Walk 132 – Blairadam Forest S.E Corner – 4 miles

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Depending where exactly in Blairadam you are walking, you might either be in Fife or in Perth & Kinross! This walk covers the south-eastern edge of the forest, beginning at a small car park just off the B914 next to Kelty. It takes you deep into the forest with the path initially running parallel to the M90 before heading to higher ground from where you can enjoy fabulous views North to Loch Leven. The route then loops back to the start via Clentry, a cluster of farm cottages. Perhaps you will catch a glimpse of the fabled 'Beast of Blairadam' during your visit :-o

buggy-friendly-image  Buggy-friendly (firm but uneven gravel surface and some uphill sections)

Print  Dog-friendly (Dogs can safely be off-lead until the final half mile when you reach the farms at Clentry where there are horses in the fields and then a minor road to return to the car park)

  Car park just off B914, close to junction 4 of M90 (nearest post code KY4 0JQ). No public transport to start point.

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WALK REVIEW: 28th April 2017

Bodhi, my friend’s golden retriever, LOVED this walk since he could be off his lead for the vast majority of the 4 miles. It would be a great walk with a buggy as well, so long as you don’t mind some uphill pushing and gravel tracks. Although being rewarded with views down to Loch Leven would make all the pushing worthwhile!

The first section of the walk felt very like the day we visited Calais Muir Wood in Dunfermline, probably because both run parallel to the M90 for a short while before turning left away from it. Unlike the other woodland walks I have been on in Fife, at Blairadam I really had the impression of walking deep into the forest and being a million miles from civilisation. It covers a HUGE area (some 3000 acres!), this walk only taking in a tiny speck of it.

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Where I first learned of ‘The Beast of Blairadam”! My friend, growing up in nearby Dunfermline, had heard of the large cat which is fabled to roam the forest at night!
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“Touch not the cat”
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Large totem pole which stands beside the footpath
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The path goes across this high-arching stone bridge. At the time of our visit there were some unsightly temporary barriers on top of it which I avoided getting in this photo. I guess safety comes first…… still, surely there is a more aesthetically pleasing solution!
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High up in the forest, Bodhi is loving the freedom of being off his lead for so long! I think he is getting used to my regular photo stops and he is now starting to practice his pose 😉

It was just after this section when we were reminded that you can’t always rely on maps for planning out routes: the path we were walking on abruptly ended at a tree trunk which had been placed horizontally across the track. I am talking about a wide track such as the one in the above photo!! Beyond the tree trunk…. an area of felled trees which had become overgrown with long grass and shrubs. No way through despite the map clearly showing a road running right through it! We had no choice but to retrace our steps and take a longer route round. It is at times like that when I am so grateful to have my mobile mapping app so that I can see where the other tracks lead to and re-route accordingly. If you aren’t currently using a GPS navigation tool then I highly recommend trying one out.

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I loved this old bus parked in the farmyard as we passed through Clentry! I wonder when it last carried passengers?!
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It wasn’t a particularly cold day, so we were surprised to see this horse so well wrapped up. What a beauty though!
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This was the only part of the walk during which we put Bodhi’s lead back on. It is a quiet road within the woodland, albeit being the access route to the main car park. Strangely however, as we neared the end of the walk 4 different types of ambulance came screaming past us, lights and sirens going crazy. Seemed a tad OTT on this quiet road! We have no idea what emergency they were responding to since we had just walked along from where they were heading and didn’t see any sign of an incident 😮 Never a dull walk when out with Gillian!

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