Dysart to Kirkcaldy

Although this was just a wee short walk, it was a bit special as we were treating it as  a pilgrimage. It was also special because we had children with us -  Keiran, Brodie and Morgan. At church this morning, the worship committee were taking the service as Robin is on holiday. Their theme was Pilgrimage and so the Walkers decided to support them by actually doing a walk involving saints who have a place in Fife's history. We started at St Serf's tower in Dysart  at 9am reading a wee passage about how St Serf came to be connected with Fife.
The weather could not have been kinder. Warm, sunny and so quiet. Only our chatter broke the silence walking through the woods at Ravenscraig. So, so peaceful. We made our way down the Path and past Nairn's buildings, as was, at the harbour, then crossing at the traffic lights at Pillans Pie shop, as was. Up Coal Wynd past Beatties bakeries, as was, along Townsend Place then down Oswald's Wynd past Allen Litho, as was. We walked through the grounds of the Old Kirk and on to St Bryce Kirk, the parish church of Kirkcaldy. We read a little about St Bryce or Brice and then crossed over to Adam Smith college before making our way back to Bennochy where we managed to find time to get some refreshments before the service at 11am when our Worship Committee made a great impact on the congregation with their talks, prayer and old hymns prompting thoughts of our history and  how and why we came to be here. A wonderful start to a day.

Lochore to Cardenden

The recce for this walk was done a few weeks ago with the South Queensferry Ramblers. We thought there wouldn't be a big take up today as it was advertised as a 7 mile ramble with lots of mud and steep gradients. Sixteen walkers took it on and I heard comments like, " It's not that muddy." Hill? What hill?"  We must be getting fitter and braver then.
Starting off at Lochore Meadows we crossed the Main Road into the housing estate and then off into the country through what is called Torres Lane. There is a very gradual incline up to the point where Hare Law Cairn was pointed out. The Victorians from Ballingry discovered the foundations of a wall under a pile of stones at this point. Within the wall they found three cists , kitchen utensils , teeth and bones inside a food vessel. The cairn was left open overnight to allow locals to view the discovery but the treasures had all been nicked before dawn.  So now there is just a wee mound with a tree planted there to mark the spot.

There are terrific views of the Lomonds, particularly Benarty from there, but today the mist was dumbing down the beautiful greens we saw on the recce.
We also talked about the Westfiled plant down there on our left which is the first power plant in the world to burn poultry litter and turn it into electricity and fertiliser. Now that's smart. Let's all start keeping chickens to help keep the leccy bills down.
We only just reached the metropolis of Cardenden when we had to veer off to the right at Woodend into the countryside again. The half way mark.
The challenge that we'd been warned about was there in front of us. Not sure if there is a name for a climb of 200 feet - a Pimple maybe - but it certainly got our hearts pumping. We hovered at the top to catch our breath and to watch the rain come tumbling over the Lomonds heading our way. It was all downhill from there which isn't always easier though. By the time we were on flat ground again it was absolutely pelting! Some of us were not exactly prepared for bad weather as we are normally fortunate, but no matter what we were wearing we were all drookit when we got back to the Lochore Meadows cafe ony to find it had closed at 3.00pm today. Sack the walk leader. We would have made an awful lot of puddles on their floor so maybe just as well. It was encouraging that most folk enjoyed the length of this walk and so there will be more similar ones in the summer months ahead.

Loch Leven

The plans for today had been changed several times so it was news to the walkers that we were travelling to Loch Leven in the minibus. We ususally do a circular but this was a one way walk so Bob and Margaret kindly took their car so that the minibus driver could be driven to the start of the walk to pick up the minibus. Got that?
Anyway, we parked up at Loch Leven Larder and began the walk in the rain. Unfortunately we were very exposed at the start with no trees to protect us from the rain or the wind. But we progressed at a good rate even with wet trousers and cauld knees. Once we reached the path through the woods we were sheltered and dried off pretty quickly. With Carsehall Bog between us and the Loch, we didn't get much sight of the water at this point but we did get fabulous views of the hills which still have little pockets of snow atop. The Bishop Hill was amazing - you can just make it out behind the walkers.

We kept looking for gliders as the Scottish National Gliding Centre is nearby at Portmoak, but a wee glider would have been buffeted around up there today.

Joe spoke to a chap at the beginning of Black Wood. It was he, and presumably a squad,  who created the meandering path through the woods and was able to tell that thousands of people now use this trail for walking and cycling. He is naturally pleased and proud of this achievement and appreciated seeing our group of 15 walkers enjoying our exercise. We passed many walkers and families on their bikes having fun in complete safety which was lovely to see. A little closer to the loch now we were able to see various species of bird life for which the loch is famous. We also made use of the bird hide which had been bequeathed by a gentleman with a love for the outdoors and wildlife. What a wonderful gift.

 We only managed to recognise swans and mallard ducks but this is a fantastic spot to watch birdlife in every season. See RSPB Vane Farm website. We kept looking for red squirrel as we continued along the trail, but no sightings there either. We did see a heron however  which stood long enough to be photographed. Near the end of the walk was a gentle rise which took us to Findatie carpark. We had advised the owners of the cafe of our fondness for scones and so there were plenty to choose from and a lovely cup of coffee as well. 4.5 miles and no peching.  Another successful outing.

Falkland

It was popular last time, so Mary procured another Treasure Hunt in Falkland this time. We were late starting off today as there had been a lot going on at church, meetings etc so we only had time for the treasure hunt without the walking. In teams of 4 we wandered around the village keeking at folks' window sills and door lintels and snooping up closes looking for the answers to the clues. We were even in a graveyard all looking for someone who had been a parochial teacher. Got him too!

Some clues were either at the very top or very low down on a lamppost; we thought Audrey had collapsed when we saw her lying down on the road, but she was just determined to get the clue before anyone else. It's fun watching how competitive we get and protective over our answer sheets.
It was bitterly cold when we arrived at The Hayloft for refreshments. Our glasses steamed up in the heat of the cafe, and the smell of treacle scones hit the spot. We were treated well by the staff who really should have been closed by 4.00pm so we gave them full marks. Back at the carpark we said our usual wee prayer and wished each other a safe journey home.

Auchtertool

This was a surprise to folk today as the planned walk had to be abandoned due to the walk leader getting lost on the recce, falling over a dyke and ripping her brand new trousers on barbed wire. If you believe in omens, indications were that it would be wise to switch to another town today so we chose a walk we've done before around Auchtertool.
Because it was a short journey from home, 14 of us squeezed into 5 cars and parked up in the Main Street Auchtertool. Janis led the walk as she is very familiar with this one. I looked back to the blog on 31st July 2011  - exactly the same route taken as last time but a bit muddier. We had refreshments at The Tiel as last time. It was really lovely with a good variety of cakes and scones to choose from.
Everybody happy.

Glenrothes

It's exctly 2 years since we did this walk, and not surprisingly exactly the same weather.  As before we began at St Columbas church car park and headed for Riverside Park. The paths, and particularly the steps down into the park, were impassable because of snow and ice so all 15 of us cautiously teetered down the banking, without any calamities. The obstacle course continued through the park as we had to avoid pretty deep puddles as well as flowing water. Our boots were well and truly tested today. The river Leven was in full spate and we wondered if it would stay put when all this snow melts. We've seen a lot of floods on the news recently including some freak weather in Fife. We just have to accept that this could be the norm from now on and take precautions to avoid our land

and properties from being drowned.

We passed the once magnificent Leslie house, built for 7th Earl of Rothes, and in our lifetimes an eventide home owned by the Church of Scotland. Sadly after a fire destroyed the building in 2009 it is just a shell, gutted and left for us to remember how majestic it once was. Emerging near Fettykil Fox we crossed the road and made for the Whinneyknowe housing estate near Leslie. The rain came on a bit there and we felt a bit exposed to the elements. Just off Ballingall Road there are stairs which take you right to the Balgeddie House Hotel and so we made our way there, looking forward to our refreshments by then. The management of the hotel was expecting us, and despite being forewarned about our muddy boots, they had set a long table for us in a delightful room. Pots of tea and coffee and gorgeous hot scones with jam and cream were served which made everyone warm to the hotel and talk about going back there for a meal or a spa. Very good service.

Once refreshed, we found our way to the woods through mire and glaur but safely to Whinneyknowe once again. There is a long straight path which led us directly to Balgeddie Lodge near the main Leslie Road. We had intended to take a lovely wee walk next to the river, past the waterfall and under the A911, but barriers had been placed there for our safety lest the river burst its banks and so we had to take a detour through the park again but from a different angle.
The last part of the walk was uphill so a few of us were peching a bit by the time we reached Napier Road. And the chat at that time was sharing memories of first houses after marriage in Glenrothes.
That seemed to happen a lot in the 70s/80s because Glenorthes Corporation at that time built good social housing for families with gardens, garages and dining rooms. Previously unheard of for 'ordinary' folk to have a dining room.
You don't notice the miles going by when you're chatting. It must have been around 5 miles though.
Back at our starting point we said our prayer and our goodbyes. Another good one chalked up.

BURNTISLAND

A Guid New Year tae ane an' a', an' mony may ye see.

I wonder what 2013 will bring to the folk in the walkers group? Good health and happiness I hope, and wee touch of prosperity wouldn't go amiss. Keeping near to home again just incase we had snow, we chose to walk from Kinghorn to Burntisland. We don't usually like walking near main roads but today we drowned the traffic noise out with all the blethering we were doing. A lot of chat to catch up on re Christmas and New Year festivities.
The weather was great for a brisk walk and the scenery across the Forth as always deserves a mention. Inchkeith seemed to be standing out in 3d and the view would have made a great jigsaw for those with that interest. Once in Burntisland, we walked up Craigkennochie Terrace just to ensure we took in the very best views. We were all admiring the beautiful old villas and guessing the current market prices. We crossed over to Manse Place where the houses were a mixture of 19th to 21st century yet all fitted into the area comfortably. Once in the High Street conversations changed to the types of shops, and sadly the empty premises, but there was a good community feeling about the place. Our waterhole today was Potter About, a lovely and very well managed cafe/bistro /shop/and childrens play area, where we had organised 14 scones to be waiting for us.  Unfortunately we were looking forward to  some live music but the musicians were unwell. It is a nice atmosphere in the cafe though so we enjoyed our visit all the same. We could have chosen at that point to take a bus back to Kinghorn but the vote was to walk back again as it was still daylight. Once back at the start where Stephen informed us that we had walked 5.8 miles, we stood in the grounds of the former Cabarfeidh Nursing Home, formed an impromptu circle and as is our habit, said a wee prayer before departing for home. We do know how fortunate we are. Lang may our lums reek.