14 of us left the church at the usual time and headed of to Lochore Meadows where we were having our latest walk. Surprisingly the car park was a bit full despite the current climate. I guess people were out because it was recommended we stay in. We are a funny lot.
There was still 14 of us when we set of, led by Carol, who with some encouragement from Bill, was taking the walk. W e left from the new Willie Clarke Visitor Centre opened in 2018 and named after the Mr. Clarke, a local councillor who was instrumental in pushing for the development of the country park and ultimately the new Centre. He is perhaps less well known for the fact that he was the last Communist councillor in Britain. We started off around the loch in a clockwise direction, heads down as we had the benefit of a gale force wind in our faces. This part of the path also forms a short part of the Pilgrims Way although the park wouldn’t have been there when the Pilgrims came through. We were accompanied on this stretch by a little pug dog who trotted along behind us taking advantage of the shelter the group were providing. It was a bit of relief when we reached the tree line and nature reserve where we stopped for one of Mary’s sweets and a photo or two . It got a bit muddy at this point but most of us didn’t bother much as we had plenty to talk about as usual. After the mud came the only raised part of the walk up to Cluna Craig, but nobody needed to use our emergency oxygen. As we crossed the bridge over the river Ore we noticed a strange phenomenon (and that’s a strange word). Two little whirlpools had formed in the water above the bridge and we all stopped to have a look. If the whirlpools were strange, the sight of 14 adults looking over a bridge at whirlpools is very strange. We must be getting old. From there it was back to Communist councillor Willie Clarke’s centre for tea/coffee and various scones, pastries and cakes. It was about then the torrential rain came on. We do time things well. Much thanks to Carol and Bill. On our next walk we need to walk 6 feet apart, like a parade. No talking, just shouting.
