11/12/21 – Today’s epic adventure was Duncolm, 6 lochs and a spout. Starting off at Edenmill Farm Shop, Cafe and Soft Play we headed up to Burncrooks via the forestry trail and then clockwise round until the turn off to Duncolm aka little pile of rocks at the right hand turn. The trail across was getting muddier with films of ice forming in the squelchy bogs making it ‘refreshing’ as the shoes went under. The trig view from Duncolm was definitely not as impressive (or dry) as last week but could still see the next Loch we were aiming for….Greenside.
I had a few ah ha moments on this section. Last year I ran it in reverse on a day when everything was frozen, streams had burst, we had to climb walls, jump burns, wade streams and got baltic. Fiona Outdoors and I often reminisce about this run and the experience! It was so much different being drier (but still wet) and it now made sense.
From Greenside it was a traverse across to Cochno and Jaw. I lost my bearings for a few mins as I always run the edge of the trees but they had all been felled. Heading through the field and along the mud path the smell soon changed from lovely cut trees to coo poo. Slowly round the coos and up to Black Loch. If you didn’t know it was there you wouldn’t have seen it. Now down onto the forestry track and downhill to Kilmannan. Next stop was Auchineden Spout and a few pics under it. Now final sprint back to Edenmill, change of clothes and inside for a warm cuppa. 18km done and 516m elevation.
