Bookings are now closed, except for 'Add Me' tickets, which are available until Sunday 24th July inclusive. These are for people whose bookings for accommodation etc have been made by others, so that they can show they are attending the AOG.

GOC's 2022 Annual Outdoor Gathering will be held from Friday 29th July to Monday 1st August at the University of Stirling.  This will replicate the AOG planned for 2020, which was cancelled because of Covid-19.

The campus is about two miles from the centre of the historic city of Stirling and within easy walking distance of the shops and cafés in the attractive town of Bridge of Allan. This is a great location for those who want a taste of what Scotland has to offer in terms of the great outdoors, including the classic Highland scenery of the Trossachs and beautiful Loch Katrine. There are several Munros (mountains over 3000 feet) within striking distance, but the nearby Ochils provide the opportunity for a slightly less challenging introduction to Scottish hillwalking.

The area is also full of historic interest, including the Wallace Monument, which is immediately adjacent to the campus, and of course Stirling Castle, which rises majestically above the city and outrivals its counterpart in Edinburgh as a place to visit.

The facilities on campus are excellent and those we will be using are located in two buildings about 15 minutes' walk from each other.  Accommodation will be mainly in Willow Court, with some people in the Stirling Court Hotel, which belongs to the university and is part of the campus. All the rooms are doubles with queen-size beds. These are available for single or double occupancy. Please note, however, that some people who need more space may find a queen-size bed too small for two people. The University is offering us the rooms at the same price as they did in 2020. Subject to availability, they are also offering rooms at the same rate to those who wish to extend their stay by making their own bookings, direct with the University, for nights before or after the AOG.

Evening meals and entertainment will be served at the Stirling Court Hotel. The AGM and RAP session will also take place at the hotel.

Bookings for main event

Tickets for accommodation, on a bed & breakfast basis, closed on 3rd June and are sold out. See above note about extension of deadline for booking packed lunches.

There are no facilities generally available for participants to make their own breakfasts, but please contact the organiser if you have dietary needs that prevent you from taking university meals, in which case we will ask the univerity if special arrangements can be made.

Before making your booking please read: Booking Instructions and Conditions. Please do not make commitments for travel or other expenses until your booking is confirmed. Please also state any special dietary requirements and any other special requests in the 'Additional Information' field.

Information for attendees

Information about how to get to the campus, accommodation, meals, parking and other practical issues can be found by clicking on the following documents:

Information for Attendees

Campus Map

Willow Court is the building marked as 5 in the group shown in yellow above the loch. The Stirling Court Hotel is shown in green towards the bottom left hand corner of the map.

Information for Attendees will be updated from time to time as more information becomes available.

Outdoor activities

The programme of outdoor activities includes a choice of mountain, hill and low level walking, a cycle ride each day (the Saturday and Sunday), a women only walk on the Saturday, a coach tour with a boat trip on Loch Katrine in the Trossachs on the Sunday.  On the Monday morning there are three easy morning walks. Details for each event can be found by clicking on the links below. We have attempted to put the events each day in order of difficulty (hardest first) to make it easier for you to gauge the grade of each walk.

A number of the walks listed are car-dependent and we are aware that more people than usual will be coming to the AOG by public transport this year. We are therefore encouraging those who have space in their cars to give lifts to as many people as they can to the relevant walks. We are also asking those who are not staying on campus, but are driving, to come to the walk rendezvous at the campus if they can offer people lifts.  We are also repeating walks that are likely to be popular and start directly from the university campus, to reduce the number of walks that are car-dependent.

Bookings for outdoor activities opened on 3rd June and will close on 17th July. You will need to book separately for each walk, cycle ride or the coach trip. Numbers are limited and most of the places have been made available online. Only a small number of places will be available to book offline when you arrive at Stirling, so you are recommended to book early online to secure your place. Online places for some walks are already sold out.

Saturday 30th July

Ben Vorlich and Stuc a Chroin - A strenuous mountain walk up these two Munros (30 miles, c1 hour from the campus)

Beinn Each - A mountain walk up this Corbett near Callander (20 miles c40 mins from the campus)

Dollar Glen, Kings Seat Hill and the Glen of Sorrow - A difficult hill walk in the Ochil Hills and Dollar Glen (12 miles c30 mins from the campus)

Dumyat via Bridge of Allan and the North - A difficult hill walk up Dumyat via Bridge of Allan and the North Side (start at the campus)

Bannock Burn and North Third Reservoir Circuit - A moderate walk just south of Stirling (9 miles c30 mins from the campus)

Dumyat Circular (Women Only) - A moderate hill walk up Dumyat (start at the campus)

Callander Crags and Bracklin Falls - A moderate woodland and hill walk from Callander (12 miles c30 mins from the campus)

Bridge of Allan Woods and River Allan to Dunblane - A moderate linear woodland and farmland walk to Dunblane, returning by train (start from the campus)

Stirling Town Walk - An easy walk taking in the historic sites of Stirling (start at the campus)

Cycle ride to Dollar and Glen Eagles - A 43 mile cycle ride starting from the campus

Sunday 31st July

Ben Ledi and Benvane from Brig O'Turk - A strenuous mountain walk over these two Corbetts (20 miles c40 mins from the campus)

Ben Cleuch Circular - A mountain walk to over 700m up the highest point in the Ochil hills (bus from the campus to the start in Tillicoultry)

Ben A'an - A short mountain walk up this mountain in miniature (20 miles c40 mins from the campus)

Dumyat Circular - A moderate hill walk up Dumyat (start at the campus)

Brig O'Turk and Finglas Woods - A moderate woodland walk from Brig O'Turk (20 miles c40 mins from the campus)

Kilmahog and The Falls of Leny - A moderate woodland walk (16 miles c30 mins from the university)

Stirling Town Walk - An easy walk taking in the historic sites of Stirling (start at the campus)

Cycle Ride to Kippen and Fintry  - A 40-mile cycle ride starting from the university campus

Loch Katrine Steamers Coach Trip - A boat cruise on loch Katrine to Stronachlachar and an easy walk along the shores of Loch Katrine

Monday 1st August

Stirling Town Walk - An easy walk taking in the historic sites of Stirling (bus into Stirling)

Wallace Monument and Abbey Craig - An easy walk on the hill of Abbey Craig to the Wallace Monument (start at  the campus)

Hermitage Woods and Bridge of Allan - An easy walk to Hermitage Woods and Bridge of Allan (start at the campus)

Entertainment

For our Saturday evening entertainment we have been lucky enough to book one of Scotland’s best ceilidh bands led by the legendary Sandy Brechin. There is plenty of room for dancing and the band alongside our dining area. Edinburgh Gay Men’s Chorus have also kindly agreed to come and sing for us on the Saturday evening.

There will also be a quiz, which will take place, as usual, on the Sunday evening.