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Bishop Hill circular in sunshine

Bishop Hill circular in sunshine


Postby dgcampbell » Fri Jun 03, 2016 2:40 pm

Route description: Bishop Hill circular from Holl Reservoir

Sub 2000' hills included on this walk: Bishop Hill

Date walked: 22/05/2016

Time taken: 3.5 hours

Distance: 12 km

Ascent: 270m

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Started from the Holl Reservoir parking, being careful not to transgress and enter the hallowed ground of the Fisherman’s Car Park, 9 am on a Sunday morning and that was half full whereas the other car park was empty. Do fishers really get out and about before walkers?

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Followed the WH route and after a few miles.... and time to wake up, Bishop Hill became more obvious on the horizon at left.

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Before turning left at the top of Glen Vale this new fencing and gate contrasted with the older stone wall. Wonder which will still be there in a few hundred years time? The main path before (leading back towards Holl Reservoir) and after (going forward to Glen Vale) this junction, has been made up with material of a distinctly different colour to the surrounding soil, it really stands out as a bit of a scar on the landscape


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The valley en route to the top of the ridge had some good rock formations and trees for the artistically minded.

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Once on the ridge I went to its Eastern end, with great views to W.Lomond showing the “volcanic dolerite cone rising above an escarpment of carboniferous sandstone and limestone layers”, quoted from Wikipedia, if thats completely wrong then let me know!

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Bishop Hill on left and Loch Leven centre, mountain bikes on the ground, as well as a few gliders in the air, G-DDRV in case anyone was up there around 11am

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Cairn at summit, Lomond hills on horizon. Is there anything more irritating than walking to the top and as you slowly get your breath back someone runs/jogs their way up after you and then has a conversation without gasping for breath as they should be?

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Downhill all the way back, pleasant track through Munduff Hill plantation, then a rather harsh farm track later on, see below.


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Very varied countryside and scenery make for a fine walk but the last stretch is less exciting.
dgcampbell
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Re: Bishop Hill circular in sunshine

Postby Sgurr » Fri Jun 03, 2016 3:10 pm

Must try it that way some time. Usually go up either via the golf ball, or Easter Balgeddie or Glen Vale. So many different routes. Sympathize with meeting the runner: when we were doing the Corbetts, we were twice overtaken by Manny Gorman doing his continuous round of them on bike and foot, once on the Auch Five behind Tyndrum and once on the edge of the Fisherfield. Returning from Beinn Dearg Mor we were puzzled by someone(his sidekick, delivering it) cycling furiously uphill, and then a moment later by Manny belting past us down hill on it. A word was all we got until we met him at his campervan at the bottom. Disgustingly fit.
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Sgurr
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Re: Bishop Hill circular in sunshine

Postby dgcampbell » Fri Jun 03, 2016 4:20 pm

I agree with you about the multitude of different approaches, I would say its one of the attractions of what seems a very unassuming hilltop. People seemed to be appearing from all over the place once I was up on the ridge. And its true, no matter what your state of fitness is, there will always be someone who finds the climb easier. I remember our son telling us that while jogging round a sports ground as part of football training he thought he would keep up with some other runners, only for it to dawn on him that one of them was Paula Radcliffe.
dgcampbell
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Posts: 17
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Fionas:1   Donalds:5
Sub 2000:19   
Joined: Aug 4, 2009

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