Routes shown and parking mentioned on this website are those used by the author. Readers heading for the summits are responsible for their own choices.
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Playing the Game - Stones #61 - #69
Tuesday 18th October 2022
A Donald, and another first ascent
With a nice autumn day forecast, Scoot and I thought it was a good opportunity to bag the most westerly Ochils Donald, and have a look to see if the conditions were right to attempt another outlier, which neither of had previously climbed, at the same time. Parking at the copse about 600 metres north west of the former Sheriffmuir Inn, we set off up the side of the newly forestry-planted Glentye Hill (27), and discovered on arrival at the top that both the previously placed Stones had disappeared. This was disappointing, but we had a plan – more of that later.
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61. We now descended to the saddle between Glentye Hill and Mickle Corum (29) and followed the obvious track up onto the ridge between Mickle Corum and Greenforet Hill, before following the fence as it gradually rose up over the magic two thousand feet level and on to Blairdenon (GR 866019) BdM#61, where, uniquely, it is possible to sit in Clackmannanshire with one foot in Perthshire and the other in Stirlingshire. We placed the Stones on the small cairn close to the fence, and having taken a couple of minutes to admire the 360 degree panorama of the Ochils to the east and south and the Southern Highland hills to the west and north, it was decision time.
62. Having been able to walk on tracks thus far, it was obvious that was not going to be the case should we decide to make for Sauchanwood Hill (GR 874031) SwH#62, which seemed an awful long way away over what had to be the northerly extremity of Alva Moss. We did have a short discussion, but we were both feeling pretty good, and how bad could the ground be? Well, as it happened, it wasn’t the most pleasant of walking, with boggy, tussocky terrain most of the way requiring care and a fair bit of exertion. Scoot made a reasonable job of finding “sheep tracks” which mostly existed for a hundred metres or so before petering out into a bog, but before too long we had reached the summit – according to our GPS, because yet again there was absolutely no prominent feature on the flat top to confirm we were there. With the breeze beginning to make itself felt, we didn’t take long to place the white-dot Stone beside its cane, and it was off to find a bit of shelter for a very welcome drink and a sandwich.While we were enjoying our break, we were scanning the terrain for our return journey, and we agreed that we would not return to the summit of Blairdenon, but rather contour round to the small memorial on Greenforet, where we could regain the path back to Glentye Hill and thence to the car. Admittedly, the underfoot conditions were not a whole lot better on this ascent, but we found ourselves at our target surprisingly soon, and after a photo stop it was a great relief to be able to motor downhill to the aforementioned saddle and then up the gradual slope to the top of Glentye Hill. Here, at a little rocky outcrop a couple of hundred metres to the south west of the actual featureless top of the hill, we hammered in the cane which will mark the Stones when Scoot returns to this site in the next few days – watch out for update! The final descent was soon completed and it was a tired pair who were pleased to point the car homewards after a taxing but very rewarding six hours in the hills.
The memorial on Greenforet Hill
The cairn on Blairdenon with its cane and two Stones
Today: 6 hrs 32 mins, 11.7 km and 547m. (Running totals: 160 hrs 56 mins, 458.81 km and over 17,425m)
A cane and Stone on Sauchanwood Hill
Thursday 9th February 2023
A new year, a new hill
63. It wasn’t a huge surprise to confirm that it was well over 3 months since I had last been up a hill on the List, and I was almost beginning to wonder if I would ever get going again. So, grabbing the opportunity of a possible improvement in recent weather conditions, I set out to Glendevon and parked in the area just inside the “Private, no entry” gates leading to the Glendevon Reservoirs.
I walked along the road for just over a kilometre where I veered off at Frandy Farm to follow a well defined track parallel to the Frandy Burn as far as the gate in the deer fence enclosing a relatively newly planted mainly coniferous woodland. From here, I followed the obvious track, quite steeply in places, uphill through the very young woodland, and not, as suggested by the 1:50000 OS map, an established wood. The OS 1:25000 and Harveys maps are more accurate, although neither has the track I followed marked.
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As I approached the deer fence again, I began to wonder whether I was going to be able to actually get past it to the summit, when thankfully a gate appeared, and I was able to leave the track and continue uphill across some rough ground towards the summit of Bald Hill (GR926035) BaH#63.
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This was another new top for me, and as with so many in the Ochils, it was not immediately obvious just which was the highest point, so I had a wander about before settling on the 500m OS spot- height, which is very close to a quad track on the summit. Here I planted a cane, beside which I placed both the yellow-band and white-dot Stones, and then set off to have a look at where the quad track led. Within a few hundred metres, I figured this was not going near where I wanted to go, so I cut south west back over rough ground towards the deer fence, where I found another gate leading to my track back downhill.
By this time the previous cold wind had abated and it was a pleasant walk retracing my steps back to Frandy Farm and thence to the car, satisfied that I had enjoyed placing my first Stone of the year.
Today: 2 hrs 51 mins, 8.1 km and 360m. (Running totals: 163 hrs 47 mins, 466.91 km and over 17,785m)
The cane and two Stones on Bald Hill
The sign on the deer fence protecting the new woodlands project undertaken by Gleneagles Estate and financed by the
Scottish Government and the European Union.
Tuesday 14th February 2023
Following the Jerah Woodland Heritage Trail and the Benominee Way
#20. Back in late October 2020, Gavin, Murray and I visited Kidlaw Hill [KlH#20] (GR 853015) to place a yellow-band Stone, and today seemed like an opportunity for me to get the white-dot one out. Parking once again in the small area at the end of the trail from Menstrie, I set off once more uphill following the forestry track past the interesting notice describing the whole area known as the Jerah Woodland Heritage Trail. Once again, having reached the spur about two kilometres in, I set off north east on what I have designated the Benominee Way, a well defined track which leads to the stile over the fence near the summit of Colsnaur North Top [CnN#07] (Gr 861003), where it joins the track leading south via Colsnaur to rejoin the Heritage Trail.
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Having left the Way and covered a couple of hundred metres of rough ground, I arrived at the cairn on Benominee (GR 855007), to find both the Stones still there, although looking rather weathered. From here it was downhill due north over rough grassy and mossy ground to a deer fence and then uphill to the summit of Kidlaw Hill. A quick search confirmed that the Stone has disappeared, which
surprised me due to the remoteness of this hill, but it was the work of a couple of minutes to plant a cane and place a white-dot Stone near it in a cosy little scrape in the original rocky outcrop.
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A quick study of the map suggested that there was nothing to be gained by returning to Benominee, so I headed SSW for a (locked) gate in the fence and, having made my slow way over the rough ground back to the track, I then retraced my steps back, mainly downhill, to the car.​
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The sign at the northern end of the Jerah Woodland Heritage Trail and the Benominee Way
The cane marking the summit of Kidlaw Hill and a nest for the Stone
Today: 3 hrs 13 mins, 8.89 km and 326m. (Running totals: 167 hrs 00 mins, 475.8 km and over 18,111m)
Saturday 25 February 2023
A day of old and new plantations
At very short notice, I decided that I just had to get out on the hills today, and a quick consultation of the maps suggested that it might be an opportunity to go and try out some hills which research had indicated might be difficult to summit. So, for the first time in a while, it was back to the B934 Dunning road, and I eventually settled for the start of a forestry road at NO 009049, which proved to be a good call. I parked just off the main road, but later found some cars parked further up the hill – the road was a bit rough, so I was happy not to have driven any further.
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#64. The map shows a plethora of tracks in the forest, but my route looked pretty obvious, and I set off to follow it gently uphill. I was surprised to learn that this area is used for sled dog training, although I didn’t see any of the action which was scheduled for this morning. After just under two kilometres, I began to wonder if I was going to be able to find my way to the top of my first target, Burnt Hill [BuH#64] NO 002061, since there didn’t seem to be any obvious tracks leading uphill; I decided just to make the breenge up into the trees, and with care it was not too difficult to negotiate the soggy, mossy ground and the ancient fallen trees, until I reached what is one of the lowest summits on the List, but with a surprisingly pleasant vista looking east towards Mellock Hill and Innerdouny. The Stones and cane quickly placed, it was time to regain the forestry road and head north only a couple of hundred metres before bearing west at a junction to look for an approach to the next hilltop.
#65. I admit I was not confident that this search was going to be successful, especially as my research had indicated this might be problematic. I was thinking especially of a description I found on a website, written some time ago – “Bit of a bugger this one. Found overgrown track from forestry track due south of summit. It contoured around the east flank of the hill before petering out. Turned south westerly, but got tangled up in dense branches. Thankfully had GPS to hand so I could hack a reasonably straight line to the summit. Eventually made it, scarred and bruised. D was not happy! Came out at track besides quarry west of top. Looked like we had had a fight with a forest ... and the forest had won.” I had soon found the quarry referred to by the author, and after a brief recce to check whether there is a possible reasonable approach to the top, I decided that the quarry was as far as I was willing to go on Black Creich Hill [BCH#65], and it is here at 423m the Stones and cane are placed (NN 997065). Good luck to anyone who wants to get to the top!
The cane marking the tree stump with Stones on Burnt Hill - Mellock Hill in the distance on the other side of the B934
Above: the cane and Stones in quarry near the summit of Black Creich Hill, with impassable forest behind.
Other picture: the cairn on White Creich Hill where the cane and Stones are placed. In the distance is Black Creich Hill with the quarry at the bottom left of the forest.
#66. From here, I could clearly see the top of my final goal for today, White Creich Hill [WCH#66] NN 995061, and I could also clearly see that it is recently planted with new conifers, and has a deer fence around it. Of course, there is going to be some way of getting through or over the fence – but not from where I was approaching. There was nothing for it but to find a solid fence post and climb over, and of course, no sooner had I done that than I spotted a gate a couple of hundred metres away (NN 997063) – and it is locked!! Why? Anyway, the good news is that there is a track leading from the gate all the way through the new plantation to the top where I discovered a small cairn, beside which I planted the cane and in which I placed the Stones. It was getting a bit chilly by now, so I made my way back to the gate, which I had to climb, and was very soon back on the forestry road which I followed back to the car.
Thought for the day: with the proliferation of deer fences now covering the Ochils range, how very useful it would be if any stiles and gates for crossing them could be marked on maps – or failing that, the information could be posted on the internet. This would certainly decrease the stress of negotiating what can already be very difficult routes to the summits of our hills.
Today: 2 hrs 48 mins, 7.1 km and 268m. (Running totals: 169 hrs 48 mins, 482.9 km and over 18,379m)
Monday 27 March 2023
Along the Corb Glen superhighway
After a month of pretty unrelenting mist and rain (although we did get a week of sunshine in Fuerteventura!), suddenly the sun was shining and the skies were blue, and it was even a few degrees above freezing, so the opportunity was grabbed to get out and mop up a couple of tops out in the north-east section. Parking once more at the Tonguey Faulds carpark on the B934 Dunning road (GR 017082), I set off up the familiar Corb Glen drove road – which did not look nearly as familiar as I expected. Indeed, this is now a substantial drove highway, as in the intervening 15 or so months since I’d last been here there has been a prodigious amount of road building and digging in preparation for the substantial amount of tree planting which has been undertaken in that time.
Two kilometres in, having reached the point where there had been a gate across the road, I discovered that where the new highway continues along the track of the ancient drove road, there is now a new detour off to the left in the direction I wanted to go – so I followed it.
Although I had previously placed a white-dot Stone on the top of John’s Hill [JoH#34] (GR 001081), I thought it would be interesting to see if it was surviving, so I headed firstly for this summit. And there I found absolutely no sign of either of the Stones or the cane which had marked it on our last visit. This was disappointing, but I was cheered to stumble upon a tiny pile of stones which contained one with some writing in memory of a much loved dad, brother and uncle; to this embryonic cairn, I now added a new white-dot Stone, and marked it all with a new cane. Looking south-east to the neighbouring Lamb Hill [LaH#35] (GR 009076), it struck me that it is unlikely to be possible for an agos400 bagger to get off of that hill onto the road any longer, due to the new forestry and its encircling deer fence.
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#67. It was now time to head south downhill to the bealach between my present hill and my first new target for today, Sim’s Hill [SiH#67] (GR 999076) ; I walked over rough ground at this point, but when I reached the bottom and looked back, I could see that there is a track leading summitwards. At this point too, I discovered that the deer fence which I had spotted much earlier leading to my new target has a gate in it, but I chose not to use that but stay to the right of the fence, a decision which proved to be a good one. Once again, on arrival at the top of the hill, there was no sign of the cane and Stone which Hugh had placed almost two years ago. At that time, there had been no deer fence there, so I decided that I
The white-dot Stone contributing to the new tiny cairn on the top of John's Hill - in memoriam
would now use that to help position the white-dot stone, and the cane is now attached to the fence. Great views in all directions made the climb worthwhile, and I was able to look over to Black Creich and White Creich Hils, which were my last two bags a month ago.
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#68. Navigation from here to the final top for today, Green Law [GrL#68] GR 993075, was just a matter of following the deer fence downhill about 30m to a gate and then uphill to the top, where I was not at all surprised to discover no sign whatsoever of the Stone and cane which Hugh had previously positioned. It was the work of a few minutes to place the white-dot Stone at the base of a fence post and attach its marker cane to the fence.
Cane attached to the fence, marking the white-dot Stone on Sim's Hill; Green Law in top right of picture and flank of White Creich Hill on left
Without further ado, I retraced my steps back to the gate and turned downhill through the recently planted conifers before finding a relatively dry spot to sit and have my piece and survey the massive amount of work which has been done in the past year in the glen.
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It was now time to make my way down to the new road, onto which I turned right and which I followed to the point at which I had left it earlier, and it was a pleasant, though tiring, bimble back to the car after a particularly rewarding and satisfying sunny early Spring day in the hills.
Today: 3 hrs 22 mins, 7.8 km and 485m. (Running totals: 173 hrs 10 mins, 490.7 km and over 18,864m)
Similar view to that from Sim's Hill, but this is Green Law; Green Knowes windfarm in the background with snow on Ben Cleuch in the distance
Looking north over new plantation towards Corb Law and the old drove road and quarry, and new forestry road in the middle distance
Monday 03 April 2023
Visiting Andrew Gannel
#69. With white-dot Stones already placed on six of the Donald Mountains in the Ochils, today seemed like an excellent bright sunny day to get one out onto Andrew Gannel Hill [AGH#69] (GR 919006). After parking the car at the entrance to the Mill Glen in Tillicoultry, I set off on the drag up the steps leading to the track around the back of Wester Kirk Craig which heads north above the Gannel Burn. When, at a height of about 400m, I reached the track junction at GR 917988, I decided to veer off to the left and contour round the hillside on the lower track, which is the one I was used to in my earlier days walking in this area. This old drove track is the best part of two kilometres long, and has suffered pretty badly from erosion over the years; I decided that I would not use it on my return, but instead head cross-country uphill to the higher, more prominent track.
I made good time along the track, and was soon at the source of the Gannel Burn and heading uphill to my target top, where I had to take a minute to don my jacket as the westerly breeze had become quite noticeable. There is no obvious marker at
the top of Andrew Gannel, but there are some prominent crags, and it was amongst these that I chose to place the white-dot Stone with its marker cane. The view from this vantage point is very impressive, with a 360 degree panorama taking in most of the higher summits in the range.
Crags to the south of the summit, now home to the white-dot Stone. Kings Seat and Elistoun Hills in the distance.
Cane, white-dot Stone and partner in a cosy alcove.
It was time to head back downhill, and after a brief stop to eat my sandwich in the lee of the hill, I fairly raced back to the bottom of the track, interrupted only briefly to chat to Susan, whom I had seen only recently on stage in the Alloa Musical Players’ presentation of Little Shop of Horrors. It transpires that Susan is a keen hillwalker, and I was delighted to learn later that she had been able to find the cane and Stone at the top of the hill. At least it had lasted 20 minutes!
I now looked for a suitable spot to begin my quest to find the other track which is marked on the maps, and I was delighted to find that there is now a very distinct (unmarked on the maps) track connecting the two, so navigation was very easy. As I made my way downhill, I was yet again struck by the thought that the trek out did not seem to have been nearly as long as the return journey – did I really cover all this ground on the way up?!
Today: 4 hrs 13 mins, 9.8 km and 695m. (Running totals: 177 hrs 23 mins, 500.5 km and over 19,559m)
Susan has found the very spot.
Routes shown and parking mentioned on this website are those used by the author. Readers heading for the summits are responsible for their own choices.