Ion to Cape Wrath Introduction

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The Iona to Cape Wrath Trail is a way of walking up Scotlands west coast, on beautiful paths and through remote wilderness areas. It differs from the Cape Wrath Trail in that it is more coastal and involves some Island hopping. It provides sustained and interesting walking away from roads (mostly) and is a logical route, put together here and tested by myself over the summer of 2023. I think it rivals the Cape Wrath Trail for beauty, variety of landscape and in difficulty. On this trail you have significant periods where you see very few people. and There are few walks in the UK which go through as greater variety of wild places. It combines the great glen and moor walking of the Cape Wrath Trail with coastal paths and dramatic sea cliffs. It takes mostly traditional longstanding paths through the landscape or short pathless sections. Some of it follows established paths, small sections of the Cape Wrath Trail, The Skye Trail and Hebridean Way .

The Cape Wrath Trail was the benchmark of difficulty for generations. As outdoor equipment, clothing, route finding aids, knowledge and fitness has increased so its challenge has begun to appear less. Though it is still a trail that will stretch even the most experienced walker.  Longer trails in the British Isles have included; cross country traverses, which have included less interesting sections away from wilderness areas, or routes from North to South, which again include considerable compromises on terrain, requiring a lot of manoeuvring around urban areas and much road walking. It is possible to combine the West Highland Way with The Cape Wrath Way to create a longer walk, and this ensures a period of adjustment on the easier trail to Scottish conditions before restocking in Fort William and any remote walking is undertaken. 

The Cape Wrath Trail is so good it is worth reaching the tip of the country and coming straight back down, and it includes enough obvious variations to make that a tempting proposition. However it looses some of its adventure when you are retracing your steps. Still this idea made an impression on me and led to me researching a route that is now ‘The Devils Trail’ over 1000km and starting and ending in Oban.  

The question is therefore is there a trail which can recreate the former challenge of the Cape Wrath Trail, to combine the grandeur and remoteness of the Cape Wrath Trail but be more demanding and include a more variety. If there is a criticism of the Cape Wrath trail it is that it reaches predominantly through Scottish mountain glens until the last two days. A scenery which has a similar feel most of the way up. The space for this new route has to be on the west of the Cape Wrath trail so I was looking for a coastal walk, possibly through the Islands. 

Fort William has very few starting points and they are taken up by the Cape Wrath Trail. Though it is possible to start in Fort William on the Cape Wrath Trail and then peel off to Skye and complete the Iona Cape Wrath Trail from there, or to use the Sutherland Trail as an alternative to the traditional Cape Wrath Trail going towards the coast rather than inland from Ullapool through Oykel Bridge. So the addition of the Iona Cape Wrath Trail gives the Cape Wrath Trail more variations. 

I thought maybe Oban was a nice place to start, It is easily accessible from Glasgow. So where from then? Well, Iona is easily accessible from Oban and as every long distance walker has something in common with a pilgrim, Iona makes sense. It is a spiritual Island, where Christianity first came to Scotland through the works of a group of 12 monks led by St Columbus in the CE 563. The monastery they founded was one of the most important in the British Isles. 

This is my account of the possibilities of this new trail which I name as the Iona Cape Wrath Trail. I have researched the way on maps but there are parts of the route, which are crucial to its success, that I had to travel to see if they were passable. So it is an exploration as well as a journey and an inauguration of sorts. I may be mistaken but I have found no accounts of this particular trail being done before, though of course it many have been. If I have missed this I would love to know and read the accounts. It would reinforce my certainty that it is a good route. Part of the route takes in established trails parts traditional walks such as Coffin Paths that connected villages with consecrated ground, other parts are dictated solely by the geography of the land. Most of all it is a combination of logic and the need to be in the most remote places and to avoid road walking and urban landscape as much as possible. 

Scotland is a beautiful place to walk through and the Scottish Access Rights 2003 give you the right to access land in Scotland for recreational and educational purposes, be it running, walking or pitching a tent. There are a few exclusions, like near private buildings, farmyards, quarries, railway property and airfields. However you have to respect the interests of other people, care for the environment and take responsibility for your own actions. So the ‘Right To Roam’ goes hand in hand with the ‘Leave No Trace Code’. So when visiting wilderness areas you leave nothing behind and do not damage nature or fences, gates, paths and structures as you go along.