THE TRANSOCHILATOR

At the top of Greenforet hill the path and fence turn left, heading north east. Within a short distance you will see the cross which marks the airman's memorial; a cross allegedly made from the wreckage of the Tiger Moth which crashed there. The inscription on the cross reads: "HERE ON 30.8.57 A TIGER MOTH CRASHED - THE A.T.C. PILOT A.L.J.CUTHBERTSON WAS KILLED". The cross is surrounded by bits of aircraft which the peat occasionally renders up and people gather them together at the cross; it is rarely the same arrangement from year to year. It is a poignant reminder that several lives have been lost, when planes have crashed in the Ochils. Not least the flight of Spitfires which has its own memorial on Kings Seat Hill, further east.

Continue along the fence line to Blairdenon Hill which has a long summit. If you cross the fence and keep going along the path. East of you there is the summit of Ben Buck. South of you is the unusually shaped Bengengie Hill and straight ahead is the drop down to the Alva Moss and Alva Glen. The route is marked with a path all the way down but you will see that the path takes you towards peat hags and bog. If you look carefully, you will see at the bottom the path takes a detour right to circumvent the bog. Try to remember the lie of the land from higher up as, when you are down there it feels like you are going entirely the wrong way and there is a great temptation to try to cut the corner. My advice is to resist the temptation. Not just for the bog but also the very hard going between the wet patches.

The path becomes indistinct in the boggiest part, so you may need to pause from time to time to gauge the way ahead and I would always err on the side of caution and aim to skirt the bog as widely as is necessary. Eventually the path brings you round in a wide loop, pointing back towards Ben Buck. A rough vehicle track crosses the Alva Burn and joins the loose surface road down Alva Glen. Here is where you turn left and begin climbing Ben Buck. The track becomes a rough and moderately steep path. [ ///motivator.clasps.snitch ]

It is a stiff climb to the top which is marked by a collection of stones. [ ///brightly.caring.lecturers ] When you get there you will want to pause for a look back at the ground you have covered before setting off south east for the Ben Cleuch summit. This path is not very clear in poor visibility but is pretty much a diagonal line from the Ben Buck summit to the fence. Follow the fence line again. You will come to a gate which you will need to climb over and then approach the summit of Ben Cleuch; the path is very clear.

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On Cleuch there is a viewing point where it is worth spending some time, unless the weather is frightful. Even if the weather is not too bad, the shelter of stones is a welcome respite from the wind where you can eat your lunchtime sandwiches.