A lunchtime walk slotted in before picking up a passenger on the bus from Edinburgh.
From the Reindeer Centre area quickly onto the section of the Loggers Way that heads up to the National Centre.
A path leads upwards from the Centre towards a couple of forestry that have to be crossed to continue up the Feint path through the mature trees and through worn down heather probably used by folks from the Centre and the reindeer folks out exercising their dogs. Pleasantly through the mature trees with some evidence of off-road biking tyre tracks.
Before the first track crossing some man-made winter homes for insects perhaps? can be seen. From the track crossing, the one used to follow the fine well know made up track down to the Green Loch, an immediate continuation up through the trees. At the second forestry track crossing walk a short distance up to find a continuation of the path through the heather.
Also an area of dead Pine trees that stand like sun-bleached monuments to previous growing trees. Not sure what would have killed these off.?
Eventually out onto an area of thinned out of scattered pines. A fight to reach the summit owing to the strong cross-wind from the South-West and glad that I had a walking pole to brace against while barn-dancing my way to the summit shelter for some relief. Down to the tea shop following the path to the col and quickly scampering into the cross wind like a man who had over dosed on alcohol. The trees in the forest could not come soon enough.