Aberfoyle – Go Ape's Treetop Challenge and the Big Zips
A few hours.
The route
Go Ape's Treetop Challenge at Aberfoyle starts with a zip wire of over 300 metres straight across the valley, then sends you through the Queen Elizabeth Forest Park on rope bridges, Tarzan swings and tree-to-tree crossings up to 22 metres high.
The last zip is 426 metres long. Afterwards, the Lodge's café and its gentle waterfall trail are right beside the course. It suits fit adults and children of ten and over who are happy with heights.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Monachyle Mhor, 12 miles away.
Book Treetop Challenge at Go Ape Aberfoyle
Book the Treetop Challenge at Go Ape Aberfoyle online before you go, from £36.95 at the time of writing, ages 10 and over and at least 1.4 m tall, on a day its booking calendar shows open (some Go Ape sites close over winter); reschedule online up to 48 hours before.
The day
Aberfoyle
Two or three hours high in the trees, from a huge zip across the valley to an even longer one at the end, then a gentle walk to a waterfall.
About four and a half hoursAbout 1 mile on foot
Go Ape Aberfoyle
Go Ape is at the Lodge Forest Visitor Centre in Queen Elizabeth Forest Park, just north of Aberfoyle on the Trossachs road over the Duke's Pass. Park in the Lodge's Forestry and Land Scotland car park, £5 a day for a car at the time of writing, by cash, card or RingGo; the Go Ape cabin is uphill beside the visitor centre. Arrive 20 minutes before your session to check in. The Treetop Challenge takes two to three hours and costs from £36.95 at the time of writing. It's for ages 10 and over, at least 1.4 m tall and up to 130 kg, and you clip yourself on and off the safety lines. One adult can supervise two children aged 10 to 15 and must take part with them. Wear closed, sturdy shoes, keep your midriff covered so the harness sits over clothing, and tie long hair back. You can reschedule online up to 48 hours before, with a £5 fee inside a week. Go Ape posts its open days in its booking calendar, and some of its sites close over winter, so check before setting out. If the weather is unsafe they refund, give a credit note or rebook. Dogs on leads are welcome on site, but someone has to mind them while you're on the course.
The Lodge Forest Visitor Centre
The Lodge is a step from the Go Ape cabin, with a café, toilets with baby changing and accessible toilets, and waymarked trails from the door. Its gentle waterfall trail passes the monument to the Women's Timber Corps, the Lumberjills, on the way to the falls. The café serves hot food and drinks, but its hours change through the year, so check the Lodge's page before you rely on it. Forestry and Land Scotland posts any path notices for the forest there too.
If it rains
Go Ape runs in rain in suitable outdoor clothes and closes only for unsafe weather, with a refund, credit note or new date; the Lodge's café is indoors.
Where to stay
Photographs by Owen Paterson and Sara Cassidy via Google