Walk 98 – Lochgoin Circuit, Whitelee Windfarm – 7 miles

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An easy 7 mile circuit around Whitelee Windfarm's Lochgoin Reservoir. The route is way-marked meaning that navigation is simple and underfoot is a mixture of loose stones and grass. Look out for Dunwan Dam and take a detour to Blackwood Hill Viewpoint, from which on a clear day you will be able to see as far as the Isle of Arran and Ben Lomond.

buggy-friendly-image  Buggy friendly walk (bumpy terrain – make sure your buggy is suitable)

Print  Dog-friendly walk (passes through a sheep grazing area – dogs must be on leads)

  Plenty of car and bike parking at Whitelee Visitor Centre (G76 0QQ). No public transport to start point.

Download the official full Whitelee Windfarm map, which shows the turbines and their numbers.


WALK REPORT: 27th November 2016

My friend Nicola and I have been keen to try out this circuit since we started coming walking at the windfarm with our babies 5 years ago! Every Tuesday morning we would venture out with the Whitelee Stroller Striders on a 3 mile loop and the Lochgoin Circuit is actually an extension to that.

Leaving the kids in daddy daycare for the morning 😉 we set off around 10:30am with the intention of completing the walk in perfect time to enjoy a bowl of homemade soup at the Visitor Centre afterwards. Imagine our disappointment when there was no soup on the menu today! At least part one went to plan: the chance of a long overdue catch up as we walked!

Things didn’t quite go to plan during the walk either, as we reached the far end of the reservoir the path was closed and we had to take a de-tour. As it turned out, the de-tour was actually a highlight of the walk so I have included it as an option in my route description above. It took us across the dam wall and past some fishing huts, which was a nice break away from the gravel windfarm tracks.

Another couple of de-tours you can add in are up to the viewpoint atop Blackwood Hill (short, steep path – excellent views, well worth the effort!) and also to the Covenanter’s Museum and Lochgoin Monument which are next to Lochgoin Farm towards the end of the walk. Both are detailed in my route description.

All in all this is a great walk and is well signposted with tall wooden marker posts. The windfarm can by its nature be a very exposed place in bad weather so I always expect worse than I have at home and take extra layers to be on the safe side – it will be windier for sure!

Enjoy…

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This view will be familiar to anyone who has ever walked or cycled beginning at Whitelee Visitor Centre. It is the track down from the information board towards turbine #40: the gateway to the windfarm!
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The first glimpse of Lochgoin Reservoir which we would walk all the way around today
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Looking across to Dunwan Dam
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Walking across Lochgoin Dam. This was part of a de-tour due to a track closure however for me it offered a welcome change of scenery and was one of the highlights of the walk. It cuts approx 1.6km off the walk so also an option if you are looking for something shorter. In the route information above I have described where to come off for the dam crossing.
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Fishing huts on the banks of Lochgoin (you only pass these if doing the shorter version across the dam wall)
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On the way back we made a short detour to see these little picnic huts which are located at the beginning of the mountain bike trails.

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