming off the hills
This rusting piece of kit may have been a tractor in its youth. Makes an interesting photo study in its own right.
This is the hotel at which I am writing this post
Signage in English and Gaelic. Approximately 1pct of the Scottish population speak Gaelic.
River Orchy at Bridge of Orchy
Bridge of Orchy at Bridge of Orchy.

Information on Bridge of Orchy

The village straddles the busy  A82 highway but its origins date back to around 1751. In this year the British military under Major Caulfield built a bridge over the River Orchy in context of  a major road building programme in the Highlands.This was the purpose of facilitating troop movements. The old Military Road still exists and crosses the A82 at Bridge of Orchy. This old road now forms part of the West Highland Way and as such brings a steady stream of hikers to the village, and it’s hotel.

Bridge of Orchy stands in the shadow of Beinn Dorain, a mountain which rises to a height of 3524 feet.

Tomorrow I move on to Glencoe.

More information.

For more information on the West Highland Way and many other aspects of touring Scotland please refer Visitors’ guide to Scotland, ISBN 978-1-9161332-0-4

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