A walk around the Afton hills

[Benaden887]

A round of the Afton hills 22/04/2021 Blackcraig, Windy Standard. 22km 1000m 7.30h
First real day out for 19 months, Solo trip thus saved any embarrassment I might have enroute. Drive the Afton glen to my usual parking place turn the car then gear up. The short route, across field, river then a steep climb aside crags to gain Blackcraigs trig point takes about 60min. But the fields are full wi lambing sheep some with and others still to drop. So best left alone by using the farm route up to Quinton Knowe. The day is dry and sunny wi a chill wind that encourages movement. A few more windmills here than last time, so they must be breeding. Past the cairns and a stone built refuge to rest at the trig point. The going been good, short grasses but wet wi a hard frost this morning. Read the script on a couple of memorial plaques left here, then had a bite an swallow. I`ve been here so many times - my sons favourite hill – this glen strong ties wi Burns, Wallace an old Ayrshire, it seems like an elderly friend. When doing the Munros my get fit agin hill was Ben Vane; though small, barely making Munro height; it required a fair bit of effort tae reach its top, jist enough to whip u back into shape after injury. Great views E over the Lowther hills SW lies Windy Standard wi Cairnmore jist beyond an someday will see windmills on them all. Time to go. Cross fence and drop past isolated young fir trees a bit taller since my last visit. Over Blacklorg where a new access road runs atween it an Meikledodd. To Brown hill finding the cols are now boggy. Up to Alwhat and walk the fence for a dip then rest on Allhang. A roll with a sport drink rescued from my car is quickly consumed. The sport drink BB date reads 2014, so there`s a real need to gut the boot when I get home. Across the Afton glen, the sight of workers and clatter of machinery tends me to changed my preferred route. Down to the col then head SW across the “Blue stones”. Contour the slope to find an AV track runs past the Deil Putting Stone. Years since I`ve bin here, some say it`s only by looking back u can see how far u`ve come. I sit on the stone for another wee break, down there lies an unseen, the Glennoch bothy, well maybe someday. Cairnsmore, Beninner and Moorbrock hill, all done long time since. It`s time to go. I head N for Windy`s trig point to find an electric fence I missed on the way up. A gate further W gives access and the noise of the wind farm greets me as I top the hill, swap grass for gravel and walk to the trig pillar. Looks as though a new track`s being laid down where the old path used to be. The workers pause and chat as I pass thro, the day warming up and there's the odd sheep up here. The electric fence seems to end by Wedder hill, when an odd looking object in the glen below caught my eye. The pleasant forestry area at the south end of the Afton rsvr has gone. A fenced off denuded landscape wi broken trees an dead roots mar the ground. I can see no reason for this the forest walk being ideal for soothing the mind. The item that caught my eye, becomes an uprooted tree with its root covering soil still in situ like a tutu skirt. Time to practice my felled tree area routine. After a cautious crossing of the fence via a decrepit double gate. I pick my way through broken trunks, strewn branches roots and bog to finally reach the safety of a rough track. Looking right the way crosses a green metal bridge spanning the river then winds uphill to Mickledodd and beyond. The gravel track runs the west side side of the rsvr with offshoots sporting uphill to separate windmill units. Tree planting and other measures have been taken to keep the track in place. I wish them luck. Walked the track beside the still water towards the dam then took the higher path back to my car . So a decent work out without pain. Seen en route, sheep lambs umpteen small birds noone on the hills workers on site and viewed climbers on the crags. A good day.