Walking in the Ochils, Campsie Fells and Lomond Hills. Patrick Baker
as they move stealthily between bracken thickets and woodland brush. A useful indicator of this elusive animal's presence is the telltale ‘roe ring’ – a repetition of cloven tracks found around a solitary tree or bush in summer, left as part of the deer's mating ritual.
Apart from the fox, which generally prefers the cover of night to hunt, the area's largest carnivore is the stoat. Quick and agile, it is a cunning and ferocious hunter, most likely to be seen in pursuit of rabbits. The stoat's black-tipped tail distinguishes it from its smaller relative, the weasel. Along with a non-native cousin, the black mink, these three are the most common members of the Mustelid family in the region.
Smaller animals that make up the diet of carnivores, such as the wood mouse, vole and shrew, are all to be found, but are less likely to be seen than larger prey such as rabbits or the brown hare. Often initially mistaken for a rabbit or a brown hare when not in its distinctive all-white (except for black tips on the ears) winter coat, the native mountain hare or blue hare can occasionally be seen high in the hills, generally at dusk and dawn, where it feeds on dwarf shrubs and shelters in ‘forms’ in heather.
Despite being displaced from much of its native habitat by the larger, non-native grey squirrel, the indigenous red squirrel is still seen in many of the areas of woodland covered in this guide, in particular in the east of the Ochils and Forrestmill, and the Carron Valley Forest. Generally harder to spot than the larger and bolder grey, the red squirrel spends more time in the treetops and prefers predominantly coniferous woodland, where its diet consists mainly of seeds retrieved from cones, with the distinctive, roughly gnawed cone remnants left as evidence of its feeding activity.
By far the most ubiquitous animal to be encountered is the sheep. As a vital part of the agricultural livelihood of these hills, walkers should take every possible precaution not to upset sheep (further advice about behaviour in the hills is found in the Access and the Environment section).
Birds
The vast number of migrant or year-round-resident birds likely to be seen in the area is too large to list in this introduction, but many interesting species will inevitably be spotted in the course of a walk.
The heather-strewn and grassy moorlands typical of the higher areas provide a perfect habitat for birds such as the skylark, grouse and curlew to feed, nest and breed in. If these birds are inadvertently disturbed from their ground-based activities, they will fly away making loud – and, in the case of the grouse, startling – alarm calls. The wheatear is also a common sight on high tops. This inquisitive bird often appears to accompany the walker during the summer months, flying ahead along drystone dykes, and displaying striking white tail feathers while producing a distinctively harsh ‘tack, tack’ call. But the most constant year-round companion of all is probably the buzzard, whose unmistakable ‘meowing’ call is a certain indicator that this large bird is circling somewhere high in the sky overhead, on the look out for either live prey or carrion. With so much prey available, the hills also support many other raptors, including the kestrel, merlin, peregrine falcon, tawny and short-eared owls, as well as small numbers of red kites, which can occasionally be seen in the Sheriffmuir area of the Ochils.
The remarkably successful reintroduction of breeding ospreys in Scotland means that sightings of these birds, typically circling above fish-stocked lochs and reservoirs, are relatively common in the summer. Good places to spot osprey are the Carron Valley Reservoir, North Third Reservoir and Castle Hill Reservoir.
As many of the routes in this guide initially pass through woodland, a wide variety of birds will often be seen and heard at the start and end of walks. Smaller species such as tits, warblers, chaffinch, siskin and even goldcrest are found in abundance in wooded areas, along with other less obvious examples such as the treecreeper and wren. Although rarely seen, the elusive green woodpecker is also a resident of many of the wooded glens in the Ochils and Campsies, in particular Dollar Glen, where in spring its loud and distinctive ‘yaffle’ call can often be heard.
Along the fast-flowing burns of many of the wooded glens, birds such as dippers and grey wagtails can be spotted feeding on insects and larvae near the water's edge.
Weather
The hills covered in this guide stretch right across the central belt of Scotland, and as such there is good scope for choosing routes to take advantage of the varied weather conditions in different areas. For instance, poor weather in the Campsie Fells in the west may often coincide with a clear day in the Lomond Hills further east, and vice versa. The Campsie Fells generally experience more rain than the Lomond Hills, but many of the routes described in the Campsies will avoid the prevailing winds that the higher tops of the Ochils are exposed to, which can be particularly hard and cold in winter.
Walking is possible year round, with May, June and September generally providing the clearest and most pleasant days out. The coldest months are January and February, when snow is most likely to fall, especially on the high peaks of the Ochils. However, a sharp frost during winter can bring the welcome benefit of hardening otherwise soft, boggy ground.
Hill fog is reasonably common, and seems to be more frequent during low-pressure conditions in late spring and late autumn. Quite often a mist will prevail in the Forth Valley long after the sun has burnt away the cloud on the Ochils, creating spectacular temperature inversions where walkers may find themselves above a sea of cloud. Weather conditions at the top of hills need to be considered, as they may be much more extreme than the seemingly temperate conditions at the start of a walk.
Storm clouds seen from the Lomond Hills (Walks 30 and 32) © George Lupton
History
Over the centuries the hills covered in this guide have been a defining factor in the lives of the inhabitants of the area. Equally, people have greatly determined the appearance of the hills as they are today. The many once-forested hillsides and summits have been cleared over the years to provide fuel and building materials, and the actual shape of the hills has been altered through mining, quarrying and mill-related activities.
Amongst the oldest and most obvious signs of man in the landscape are the numerous remains of Iron Age forts, which can be found across all three ranges. Mainly built on the most prominent and defendable hills, many forts took advantage of the steep slopes of volcanic plugs such as Dumyat, and in particular East Lomond, where the site of an Iron Age fort encompasses the entire summit. Other notable forts can be found on Benarty Hill, Easter Downhill and Dunmore, where narrow trenches (sometimes with stone remains) surrounding earthern mounds let the unsuspecting walker know that they are standing on an historic site and not just another summit.
Perhaps the most ancient and beguiling place in the region is the line of standing stones at Sheriffmuir in the Ochils. Supposedly once the rallying point for William Wallace's troops before the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297, and for the Jacobite Army before the Battle of Sheriffmuir in 1715, the five perfectly aligned stones (of which now only one remains standing) retain a mystery of purpose, and certainly date back to a much more ancient people.
Without doubt, the most striking historic building in the area is Castle Campbell. Situated on the high ground at the head of Dollar Burn, in between the gorges carved by the Burn of Care and the Burn of Sorrow, this castle has one of the most beautiful settings in the country. Originally called Castle Gloom, the Clan Campbell acquired it in the 15th century, and in the 17th century, under a royal decree, changed its name to Castle Campbell. Other notable historic buildings seen or passed on some of the walks include the remains of Fintry Castle, Glendevon Castle, Falkland Palace and Loch Leven Castle – the one-time prison of Mary Queen of Scots.
As well as their strategic importance, there is also evidence of the hills being used as a place of refuge for local people. The Covenantor Hole below Dunmore in the Campsies, and John Knox's Pulpit in the Lomond Hills, are likely sites of Presbyterian conventicles held in secret during the late 17th century, to escape the period's religious persecution, dubbed the ‘Killing Times’.
The fluctuating economic significance of the hills, in particular the Ochils, is also closely linked