Here we go gathering subs in. . . March

[thepigguy]

Spartleton
Distance: 5.4km
Ascent: 268m
Time taken: 2hr 30min (including breakfast)

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I was up very early, setting off from Edinburgh to visit my old mum in Cambridgeshire, and had got as far as Haddington on the A1 when I got a phone call. The care home was on lockdown after a Covid outbreak - trip postponed/cancelled.

So instead of staring at miles and miles of flat sugar beet fields, I took a swift detour into the Lammermuir Hills, following the diversion around Gifford and stopping just before 8am at the small car park by Whiteadder Reservoir.

Early morning on Whiteadder Reservoir

It's a very straightforward walk and the track moves alongside the end of the reservoir where geese were protesting at my presence so early. The sunshine was bright, but there was still a fair bit of frost around as I gently climbed towards Gamelshiel Castle.

The track leading away from the car park

Frosty going

Gamelshiel Castle was, apparently, one of a chain of forts guarding the route between Duns and Haddington. There's very little of it left, but it's certainly atmospheric and provides a highlight on the way up.

Gamelshiel Castle remains and Spartleton

Ruins of Gamelshiel Castle

Hopping over the burn near the ruins, the track rises around the hill, reaching a gate where I (following the WH route) turned right straight uphill, making my way through heather and along animal tracks. In hindsight it would have been easier to stroll up the track.

Lammermuir scenery

Time to turn uphill - best to stick with the track, which I didn't

The top of Spartleton came soon enough and I made myself comfortable in the increasingly warm sunshine and enjoyed breakfast and hazy views over South East Scotland, trying hard to ignore the banks of windmills here and there.

Top of Spartleton

Breakfast in the sunshine

I followed the track down from the top, picking up my outward route at the gate and heading back to the car. A really nice short hillwalk.

Heading back down

Dirrington Great Law
Distance: 5.17km
Ascent: 201m
Time taken: 1hr 45min

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The drive down to Dirrington Great Law took a bit longer than expected and I managed to overshoot the start point by about half-a-mile, having been looking for a tree plantation when the green patch on the map is actually an area of very young trees.

Dirrington Great Law from the road

It's a simple matter to set off along the track around the base of the hill, turning uphill alongside a wall and then crossing short heather towards the top.

Track through the plantation

Heading up across managed grouse moor

Muirburn - the whole walk was blighted by the smell of smoke

Dirrington Great Law summit

It was becoming surprisingly hot and I made slow progress, cutting away from the track through the heather and going directly to what looked like the high point (it's either that or another high point the other side of the toppled trig point).

Spending a while with a cup of tea at the top, I headed back down roughly the way I had come up.

The well-known toppled trig point

Sell Moor Hill
Distance: 2.24km
Ascent: 79m
Time taken: 45min

I headed down towards Duns and then turned back towards Edinburgh and decided to take a short detour at Lauder to "earn" another tick/blue balloon at Sell Moor Hill.

I parked by the cattle grid and walked across the rough grass to the corner by the small tree plantation. Here there's a wall that's in poor condition and a fair bit of wire (including an old electric fence obviously not live) that's even worse so it was easy to climb over into the field. I suspect there'll come a time fairly soon when the farmer will do some repairs so it may not always be as easy.

Looking "uphill" from the road

Most difficult part of the walk

ATV track through the field

From here it barely qualifies as a walk, let alone a hill, as an ATV track through the field goes straight to the top where I hung around for five minutes before going back to the car.

Sell Moor Hill summit