You assemble in a car park in a small Scottish town at 9pm. You are given a time slot for transport, a wristband, and a sheet of paper. The latter suggests that if you are prone to anxiety, you might want to think again. It's probably drizzling. It's all mysterious, edgy, like waiting for directions to a rave, except that the crowd is sorted for expensive waterproofs and cake instead of Es and wizz.
By midnight, 300 of us are scrambling across a big hill in the rain. We are not on an Endurance-style game show, but on The Path, the latest spectac ular installation-intervention in the Scottish landscape by the NVA organisation. Two years ago they brought a dramatic river gorge to life at twilight. The Path makes this look like child's play in scale and logistics. It makes U2's most bombastically ambitious stage show look a bit underwhelming.
A two-and-a-half hour walk along an old peat path through the hills, it is a physically exhilarating challenge not because of the tough terrain but because of the darkness that threatens to envelop you. The Path is also a sensual feast, with breathtaking light projections; the smell of peat fires; the sound of percussion bands and traditional Highland song; the taste of hot lemon served at the halfway point. Pagan, Buddhist, and Christian belief systems collide and co-exist in the show, so there are profound moments aplenty or, for cynics, moments of good old-fashioned spectacle.
While on The Path it holds you tight in its grip. When you come down it's a bit like Brigadoon: you can't believe it ever existed and feel a bit silly for having enjoyed the indulgent romance so much. But that's when you're back on the road, hungrily nibbling at the cake as the birds begin to sing. Until June 4. Information line: 0141 204 3346.
