A decent forecast for this weekend so we set off for Blinkbonny wood in East Lothian for a spot of wild camping. The wood is privately owned by a very welcoming guy called Stephen who owns and manages the wood with his trusty collie dog Sam.Various clearings in the woods are available for wild camping and benches and a firepit are provided as well as the use of a composting toilet.
We arrived on Friday about 7pm and selected a pitch at the back of the woods with a view of the North berwick law hill and the Bass Rock! It was a pleasant enough evening so we set to pitching the tent and getting organised, which we did for about 9pm. A short stroll around the woods then ensued and wildlife spotted included woodcock, hare, buzzard and woodpeckers so this is obviously a good place for wildlife and birds.
After a decent night's sleep we awoke the next day to a sunny day and after breakfast we got ready and had a word with Stephen who told us that there was a nice walk around the nearby Hopes resevoir. So we duly drove the short but pleasant drive to the resevoir but the weather turned a bit and some heavy showers came on after we set off and we had to dash for the cover of some trees!
however the sun soon came out again and we walked up to the resevoir and crossed the dam to the other side and then did a complete circular walk of this lovely spot. There was a notice on some of the dam stonework saying that it had been brought from the demolished Calton jail in Edinburgh in 1930! We did not spot too much wildlife on this walk apart from a buzzard and a fleeting glimpse of a hare from the car.
On arrival back at the camp we got some dry logs from Stephen and got a cracking fire going in the fire pit and proceeded to cook our tea of chicken and sweetcorn over it! It was a decent evening with no rain so we enjoyed our meal and settled down to read our books by the roaring fire which gave off a lovely warmth! Woodcock and woodpeckers were flying about overhead and it was a really enjoyable evening. We did get into our sleeping bags about 10pm after the fire had died out and we had a nice warm sleep!
Up early next morning to the sound of birds and a gentle breeze blowing through the trees. We took a brief walk around the tracks in the woods and saw a few birds and a few craneflies by the pond made by Stephen. The sun came up gradually and it was nice to feel its warmth as we headed back to the tent for our breakfast. Breaking camp took a while as we were out of practice so it was about 10am before we were packed up. No sign of Stephen and Sam this morning so we loaded up the car then parked up just up the road from the wood and set off for a walk up Lammer Law which is the tallest hill in the lammermuirs. It was breezy and the sun was shining but we could see some squally showers in the distance. The walk itself was ok but we did not spot much wildlife or birds so not much to report apart from a few other walkers\cyclists. One lady we spoke to said she had been on holiday in Durness and had gone to Sandwood Bay and got a nice spell of weather whilst up there so that was nice to hear!!
Hi Mac and Cas
ReplyDeleteJust catching up as I,ve been Involved in a project all week.I,ve heard of that wood but never been there yet.Sounds Like a good place to visit.Think I Accompanied Alex up Lammer Law a couple of years ago.It did feel like a huge summit and I was surprised how hard it was.