Return to Dunphail

Yesterday was our monthly girly walk. We were due to meet in a car park in town then I was to drive to Babs’s house at Dunphail for her to lead the walk. Things started to unravel slightly on Friday night as first Rikky, then Angela and Jo all dropped out. A walk without our esteemed leader? I had been teetering myself as I'm still struggling  with the tonsillitis/sniffle that started back in January. I’m not ill, it’s just getting a bit annoying and perhaps a couple of days rest was the wise choice. However, my sense of loyalty had me feeling obliged to join the group, so I put my chauffeurs hat on and collected Sally from Pluscarden before meeting the remainder in town.

It was a beautiful day that saw us strolling out of Dunphail, north along the Dava Way to the Divie Viaduct. I know this stretch quite well, but usually head south, what a difference it makes walking in the other direction. We did the scramble going down, instead of up, then on towards Tomcork, where we had our first coffee break.

Judith, Alison W., Babs, Alison C., Sally (Delilah was in the little boys’ room)

This was the first walk for a while that Babs and Honorary Girly Delilah had been able to join us and it was lovely to see them both again and catch up. In fact, Judith, Sally and I spent most of the day catching up, what with Judith’s Inadequate Bottom and my wheezy chest!

( May have been looking south-westerly at this point, but I can’t remember)

This is definitely the track towards Tomcork

We took a different  track today that took us from Little Corshellach up the hill through the forestry to a cross roads. Here we joined the track we’d taken last time, but neatly avoided the wet, boggy, fallen trees path that is a bit of a pain. On we went, out of the forestry, past Loch Dallas and Loch Noir and onto the shooting hut for lunch.

It may not be five star, but it’s shelter from the stiff breeze

Sally and I had been flagging before lunch, the result of an early breakfast and not snaffling a big enough snack, but we made up for it here and set off on the return leg with renewed vigour. As we reached Berryburn, we discovered that the path had been repaired since David and I were last here and scrambling was no longer required, but Judith’s inadequate bottom was becoming more of an issue by now. We paused to find a telephone signal and request Judith’s taxi to collect her from Tomcork, where we would rejoin our outward track to return to Dunphail.

14 miles

2.7 mph moving average

5 hours 30 minutes moving

1 hour 12 minutes resting

1316 ft ascent

Roughly.