Discover Fassfern

The Fassfern Trail represents a landscape-focused side of trip planning; archaeological traces of a former settlement survive in Drumsallie. This gives rise to two distinct themes: nature and marked trails on the one hand, and settlement and landscape traces on the other.

Trails and riverside scenery

Three short marked walking trails run through the Fassfern Estate. The Fassfern Trail initially follows the River Beul Ath nan Dearcag, which flows over a series of small waterfalls. Eventually, the trail crosses the same river via a wooden bridge. The Fassfern Trail offers good views across Loch Eil. The river and bridge are features along the trail; the view across Loch Eil adds a sense of the landscape. The information board in the Fassfern car park describes three short marked trails and gives you an overview of the routes.

Woodland, moorland and biodiversity

The Fassfern Trail passes through broadleaf woodland, coniferous woodland and moorland, so the natural setting is not limited to a single type of woodland. Ancient oaks stand along the trail, richly covered with epiphytic mosses, lichens and ferns. Here, “epiphytic” describes growth on the oaks. The habitat along the Fassfern Trail is also home to the globally threatened Chequered Skipper butterfly, Carterocephalus palaemon, which is restricted to a few sites in western Scotland. Nature enthusiasts can explore these features on different levels: from the landscape types and the growth on individual trees to the habitat of a threatened species.

Finding your way at the car park

There are picnic benches and a barbecue area in the Fassfern car park. If you would like to include these facilities in your plans, check in advance whether they are currently available for use. This allows you to consider the trail information board and the facilities mentioned at the car park as separate aspects of your visit.

Archaeological traces in Drumsallie

North of the present-day path in Drumsallie, the remains of longhouses and enclosures from a former settlement survive. Clearance cairns are sporadically visible on flat ground north of an unnamed stream that flows into the River Fionnlighe. Two woodland enclosures survive in fragmentary form. The remains thus range from structural traces of a settlement to other landscape features; their visibility and state of preservation vary. Longhouses are elongated buildings; enclosures mark off areas. These terms help distinguish the structural traces of settlement from the occasionally visible mounds.

To help choose your focus, consider this direct comparison: the Fassfern Trail centres on the landscape, the course of the river and the views. In Drumsallie, longhouses, enclosures and clearance cairns draw attention to different traces of settlement. This lets you shape your plans around walking and nature or around an interest in cultural history.

Discover more destinations: Rhiconich, Letterfearn, Kinlochewe, Culbokie, Corpach, Kinlochleven, Fearn, Staffin.

For the broader travel overview: Highland.