It was a light and fresh morning in The Trossachs. Our challenge for the day was to reach the peak of Ben A’an!
As the clouds rolled by we nibbled blackberries under a thriving oak tree on the shore of Loch Lomond before heading north past Aberfoyle and along the Three Lochs Forest Drive.
Ben A’nn is known as “the mountain in miniature” due to the distinctive pointed shape of it’s peak. It’s not particularly tall at 1,491 feet (454m), but there are spectacular views across the nearby lochs, forests, and of the neighbouring peaks.
The trail up begins near the edge of Loch Achray on the A821. The path includes stone steps nearly all the way up, and is easy to follow in fair weather. There is only one marker, right at the beginning, so beware of the weather turning and getting lost in icy fog. The steps are near knee height for a five year old, and some parts were a bit steep or rocky, but no scrabbling was required. A robin busy preparing for winter watched us as we passed each way.
A tiny wooden bridge crosses a stream which descends rapidly through the rocks. About a quarter of the way up the path flattens out and opens up with a clear view of the pointy top of Ben A’nn — It seemed very near and very far at the same time! Either side of the path is a beautiful deep-coloured rainbow of heather, grass and ferns.
The steps began again, and the path rose up more steeply. The air felt heavier and wet, and there were moments where we each needed to stop for a sip of water and a gaze at the view before we could keep going. The path was less well defined and slightly trickier as we came nearer to the top.
The top is actually wider than it looked from below. The view over the lochs is glorious. We perched overlooking Loch Venachar and ate the snacks we’d brought. The trek up had taken about 90 minutes. A few speckles of rain indicated time to make our way down, but the promised showers never came and we stayed dry all the way back.
