An unusual route for the Cairngorm Club’s December minibus trip, which is usually shorter and more local to allow a meal afterwards. Today’s theme was the “coloured hills of Alford” a cluster of small hills all named by colour. I thought I’d been in the area before, and starting near a place called Ewens Croft, saw this antique post box – yep a memorable thing. I’d been down this track before.
We were soon off track into the woods, thrunging through deep heather to tick off the first “hill” Black Hill at 343m, a rounded wooded mound. Mostly pine, but with a sprinkling of some other unidentified conifer.
Past a farmhouse being refurbished and a party of surprised locals who I guess don’t see many groups strolling past. I should have quipped with a broad “Fitlike i day” to reassure them of some semblance of locality. We headed off track again this time “stone circle” at Old Kirk of Tough, though only one stone was erect with some others slumbering in a dyke and possibly under the encroaching gorse.
Past the edge of Forkins Wood, forkin’ ell – a whole row of trees had jointly succumbed to some ferocious wind gust, and were now stuck. It would be interesting to see if they have enough root connection to survive into the future in some unusual shape.
We chose to contour around our next colour – Red – and head for an outlying hillock, without a shade – Benaquhallie – which would be the highest point of the day at 494m.
Lying south of the trig-marked top, lies a large cairn with a pillar, of unknown creation. Certainly it is a very impressive thing to not have a name or story, more investigation required.
Having returned back to Red Hill and summited it (not much to mark it’s flat top) we did spot a lone tree, and heading over found a commemorative stone below it
We descended now in a gap through the top of Forkins Wood, and finding it more sheltered took lunch surrounded by larch trees just about hanging on to some orange. Our next ascent was a stiff climb heading east up Green Hill, through a shower of sleet. It’s top marked by a tiny cairn but a more substantial tree beside. We tracked back and down to Pittendamph making for our final colour of the day.
White Hill has a trig point and an assortment of painted pebbles nearby. being a bit lower at 368m it has tree growth beginning to surround the trig. Across a fence and we were out onto pasture and could see old ruins below.
The gentle grassy slopes struck me as good cross country skiing terrain. The abandoned farm of Culthibert was reached and we noted an assortment of derelict buildings and machinery. A notice of CCTV nearby warned possible vandals of consequences, but everything here is long broken beyond repair. We stopped for a final snack break of the day amongst the sad peace of an old place, once bustling but now still.
At Crawfordswell we passed a trailer park very much current, perhaps housing for seasonal agricultural workers, though nobody stirred, then down to the road at Tillyfourie. Time for ale, food and warmth in the Alford Arms.