Joel Varty
The summit moment on Ben Vrackie, sun bursting through for a full 360 degree view of Highland Perthshire
Series: Scotland Hiking Expedition

Day Seven: Up Ben Vrackie, Into Blair Athol, and Saying Goodbye

Travelphotography

The last day of the Scotland trip. Up to the summit of Ben Vrackie in Highland Perthshire, a tour of the Blair Athol distillery in Pitlochry, and a farewell dinner with the guides and our fellow travelers.

Last hike of the week. This was actually tougher than I thought it would be. We climbed steadily up to the loch at the base of Ben Vrackie and then headed up the steeper incline to the summit. The trail starts in enchanting woodland and runs out across heather-draped moorland, classic Highland Perthshire.

Into the woodlands at the start, mossy stones and a stream beside the path
Into the woodlands at the start, mossy stones and a stream beside the path
Up through the heather moorland, the loch glinting in the distance
Up through the heather moorland, the loch glinting in the distance

The loch is Loch a' Choire, a secluded lochan tucked into the slope at the base of the climb, and where we'd come back through for our picnic lunch.

The group at Loch a' Choire with the National Geographic Society flag, photo courtesy of David
The group at Loch a' Choire with the National Geographic Society flag, photo courtesy of David
Loch a' Choire with the Ben Vrackie peak rising behind it
Loch a' Choire with the Ben Vrackie peak rising behind it
A closer look from the rocky shoreline of the lochan
A closer look from the rocky shoreline of the lochan

What started as a sunny day quickly turned to a drizzle, then back to sun, then back to drizzle, and so on and so forth. Apparently that's classic Scottish weather. Luckily as we reached the top the sun burst forth and provided us a spectacular 360 degree view of all the surrounding area.

The summit moment, sun out, the full 360 of Highland Perthshire
The summit moment, sun out, the full 360 of Highland Perthshire

What you have to understand is that, without the sun and shadows, it's much harder to determine the depth of field of what you're looking at. With the sun out, we were spoiled for the views at that height.

From the summit, looking out across the distant hills
From the summit, looking out across the distant hills
Looking back down at the lochan we'd passed on the way up
Looking back down at the lochan we'd passed on the way up
On the summit, big sky behind
On the summit, big sky behind

About five to six miles round trip, four hours, around twenty-two hundred feet of climb to the top.

Light beams on the valley as the clouds rolled back in
Light beams on the valley as the clouds rolled back in

The descent was wet again,

Back into the weather on the way down
Back into the weather on the way down

but we had a distillery tour at Blair Athol (a whisky I'd never tasted before), spoiler alert, it's fantastic.

Blair Athol Distillery in Pitlochry, founded 1798, the building wrapped in ivy
Blair Athol Distillery in Pitlochry, founded 1798, the building wrapped in ivy

I don't believe they export their single malt, but it's a beautiful highland scotch, if you ever see it for sale.

The tasting flight on a Blair Athol stave, est 1798 burned into the wood
The tasting flight on a Blair Athol stave, est 1798 burned into the wood
Three Blair Athol single malts lined up on the bar
Three Blair Athol single malts lined up on the bar
Which dram to try first?
Which dram to try first?

Later on we had our farewell dinner and we all shared the best parts of our trip. I can honestly say that this exceeded my expectations (though I really didn't know WHAT to expect). I do hope National Geographic continues to do these hiking expeditions, it really does bring you closer to the country and to the people in that country. I'm grateful to our guides Gordon and Paul for showing us Scotland and teaching us so much about it, as well as to David as the photographic expert and generally cool dude for sharing his knowledge and his stories with us.

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