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Day 12 - penultimate day and I was planning a rest day for today but checking the forecast up to the weekend it was decided i would keep on going as the weather for Thursday and Friday was deteriorating so better to get the walk finished on Thursday than walk for two days in rain.
Todays walk was the crossing of the Lammermuir hills, not very high but exposed with no shelter, essentially a large low grouse moor, with the hill of Twin Law as the high spot of the day.
I was dropped off in the same car park in Lauder i was collected from last night and wandered into the village, via shop for some snacks for the walk today before turning off he road through the grounds of the thirlstane estate. dropping down to cross a small river, the Leader Water and then walked across the next field accompanied by an energetic herd of young cows that were intent on escorting me off their land, Ive never seen such lively cows. Leaving them behind a short walk through a lovely wood and then upwards climbing up 175m along farm tracks through a farm and past some mobile phone towers to a high point of 336m unnamed hill all in sheep pasture.
Then up and down crossing fields until the moor was reached by a very remote farm at Braidshawrig, then it was a long 4 mile walk across the moor on a clear track with Twin law in sight all the way, I met a surveyor wandering here, he was surveying the moor for bird life as part of a project to assess the impact of the land management, There were plenty of sky;arks up and singing and he said they were difficult to count as he couldnt tell when each individual stopped singing as there were several up at one time. I left him to his birds and continued on. he was the only person I met up on these hills today.
At the summit of Twin law i stopped for lunch and found the geocache and also signed the ranger book that was in the box in the Northerly of the two excellent cairns. seems most people walk up from Watch water reservoir but i did see that the runners who had signed the beehive bothy book back in the galloway forest had also signed in here. reluctantly i left this fine viewpoint and plodded down hill to skirt watch water reservoir which was busy with fisherman floating and wading after their sport.
Cath drove up to check on me as I climbed along the road away from the reservoir and then left me to the last 2 miles of tarmac which I followed this down to Longformacus where she was waiting for me.
Another excellent day of miles just passing under my feet, be sad to end it tomorrow, body feeling ok , but my feet are aching once i stop at the end of each day, really difficult to walk on them after i have stopped for a break, when i start again I hobble for 50metres or so before getting into my stride and the pain eases. except for a sore left knee, I seem to have coped with walking 200 miles or so quite well, it still amazes me how easily the second 100 miles has passed.
15.5 miles for the day
Photos and comments below
Leaving of Lauder. it was a very quiet morning in Lauder he he 
Thirlstane house
across the water
Its a lovely morning again
remains of an old footbridge
the bouncy bovines, they stayed away from the electric fence, i didnt.......
A short way through the woods
emerging from the woods and crossing the A697 - 14 miles to go today 
looking back towards Lauder on the gentle climb up through the farm at Wanton Walls
climbing up to the impressive height of 330m!!. but the views were far reaching, to the south the Eildon hills some 10 miles away
turning my back on the view the way ahead and the next marker post can be seen so no need to consult the map
down and up through these rolling fields
heading to the right of the plantation ,
but first another down and up to cross a river, the Blyth water. The heather moor comes into site as well.
footbridge
still see those two hills
Joining the track to Braidshawrig
emerging from the quiet trees and Braidshawrig comes into view as does the whole expanse of the moor, i can imaging crossing this in a low cloud and rain would be a challenge, but today its clear, and route finding is very easy
Past Braidshawrig and its just follow this track for 3 miles
a solitary barn and the cairns on twin law come into view
the vehicle track ends then its another mile on this engineered path to the top of twin law, easy walking but a lonely spot
nearly there
Twin law summit, two cairns and a trig point
sat and had a break here on the stones of the north cairn
dropping down heading for the Watch water reservoir ahead
back on the tarmac and the last few miles into longformacus, so a last look back to twin law
the road winds down through a farm and past a water treatment works folowing the shallow valley of the Watch Water
until it meets the Dye water
and Longformacus is reached and 15.5 miles is done.Only one day to go......
