Glen Afton's Four Tops

Alan Mc, Alan St, Davie C, Davie Mc, Doogie, Gus, Ian, Jimmy, Kenny T, Paul & Robert

It has been on the cards for a wee while now but various things have conspired to prevent us carrying it through. In fact, Doogie, who has been with us now for a few years, reckons it hasn’t been done in his time. The wet summer of last year had us abandon attempts in favour of softer walks for it is not a walk for bad weather and notions of previous years have led us elsewhere. But the weather recently has been dry, sunny and warm and the inclination was for a bit of hill walking so today the walk on Glen Afton’s four tops was on.

Eleven of us made the journey to the fisher’s car park at the head of Glen Afton and at five past ten we set off for our hill walk. Not up the hill as you might expect but back down the road we had just driven up. Why? Because that mile and a half of road would take us to the track by Blackcraig Farm to the shoulder of Blackcraig Hill, the first of the four tops.

Beyond the farm the old pony track over to Nithsdale started to climb the side of the glen and we climbed with it. But only as far as the sheep bucht high on the glen side. ‘Why are we stopping here? It’s too early for a stop.’ said one of our number. ‘We always stop here’ was the reply. (Who says we are creatures of habit?) Stop we did but not for long, just enough time for a refreshing drink for the day was warming nicely. Then, suitably refreshed, we started up again.

The land-rover track which we were on since the farm gave way but the old pony track continued. The old track is reverting to nature again and is usually wet in places but today it was bone dry thanks to the continuing spell of Mediterranean weather we have been experiencing this summer. And the old track took us up to Quinten’s Cairn on the flank of Blackcraig. Now we left the track and took to the first real climb of the day up beside a fence on the steep shoulder of the hill.

What a view we now got down the glen to the Ayrshire plain with Cumnock and Auchinleck the main focal points though one did say we should be able to see the Burns Monument in Mauchline. But we had little time for the view for the hill rose steeply in front of us.

As the climb eased on to the flat summit of the hill we stopped to gather the group together again. But Jimmy, near the coo’s tail, walked past saying that we would catch him up shortly. And catch him up we did but by this time he was stopped with his finger to his lips indicting silence. And the cause of this? Just over a wee grassy rise was a flock of twenty-five to thirty golden plover standing face into the strengthening breeze. A great spot J.

We left the birds to themselves and walked on over the flat, rock-strewn summit of Blackcraig to the trig point where lunch was called for the clock was saying it was mid-day and for some it was a long time since breakfast.

After lunch came a drop down the broad, grassy flank of Blackcraig followed by a long drag up the equally broad and grassy flank of Blacklorg. A pad is now being established by footfall and this eased the slope considerably. And there was time to admire the view for this is a better viewpoint than the previous top. To the east of us was Cairn Table at Muirkirk, Tinto near Biggar, the Lowther hills across Nithsdale with the ‘golf ball’ showing through the summer haze, the Durisdeer hills and Queensberry. To the west beyond the growing wind farm the bulk of Cairnsmore of Carsphairn rose and beyond this the high Galloways with Merrick just visible. And Arran showed itself as a silhouette in the blue distance. Superb. And the view kept changing as we climbed to the wee cairn that marks the summit of our second top, Blacklorg Hill. Again, we waited to assemble the group.

Now it was down again, for our third top, Cannock Hill, lies way below the level of the first two. But this wee top has a sting in its tail for, just as you think you are nearing the top, the hill steepens and tests tiring legs. The top was gained, easily for some, harder for others. Time for another drink stop. From our stop we looked directly down on the Afton reservoir looking deep blue in the summer sunshine. Pity the view from this wee top was spoilt on the west side of the reservoir by the massive wind farm and associated paraphernalia, roads scarring the hillside. And new electric pylons and road heading toward lower Nithsdale. Yet, some of our number, the cyclists, saw this as an opportunity for a new route to be wheeled. There’s nae accounting for folk.

From our third top our course lay downward yet again. At the coll between Cannock and the rigg of Craigbraneoch that leads up to Steyamara some of our number opted to wimp out of the last hill and head directly down to the reservoir leaving seven of us to complete the four tops. This one was reached without too much trouble, Bob, oldest of the group today, reaching it first. What a superb viewpoint this wee top is. The glen lies deep below and runs down toward New Cumnock where it opens on to the Ayrshire plain and its settlements. Today the view was ‘fabulous’.

All that was left now was the quick descent to the dam of the reservoir and the walk down the road to the cars. We arrived some ten to fifteen minutes after the wimps.

A great walk was finish off with FRT in the Black Bull in Mauchline. Let’s hope that it will not be too long before we are back on the four tops.