Starting Point for the Walk:
Western end of the large car park near The Forth Inn in Aberfoyle – OS Reference NN 521 009.
Getting there: 25 miles / 48 minutes
Take your favourite route out of Glasgow to Strathblane on the A81 (or towards Carbeth on the A809 and turn right onto the B834 and then left to join the A81 towards Aberfoyle). At the roundabout (by the Rob Roy Hotel) on the outskirts of Aberfoyle, turn left onto the A821. In Aberfoyle, turn left at the sign “Parking/Scottish Wool Centre”. Then turn right into the west section of the car park and use the parking bays near The Forth Inn. Parking is free and there are toilets nearby.
The Walk: Two Options …
Option 1 – Limes Craig Loop – 6 miles (10 km) – Relatively hilly
The walk starts at the car park and heads east past the Scottish Wool Centre and picks up the Rob Roy Way. Cross the A821 and take the Rob Roy Way past the Dounans Centre. As the path/Land Rover Track (LRT) enters the wooded area1, turn right. Continue along the LRT in a nominally easterly direction for about a mile. The next mile or so gently climbs up the southern slopes of Lime Craig. Take it at a gentle pace. The climb commences with a sharp left turn onto another a LRT. Then take a right turn onto a footpath and continue the ascent of Lime Craig heading in a nominally northerly direction. Just below the top of Lime Craig, turn sharp left to reach the summit. Then retrace the route for 0.1 mile and then turn left. This leads onto a relatively steep and rough path that descends the north side of Lime Craig. Take extra care here. Next, join the LRT and follow it in a nominally westerly direction for 0.5 mile (gently loosing height) before it turns sharp right. At the LRT ‘crossroads’, turn sharp left and gradually loose some more height; after 0.25 mile get great views toward a waterfall (which may look familiar to those who were on the October 2023 walk). After a further 0.25 mile of gentle descent, turn right onto another LRT and follow it in a nominally south westerly direction for 0.25 mile. Then cross a footbridge over the Allt a’ Mhangam burn2 and follow a meandering footpath that soon climbs (in a short and steep manner) up to The Lodge Forest Visitor Centre. Just west of The Lodge Forest Visitor Centre, pick up the “green marker” footpath for about 0.5 mile. Then take a sharp right turn onto a shared ‘footpath/cycle path’ and descend for 0.25 mile – this leads onto a very short section of road. Extra care is required here. Then follow a road-side footpath and arrive back in Aberfoyle.
Option 2 – David Marshall Loop – 3 miles ( 5 km) – Limited hills
This walk starts as for Option 1 but as the path/LRT enters the wooded area1, turn sharp left. Follow the “red marker” LRT in a nominally westerly direction for about 0.75 mile. At the footbridge over the Allt a’ Mhangam burn2 follow the route for Option 1.