The Bore Stane - a circuit

[past my sell by date]

This report combines three walks I made exploring the area - all in August. I have included all of them in the map - but the circuit starts where the road from Malleny Mills turns R at the entrance to Bavelaw farm ( no problem parking) follows the path to Listonshiels farm, climbs East Cairn hill, descends past the Bore Stane to the track leading over the pass to Carlops: it forks R on the descent and returns by Wester Bavelaw

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The signposted path to Listonshiels starts through a narrow strip of wild land

A bit jungly at first but soon becomes a naturalists paradise

Clumps of Bell Heather

A mass of Blue Scabius

Attended by a host of Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies

You go through a metal gate into a more open area: - looking back

Then though another gate and the woods surrounding the farmhouse come into view

A track heads South through a gate - the old drove road to Carlops

Following it, An attractive wood - mainly Scots pine sits on knoll to the L

After a while the path forks: the route to Carlops keeps R and follows a gravelly track to the pass

The soil is very sandy and the banks of the track are covered in the holes of some variey of solitary bee - enjoying the heather no doubt

At the pass looking South towards Carlops. but the route up East Cairn hill heads R through a gate a short while earlier

A wider view

You can also reach the farm by a track from the North: there is parking at the start

Where this track enters the field there is a view of the maiin Pentland chain

The farmhouse is private and you head through the gate on the L

Follow the wall around, cross a fence and exit at a gate at the S end of the next field: the path up East Cairn hill starts here

Looking back to the woods around the farm

Looking on up the pleasant grassy track

The heather was in full bloom

Detail

looking back from just above Manson Hill

They seem to mow sections of heather on this estate rather than use muirburn

Across to Harperrig reservoir beyond the Thieves road

Another view back down the whole track over Manson hill

Up the final stage

The inconspicuous cairn at the high point. The track which I struggled to find when I descended it on an earlier occasion comes to just a few (boggy) metres from the cairn - opposite a gap in the wall

The track down to the pass follows the wall

An attractive little wood - larch and Scots pine I think

If you are ascending this way, this inviting looking gate appears - but it leads nowhere : the route stays N of the wall the whole way

You soon join the drove road. follow it down to tthe fork and head R

Two more views of the wood on the knoll - which is now below you

The track heads solidly East

Passes through a gate

And arrives at Wester Bavelaw at the end of a lane

You squeeze through a gap L of a gate and follow a path across the rough pasture: It is not all that well marked and I guess would be quite wet at times

It leads to a gate in a fence

Looking back through the gate

From here it is only 100m or so til you reach the Bavelaw farm road - a couple of hundred metres from the car: a view back across the pasture to Wester Bavelaw
EDIT 19/03/23
Did this walk again on yesterday after quite a lot of rain. A lot of it - even the big tracks were very wet and it took a lot longer. Not recommended in such conditions