Contents

This week’s Spotlight is on... Glencoe.The Heart of Scotland

- Reviews on the most famous munros in the historic region of Glencoe, Buachaille Etive Mor and Ben Ne-vis. Would you manage?- The glamourous side of Glencoe, from Harry Potter to James Bond.- Places to stay - Isles of Glencoe.

TrekWalk. Adventure. Experience.

This week, explore the Heart of Scotland, Glencoe

With Highlights on the two most famous munros in Scotland, “The Beaukle” and the mighty Ben Nevis.

Including what the Cast of Harry Potter and James Bond thought while they filmed here.

Spotlight on...

Glencoe

Trek is doing a special issue on the historic and stunning Glencoe in the Highlands of Scotland. We’ll give you a taste of the best and most famous walks, and unique places to stay, to make the perfect autumn break.

Glencoe is Scotlands most famous glen, and with good reason...

The MunrosThese are just two of the many stunning munros to be found in Glencoe.

Buachaille Etive Mor

Buachaille Etive Mor

This stunning munro is for many the first thing people see when they enter Glencoe. It’s name means “Great Herdsman of the Etive”.Due to its iconic pyramidal shape, it is, not surprisingly, the most photographed munro in Scotland. It’s 8 mile ascent is very popular atweekends, but still not for the novice. It involves a steep climb over loose ground to a ridge, be-fore finally reaching the peak. Youwill be rewarded with stunning views over Glen Etive (if you catch a nice clear day, however).

“I felt privileged to be standing on this iconic mountain and to describe the views from the summit as breathtaking is quite

simply an understatement.”- Teresa Buchan, from Aberdeenshire

Ben

Ben Nevis

Standing at over 4,000ft, this is the highest peak in Britain, and at-tracts around 100,000 climbers a year. It is also popular as there aremany routes up to the summit, which is a plateau made by the col-lapse of an ancient volcano. Translated, Ben Nevis means “VenomousMountain”. There are two routes up, the Mountain Track and the more treacherous route up the North Face. The “tourist route” is theMountain Track, a 10.5 mile route up, taking approx. 8 hours. Howev-er, even the “tourist route” has snow lying on the higher paths wellinto July, and so experience is still needed. The North Face ascent is a differ-ent story altogether, incorporating two munros into it, and if you don’t mindscrambling, you will remember this journey for a long time, and it does the munro justice. It is 11.75 miles in all, and takes around 11hours. An epic challenge, but with epic rewards.

NevisThe Big One

Not Sold Yet?

If you’re not big on hills, what about movies?

Harry Potter in Glencoe...Enthusiasts can take a Harry Potter Safari with Na-tional Trust Scotland.

The third Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, took place in Glencoe in May and June 2003.Regular visitors to the Clachaig Inn and Glencoe will spot a familiar backdrop in the film and subsequent films. Visitors to Clachaig were surprised to find them-selves confronted with Hagrid’s Hut, complete with pumpkin patch and smoking chimney. The gatehouse and the Bridge to No-where were also built there.

In October 2007, the site across from the Clachaig Inn was also used in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.In Summer months, you can take guided Harry Pot-ter tours around all the sights used by the crew.

The sets have now been removed and the hillsides returned to their natural state, leaving behind little evidence of the excitement that descended upon this quiet corner of the glen for a few weeks. Of course, location filming is not new to Glencoe.

Films that you may well have seen include High-lander, starring Sean Connery & Christopher Lam-bert, Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail (beware when crossing the bridge to the Lost Valley!) and Rob Roy, starring Liam Neeson... and James Bond with Daniel Craig.

The BBC reported that Daniel Craig and Dame Judi Dench were “blown away” by the scenery. When they were filming there for

Magic...

Where to stay?

The Isles of Glencoe Hotel

Positioned on the side of a peninsula reaching into Loch Leven, The Isles of Glencoe Hotel is a peaceful retreat with breathtaking views of Fort William and Glencoe, across tranquil waters and impressive mountains in the West Highlands of Scotland.

A family and child friendly establishment, the hotel is built in contemporary, informal Scandinavian style and offers the warmest of traditional Scottish wel-comes. Outside the lochside trails and charming woodland adventure playgound are ideal for children to explore.

Bedrooms are spacious, modern and comfortable with breathtaking views across the loch or to the hills. You can hear as the water laps outside your bedroom and many have bunk beds which are popular for children.