Loch Tay – a Waterfall Walk, a Floating Sauna and Lunch
A day.
The route
Taymouth Marina's HotBoat is a wood-fired sauna built on a boat on Loch Tay, with a dip in the loch between rounds of heat and the hills rising straight out of the water all round you.
Warm up first on the short, steep loop to the Falls of Acharn, through a cave built as a Victorian folly, and finish with a long lunch at the Ferryman's Inn on the marina. It's a lovely half day for a couple or a few friends who don't mind cold water.
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 The House at Dun Aluinn, 6 miles away. Sleeps 18.
Book HotBoat Sauna, Taymouth Marina
Book a HotBoat session at Taymouth Marina on its online diary before you go, the Static Sauna moored on the loch or the 90-minute Sauna Cruise, for late morning so lunch follows (last food orders 3.30pm), or ring 01887 830216, and ask about children and getting aboard when you book.
Book lunch at the Ferryman's Inn
Book a table at the Ferryman's Inn for after the sauna, especially at weekends and in the holidays: lunch runs noon to 4pm, last food orders 3.30pm.
The day
Loch Tay
A steep little climb to the falls, then wood-fired heat, cold loch water and a slow lunch looking out over the boats.
About four and a half hours
Falls of Acharn
An attraction
The Falls of Acharn walk starts in Acharn, a small village on the south Loch Tay road. Park in the village by the signpost for the Falls of Acharn circular walk, just over the bridge across the burn (stream). The loop is about 2 km, and an hour is enough if you're fairly fit, but it opens with a steep climb up a rough farm track, so stop now and then to look back over Loch Tay. The loop passes through the Hermit's Cave, a Victorian folly that's dark inside (bring a torch), to a platform facing the lower falls, the biggest drop on the walk. Higher up, a timber walkway looks onto the upper falls, and the way back down the other side of the glen is rough in places. Keep children and dogs close near the gorge edges, and go in daylight. It's at its finest after heavy rain.
4 min by car
HotBoat Sauna, Taymouth Marina
Taymouth Marina is about 4 minutes' drive east along the loch road towards Kenmore, with parking at the marina. Its HotBoat is a wood-fired sauna built on a boat: the Static Sauna stays moored out on Loch Tay, and the Sauna Cruise takes it out on the water for 90 minutes. Between rounds of heat you can climb down for a dip in the loch, or sit out on the deck and cool off in the air. If the weather is poor or the wind is high, the cruise stays moored in a sheltered bay, with the full sauna and the swim still on. Book a session on the marina's online diary before you go, where the times and prices are shown, or ring 01887 830216, and ask about children and getting aboard when you book. Bring swimwear, a towel or a dry robe and shoes you can get wet. For a longer session, the marina's HotBox spa on the shore has two hours of sauna, steam room, hot pool and a slide into the loch, for over-16s only.
Ferryman's Inn
Lunch
Lunch is at the Ferryman's Inn, a few minutes' walk along the marina, with tables inside and on a covered terrace over the loch. It's open every day from 10am, lunch is served from noon to 4pm with last food orders at 3.30pm, and the hours may change with the seasons. Well-behaved dogs are welcome, and it's best to book ahead at weekends and in the holidays. If it's full, the Courtyard Brasserie at Mains of Taymouth, about a kilometre away, serves food every day from noon.
If it rains
The sauna is warm in any weather and the cruise stays moored in a sheltered bay when it's rough; the falls are at their finest after rain, but the cave and the path down are slippy then, so take it slowly or leave the walk out.
The Courtyard Brasserie & Bar, a restaurant in Kenmore.
Photograph by Janette Gaunt via Google