The Scottish Highlands

The Speyside Way adds a different Highland edge: 137 km from Buckie on the Moray Firth to Newtonmore in the Cairngorms, following river valley, forest, farmland, moorland and coastal terrain.

Usually walked from Drymen to Pitlochry, this 127 km moderate route works well for hikers wanting tracks, cycleway and minor roads, with forest, lochside and moorland plus one tougher exposed section.

For a longer Scottish multi-day journey, the Hebridean Way runs 252 km from Vatersay to Stornoway on Lewis, combining coastal terrain, beaches, machair, moorland and hills over 10–13 days.

Scotland’s first official long-distance route is the natural starting point for Highland walkers: 154 km from Milngavie to Fort William, usually over 7 days, with moderate mountain, forest and grassland terrain.

Linking Fort William and Aviemore over 132 km, the East Highland Way offers a moderate 6–8 day route through forests, loch sides, moorland and mountain wilderness rather than a high-level traverse.

This 129 km loop starts and finishes at Inverness Castle, making it a rare circular long-distance option. Its hard rating and forest, mountainous and moorland terrain keep the six-day circuit demanding.

A moderate 125 km crossing from Fort William to Inverness, the Great Glen Way suits walkers who want a Highland journey without a primarily mountainous route, using canal, lochside, forest and moorland terrain.

Best treated as the West Highland Way section from Bridge of Orchy to Kingshouse, this 19.4 km point-to-point day walk crosses moorland, mountainous ground and wetlands in the western Highlands.

The easiest route here follows the Caledonian Canal corridor for 97 km from Corpach/Banavie near Fort William to Inverness, giving a low-level waterside way across the Highlands over about 5 days.

The 17.9 km Loch Affric Circuit is a moderate one-day loop west of Loch Ness near Cannich, ideal when you want Highland forest and mountainous terrain without planning a multi-day route.

This is the collection’s toughest commitment: an expert, unofficial and unwaymarked 370 km route through the remote north-west Highlands, with moorland, coast, bog and river crossings over 16–22 days.

Short does not mean easy: this 6.5 km waymarked loop in Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve is a hard half-day walk with rocky mountain terrain and roughly 560 m of ascent.

This 30 km Cairngorms crossing is not a waymarked long-distance trail, but its strenuous 1–2 day point-to-point line through mountainous and forest terrain gives a concentrated Highland mountain journey.

A strenuous 25 km loop in the Northern Highlands, this circuit is for hillwalkers wanting a long one-day challenge over mountainous, ridge, forest and boggy terrain west of Struy and Strathglass.