Cairnsmore of Fleet - a game of two halves

I had long been itching to do this Graham, the most Southernly and one which had a significant memorial stone at the top. More than 20 airmen have died on this hill since the 1940s and each and every one is accounted for. I parked near the A75 and began the gentle stroll through the farmland, stopping to chat to a bloke who appreciated my not parking behind his house - again, the guide book says to do this. Perhaps it needs updating. I found the walk through the forest quite depressing as there is little to see and the track was a muddy bog. I took my first bacon sandwich just as I emerged from the forest at about 400m. From here, I could see the sun splitting the skies over the South but to the North, Cairnsmore of Fleet was shrouded in cloud. Typical.

The path was excellent from here and zig-zagged up the mountain. Wild goats emerged from the gloom but ran away as soon as they heard the unzipping of my...camera sac. Once I reached the plateau, it was a pleasant amble over to the memorial stone whereupon the sad fate of those airmen was written in history. I was surprised by the lack of snow at 700m but was glad for the large shelter, where I took lunch and pondered life and its whims. I ventured over to the crags on the NE face but with poor visibility, I could not make these out very well. I am sure that this is a nice hill on a summer's day but I found it a a little depressing in such conditions. In saying that, the memorial put everything into context, particularly with the relatively recent loss of Captains' Seagren and Spalding of the United States Air Force on 28th March, 1979.

Timber on Millfore!

On holiday in Dumfries-shire (d'ye ken the Glenkens?) Craig and I set off from the Black Loch car park, which appeared to have become a logging site. This wasn't in the guide book, which admittedly was 10 years old. Anyway, we put signage and common sense behind us and strode manfully around the loch until a 100ft conifer was felled 100m from us. To say the pair of us purged our bowels was an understatement. After running 60 metres in a time that Usain Bolt would have been proud of, we got the 'helloutathir'. An uncomplicated meander up the forest track saw us at a point where we could leave man-made tracks behind and commence the relatively gentle ascent up on to Millfore.

At about 500m, we entered the snow line and the wind from the South battered us until we hid behind the ridge, to the North. It was the first time in a while that Craig had been out so we took plenty of wee stops for tea and sandwiches. This allowed us to catch up on life, risk and business. His camouflage was also excellent as can be evidenced in the photograph. Finally, we emerged on to the ridge proper just past the precariously perched cairn-on-boulder. From here, it was a simple stroll into the fierce wind to the trig point whereupon some Warrior 1 was enacted. A quick descent saw us back at the car in just under 3 hours and a nice start to the holiday.  Just take heed of the signage.