Walk 34 – Loudoun Hill – Gillian's Walks

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At just 361m elevation, the volcanic plug of Loudoun Hill near Darvel, East Ayrshire is where Robert the Bruce had his first major military victory. It is reputed that in 1307 he led an army against the English in a battle which took place beneath the hill. Despite being small, it’s steep slopes certainly pack a punch and on a clear day the views from the top make it a must-do in the area. A favourite with children and adults alike! There are two route options described below, my preferred one being the circular. Feeling adventurous? Try walking in from Darvel via the dismantled railway line.

Loudoun Hill parking is signposted from A71 ‘Spirit of Scotland Monument / Loudoun Hill parking’ (KA17 0LY). No public transport to start point.

Loudoun Hill from Spirit of Scotland – 0.6 miles

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Route: Exit Loudoun Hill car park via a wooden gate, signposted Spirit of Scotland. Follow the path downhill past the Spirit of Scotland Monument. From the monument follow the path which goes downhill to a stile and a footbridge over the River Irvine. Cross the stile and bridge then continue along the path as it leads you uphill to a gate. Go through the gate then turn right to walk along the track for a short distance. As you walk around the base of Loudoun Hill look out for a faint grassy trail heading up to your left, along the remains of a dry stone wall. This track will lead you uphill and into some trees, then past a stone ruin. After passing the ruin, the path forks – keep left to go start zig zaging to the top of Loudoun Hill (The path is indistinct and easy to miss at certain times of the year, just head uphill via the easiest route you can find!) From summit, return same way.

Loudoun Hill Circular Route – 2 miles

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Route: Exit Loudoun Hill car park via a wooden gate, signposted Spirit of Scotland. Follow the path downhill past the Spirit of Scotland Monument. From the monument follow the path which goes downhill to a stile and a footbridge over the River Irvine. Cross the stile and bridge then continue along the path as it leads you uphill to a gate. Go through the gate then turn right to walk along the track for a short distance. As you walk around the base of Loudoun Hill look out for a faint grassy trail heading up to your left, along the remains of a dry stone wall. This track will lead you uphill and into some trees, then past a stone ruin. After passing the ruin, the path forks – keep left to go start zig zaging to the top of Loudoun Hill (The path is indistinct and easy to miss at certain times of the year, just head uphill via the easiest route you can find!) From the summit trig pillar head West – towards Arran if you can see it! – across the flat top to pick up a steep path down the other side of Loudoun Hill (again becoming indistinct towards the base of the hill). At the bottom turn right and follow the course of the boundary wall along the base of the hill a short distance, looking out for a stile on your left-hand side which will allow you to safely cross the wall. Once across the stile look for a metal gate straight ahead of you at the other side of the field and walk towards it (if in crop stick to the field edge). There is a stile just to the left of the gate – cross it and follow the fence-line to another stile, emerging onto a minor road. Turn left and follow the road downhill for 500m. At this point you will come to a large metal gate on your left with a track heading SE across the field beside a row of beech trees. Follow this track as it heads around the base of Loudoun Hill. Just after passing a stone ruin there is a fork – turn right to rejoin the path back to the Spirit of Scotland Monument and retrace your steps back to the Loudoun Hill car park.

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WALK REPORT

I recently climbed Loudoun Hill when I walked in from Darvel via the old railway. Since then I vowed to bring the kids, mainly to suss out how able they were and also whether they enjoyed it or not. I figured that if they could manage this hill’s steep slope without complaining then I was onto a winner! I knew it was a short walk in terms of distance (less than a mile to the top and back) so a perfect first hill walk for my then 4 and 2 year olds :-)

“Boys…. Do you fancy walking up a hill with mummy today?” You would have thought I’d told them it was Christmas Eve! “Yeah yeah yeah! Can we go now?!” I was relieved at their initial reaction. Off we went. I honestly wasn’t sure how it would go: my youngest was used to my walking antics and had confidently and happily climbed up the short steep hill to Greenan Castle with me recently so I felt pretty sure he was ready for more of the same. My eldest can walk for miles but generally gets bored pretty quickly and is a bit of a scaredy cat so I had visions of him wanting to hold my hand and whimpering in fear for most of the way.

I couldn’t have been more wrong! My eldest shot off like Spiderman up the hill absolutely in his element and it was the younger of the two who wanted my hand. In fairness he was only wearing wellies which I believe set him back a little: we had rushed out to buy them both hiking boots that morning but we only managed to find a fit for one. Overall I was delighted with how they both did and was super happy at how much they were enjoying the experience. “Mummy look at the views!“, “Mummy I love this!”, “Mummy look how fast I can climb up!” Near the top we met a group of people coming back down and they commented on how well the kids were doing: “Look at the size of these kids coming up“, one said, “If they can do it then I really need to get a grip!”. Nathan even fell a few times on the way down and (very unlike him) didn’t cry. I long for the day when we can go on hiking trips as a family and this ‘test’ run and first ever hill walk with the kids couldn’t have gone any smoother.

Since that day I have returned several times with them at different times of the year and tried different routes. The two most memorable climbs definitely include the frosty December morning I took Thomas – age 3 – before nursery, and the after school jaunt we did in the summer with another family. It is always a winner :-)