Hike date = May 29, 2024. After a day off from hiking, our small group was keen to get back out on a trail. Our guide, mindful that now three of the four of us were feeling under the weather, opted to put the published itinerary aside. Instead, he chose the short trail to Scotland’s second highest waterfall. An Steall Bàn (The White Spout in Gaelic) is a single drop of 120 meters. Harry Potter fans will probably recognize An Steall Bàn. The waterfall features in the background of Hogwarts, in the background of various quidditch matches and in the Triwizard Tournament.

Getting There

May 28th, we moved to the Kingshouse Hotel for the balance of the week. So we had a relatively short (53 km (33 miles)) drive to the upper falls parking lot at the end of C1162/Glen Nevis road. We parked in an empty spot. Had the lot been full, we’d have driven back to the lower falls parking lot. There were no toilet facilities at the parking area.

But there was a trail greeter – a colorful Common Chaffinch! It’s similar in size to our local American Robin. To us, it was an exciting observation. But since it’s one of the most common birds in all of Europe, it would be commonplace to most. Only now, writing this, did I observe that it’s a banded bird. What are the odds?!

Ascent

I can think of at least three reasons this hike is popular: 1) it’s just a short distance to good viewing locations for the waterfall; 2) Harry Pottermania; and 3) the three-wire bridge. As a result, the front-end gorge section of the trail was BUSY.

Thinking back, not wanting to include close-ups of strangers in my photos is one of the reasons I don’t have any pictures of the trail up the gorge. The other reason is that it was a bit tricky, with multiple stream crossings, wet rock making things slick, and steep/narrow stretches where I wanted to concentrate on safe progress.

What we did come home with are a couple of photos of a large boulder right near the trail head. I wondered how it came to rest there. Is it a glacial erratic? Or did it tumble down from higher up one of the mountains in the Nevis range? Any geologist readers who can tell me about the thin, folded layers that are now partially obscured by lichen and moss?

We also paused a couple of times to photograph what turned out to be Scots Pine. We didn’t recognize them at the time, and I don’t remember asking our guide about them. The native pine trees in Canada’s Rocky Mountains all taper at the top. So the more umbrella shape of the Scots Pine intrigued the photographers in our group. The reddish bark also made for a nice color contrast with the bright spring green leaves on the surrounding deciduous trees.

We stopped several times to let hikers coming back down the trail pass safely. During one stop, we noticed spherical hollows in the rock walls of the gorge, carved by fast moving water tumbling stones around and around. This is one example. The most recent tumbling stone appears to be in situ!

Glen Nevis

Less than a km from the parking lot, we emerged from the gorge into the hanging valley that is Glen Nevis. From here on, the trail was considerably wider and somewhat braided.

Within another few minutes, in the natural amphitheater of the upper glen, we had our first view of the waterfall. It’s a braided, long step. Here, the Water of Nevis drops from a hanging valley (called Coire a’ Mhail), carved by glaciers. A quick examination of the area on Google Maps confirms the glaciers have long since melted. Perhaps high volumes of glacial melt-water powered the carve outs we saw in the gorge walls?

Three Wire Bridge

As we neared the falls, our guide pointed out a three wire (aka “rope”) bridge a short distance from the main train. We walked over to check it out. Two people were making their way back across and then there was a lull. Our guide asked if anyone wanted to give it a go. We all looked at each other, and when no one else spoke up after about 30 seconds, I said I’d give it a try.

This was another test of my ability to keep my acrophobic tendency in check. I did pretty well for the most part, even returning via the three-wire bridge after our guide said I could hike along the far side of the Water of Nevis and rejoin them near the base of the falls. The only wobble in my concentration was when a boy started throwing rocks in the river! I asked him to please wait until I was back across, because the big splashes were making me nervous. He did, and once I was back on the ground, I thanked him for going along with my request. 🙂

Lunch Time View

There’s an extensive gravel bar with a good view of the waterfall. We joined several other groups there, enjoying picnics.

Just a Little Further

After lunch, a patch of blue sky a little further along the glen beckoned. We made the group decision to hike “just a little further” to another shieling.

By the time we reached the old stone walls demarking a summer highland home for herders, the blue sky was gone. Instead, heavy gray clouds blanketed the sky. With rain threatening, Mr GeoK and I stopped long enough to photograph the creek draining one shoulder of Ben Nevis, while the others started back.

Return

Here Comes the Rain

By the time we started after the rest of our group, it was lightly raining. So we hustled after them.

Then, the rain intensified. One by one, we made the decision to put on our rain jacket and pull rain covers over our packs. The rain was so intense, we figured it would be a brief squall before lightening up. That assessment was based on decades of hiking experience in the Canadian Rockies.

All to soon, we realized our Rocky Mountain experience didn’t transfer to the Scottish highlands. So we didn’t properly gauge the implications of the clouds draped over the surrounding mountain tops.

Rain drops made a polka-dot pattern on the legs of my pants. Then they darkened the gray fabric by several shades. Soon, my pants were plastered to my legs. Everyone in our group was in the same situation.

So there we were, hustling back towards Steall Hut (privately owned) and the top of the gorge, all the while wondering whether it was worth stopping to pull on rain pants.

Again, we each made the individual decision that it was too late. Our pants were already soaked, it was fairly warm, and it was only a short hike back to the parking lot.

By the time we reached the van, my pants, socks and boots were all wet through. Fortunately, we each had a change of clothes in the van. So we took turns using the back seat of the van as a changing room. Soon enough, we were all in dry clothes, ready to head to Fort William for a couple of hours of sightseeing.

SUMMARY

Another proper Scottish highland hiking experience, our trek to An Steall Bàn waterfall (and just a bit further) clocked in at 6.6 km with 163 meters. This would be a great hike for families, particularly those with tweens. Between the gorge section of the hike, the Harry Potter waterfall, the rope bridge and boulder hopping opportunities at the base of the falls, it’s more interesting than many other short hikes.