Great Days Out
BUDGET WALKING WEEKENDS
From cosy cottage stays in the Yorkshire Dales to back-to-nature bothy adventures in the Brecon Beacons, our round-up of affordable walking holidays has something for everyone
Walk the woodlands and coast of Exmoor National Park before spending the night in the wild at Heddon Orchard Bothy
STAY/WALK: Aberfoyle to Callander, Stirlingshire
SLEEP ON THE WILD SIDE
Fabulous walking holidays don’t need to break the bank, says Julie Brominicks, after discovering the joys of permit camping in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs
Walking weekends nourish body and soul. Trekking just that little bit further increases our exposure to fresh air and the restorative phytoncides plants release, while the satisfaction that accompanies singing muscles, tingling skin and a hearty appetite at the end of the day is a truth universally acknowledged.
Where we might differ in opinion, of course, is how then best to relax. For some, nothing less than a lavish meal you don’t have to cook and a comfortable bed will do, while others prefer to extend their rapport with the wild by sleeping outdoors. The good news is both can be affordable.
ABODES FOR ALL
There are beds to suit all budgets – and all kinds of walkers. Holiday cottages offer privacy and a comfortable base from which to explore the surrounding countryside.
If you fancy self-catering with opportunity to socialise in the kitchen, YHAs or independent hostels – usually with private rooms and shared dormitories (Covid regulations allowing) – are a good option. You may need to bring your own sleeping bag to a bunkhouse; you will definitely need to bring one (and probably cooking utensils) to a camping barn.
Bring everything to bothies, which are free-to-use, very basic structures in remote and gorgeous locations. But for me, camping or bivouacking is the best way to fully immerse yourself in the landscape through which you have walked.
Some campsites even provide tents if you don’t want to carry them. For days of adventure enriched by nights beneath stars, wild camping is best of all.
Although wild camping is not illegal in England and Wales, you do need permission from the landowner. In Scotland, however, it is a fully legal and proudly honoured pursuit. If you would like to give wild camping a try but feel cautious, permit camping in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park is a good place to start.
In order to limit pressure on popular but sensitive areas of the park, a permit costing £3 is required.
This gives you access to advice and support, and evening and morning visits from the knowledgeable and cheerful park rangers.
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park is an undeniably glorious place for a walking weekend. There is a wildness here, among the lochs, forests and peaks, despite its proximity to Glasgow and Edinburgh and thus its subsequent popularity.
A multitude of trails make for easy route-planning. Yet it is easy to find your own space. Your own pace. Your own calm. Your own piece of wild.
TROSSACHS TRAMPING
Loch Drunkie lies in forest just north of Queen Elizabeth Forest Park. Bypassed by Three Lochs Forest Drive, it is also accessible to cyclists and motorists. In short, the area is a popular recreation spot, but can also be beautifully serene. first tried permit camping and as such, despite walking on to many other equally lovely permit sites, it remains special to me. It is where, from inside my tent, I was mesmerised by moorhen chicks crisscrossing the loch, and where, as the dusk became grainy, a sandpiper passed within inches of my head.
“IF YOU LIKE THE IDEA OF WILD CAMPING BUT FEEL CAUTIOUS, WHY NOT GIVE PERMIT CAMPING A TRY?”
From Loch Drunkie, this route bears west to Loch Achray before swinging east to Brig O’Turk and then Callander along the wooded north bank of Loch Venachar, where you will find another permit site on the shore.
There are eight permit sites on the shores of Loch Drunkie, offering you plenty of places to pitch up and enjoy the serenity of the loch and its surrounding wooded glens 
Break for lunch on day two of the walk at the Byre Inn, a quirky pub in the hamlet of Brig O’Turk
1 ROAD TO DRUNKIE
From Aberfoyle, head north into Queen Elizabeth Forest Park. This mixed forestry is managed for recreation, and includes glades, waterfalls and gargantuan conifers. Among them is a hide, a hushed theatre, from where you can watch resident red squirrels.
Continue in the company of grey wagtails along the Three Lochs Forest Drive, passing through managed forestry with open areas of new growth and a broadleaf belt, soon emerging at a spectacular view over Loch Drunkie – silver in a cushion of green. Continue to the permit site on the westernmost shore, pitch and melt into the landscape.
“ IT’S EASY TO FIND YOUR OWN SPACE. YOUR OWN PACE. YOUR OWN CALM. YOUR OWN PIECE OF WILD”
2 SLEEPY LOCH SHORE
Continue along Three Lochs Forest Drive until Achray Farm, a smallholding and ice-creamery, once painted by Scottish artist Sir James Guthrie. Cross the stone bridge over Black Water (which links Lochs Achray and Venachar) and pass the Byre Inn – whose lunches are delicious. You are now on the Great Trossachs Path. Keep on it, turning right at the road to reach Glen Finglas visitor centre. Ascend Lendrick Hill through steep oak woodland. Keep at this higher elevation, passing the abandoned township of Venachar, with wooded views of Loch Venachar. If you are camping at the permit site, look out for a track on the right that takes you down to the shore.
3 FOREST TO PASTURE
Back on the Great Trossachs Path, descend gradually from the forestry to open farmland, grazed by red cattle and replete with cuckoos, aromatic gorse and ladysmock in spring. Instead of crossing the bridge at Kilmahog, turn right on the Great Trossachs Path.
Keep to the south bank of Garbh Uisge (River Teith), which is wide and bubbling and home to all three species of lamprey – river, brook and sea. The path takes you to the tea shops of Callander.
4 COSY CALLANDER
Callander is dominated by imposing Ben Ledi, a reminder perhaps that despite its easy charm, Callander evolved on the Highland Boundary Fault. The place where two continents collided is just upriver at the Pass of Leny. Return to Aberfoyle via more permit sites, or catch a bus.
Julie Brominicks is a landscape writer and walker based in Wales.
WHAT IS PERMIT CAMPING AND HOW DO I CAMP RESPONSIBLY?
The Scottish Access Code describes ‘wild camping’ as being lightweight, done in small numbers and for up to three nights in one place. Avoid enclosed fields, buildings, roads or historic structures. Leave no litter or trace of your pitch or fire, and dig a toilet hole at least 50m from water. Wild camping is subject to regulation in 4% of Loch Lomond and
Trossachs National Park between March and October. In these particularly sensitive and beautiful areas, camping is only possible in designated zones, requiring a permit.
A permit for a four-person tent costs £3.
Contact the National Park for advice and bookings.
01389 722021
lochlomond-trossachs.org/things-to-do/camping
DON’T FANCY CAMPING?
If camping just isn’t your thing, fear not; the route can still be walked with these three affordable, indoor stays
ABERFOYLE INN ABERFOYLE
Reasonably priced accommodation in Aberfoyle includes the family-run Aberfoyle Inn, where you can stock up on calories at their Hungry Haggis Bistro. There are twin and double rooms (£79), as well as a family room (£90). aberfoyleinn.com
WEST RIDINGS STUDIO AND RED LEAF COTTAGE BRIG O’TURK
Two cosy holiday cottages in the heart of peaceful Brig O’Turk, both with kitchen, lounge/dining area and bathroom. West Ridings Studio sleeps two (£70), Red Leaf Cottage sleeps three (£80). Minimum stay of two nights. airbnb.co.uk
CALLANDER WOODS HOLIDAY PARK CALLANDER
A picturesque site offering a variety of accommodation. The four person wooden camping pods are the most affordable option (£75), though you will need to bring your own bedding. woodleisure.co.uk/our-parks/callander-woods
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