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We have yet to leave a glen disappointed. Each and every glen we have been to, regardless of rain or shine, has been beautiful in its own way. The nature each glen provides seems to be different from the last, and Glen Etive had a sweet twist.
{Traveler’s Tip… Heading west on A82, you will pass through the wee village of Kingshouse. Immediately after the village is a road to the left. It sits right under Buachaille Etive Mor, the huge mountain, and can be easily passed if you’re not keeping an eye out for it! Take this road for the nice out and back drive in Glen Etive!}
On Jason’s six day break a few weeks ago, we were able to get away and explore a bit more of the west side of Scotland. We went to the fabulous Glen Lyon, before coming to this gorgeous glen and then made our way to the cute town of Oban. We are loving the freedom Isobel (our van) gives us to explore the Lord’s creation throughout this country!
Glen Etive, like Glen Lyon, is a glen that follows a river down to a lake. Driving down a one lane road twisting and winding with the tumbling river below, left us fully engaged in the scenery around. As we were driving down the glen, this one being an out and back, we decided we weren’t going to take any pictures and just enjoy the ride. Don’t worry we took loads on the way back to share!! We found ourselves stopping over and over again to take in the beauty around us.
It was so cute I had to take two photos!!
This glen follows River Etive nearly 10 miles to Loch Etive, where there is a large parking area and beautiful mountainous views surrounding the crystal clear waters. At any given point on the drive, you can look to the hills and see at least three to five different waterfalls, and sometimes as many as 10 cascading down the cliffs into the river below. The views seem to be taken straight from a painting!
The entire drive down we were trying to stake out where we would park for the night. This glen is well known for wild camping, and for a good reason. Which waterfall did we want to park under? Did we want to park on the river or down by the lake? We decided since we slept near a river the night before, we would try and camp down by the lake. If we found a spot far enough away from the road, maybe we could even pitch our tent! The lake seemed to be a gorgeous spot for a tent pitch. Upon opening our doors, we realized it was far from ideal. Our doors slammed back shut instantly with how strong the wind was. We would simply explore the area a bit, and head back up the road to sleep next to the river!
Waterfalls like this cascade down all the hills surrounding the glen.. It makes for a lovely drive!! Looking back down towards the lake.. you can kind of see it through the trees in the distance!
Glen Etive Road follows this river, River Etive, all the way down till it reaches Loch Etive.. We surely aren’t complaining about driving along this river all day!
While we cooked dinner, we had four different types of weather blow through! First, the hail came, which turned to rain, changed to cloudy skies, and ended with some sunshine! All within about an hour. We’re telling you people, the weather in Scotland is crazy!
We woke up to beautiful blue skies and made our way toward Oban through Glen Coe. With the blue skies turning quickly to a downpour, we passed through Glen Coe saving the hiking and viewpoints for another trip.
See that white funky cushiony thing on the left.. that’s our bed… when not in use, it folds up into a couch!!
Prime wild camp site if we do say so ourselves!
Check out another one of our favorite glens.. –>> Glen Lyon <<–
