Glen Dye Circular

Another back to fitness walk for Bruce, he came up trumps in finding this one. We’ve never visited Glen Dye and it was a joy to explore this new terrain.

Spital Burn

The route guide directed us to park by the old ruin of Spitalburn Cottage in a small lay-by. On further investigation, having instead parked across the road by an open gate at the top of the track, we discovered that there was an off road parking area available and this was the start / finish of our walk. Perfect!

Water of Dye

We initially crossed a bridge over the Water of Dye before following a very good track. The knobbly summit of Clachnaben could be seen from here; the cloud shrouded it as the afternoon progressed.

Heading Into Glen Dye

Although not far from the road, the views around us were beautiful and there was a real feeling of being ‘out’, something we’ve both missed of late. The fact that there were only a couple of other people encountered along the way also helped this feeling of remoteness.

We waited for quite some time to see if Clachnaben would clear for a photo, but in the end were defeated. Picture it if you can!

Charr Bothy

As we walked, we saw what we believed to be Charr Bothy, our planned lunch stop. Maintained by the MBA (Mountain Bothies Association), it was a great place to stop. Tomato soup is always more enjoyable from a flask and it was a simple pleasure reading the visitors books to see who else had passed through in recent years.

Taking The High Road

Reluctantly leaving the bothy behind, we took the higher track back to give a circular walk. This was a slightly longer route with good views, although not quite as scenic as the route out.

After a time we began to question how far out we were heading as the track seemed to be going on for longer than anticipated. Bruce suggested (rightly) that we could potentially cross the heather to pick up the path back. We didn’t as there was a deer fence that I didn’t want to go over – he reckoned we’d be walking alongside it – and he was reluctant to heather bash if unnecessary. The sharp turn confirmed his thinking; we were then on the path above the Water of Dye, beside the aforementioned fence!

The cloud momentarily cleared on our return leg to give a glimpse of Clachnaben. perhaps we’ll get up there one day soon!

Although short (just under 6 miles), this was a rewarding walk and one we reckon we’d happily put on the winter list, providing the road remains open and accessible; that might be another story!