Moncreiffe Hill, Ben's first Marilyn

10 November 2010.

Participants - Me, Steven and Ben
Where - Moncreiffe Hill, 223m/732', Sub-2,000' Marilyn, Map 58, NO 136199 

The beginning of November until the shortest day is my least favourite time of year; daylight hours getting shorter, grey skies, lots of rain- depressing really. But occasionally a good weather day comes along and today was one. Ben is now 4 months old and has lots of energy; he has been going for walks in the country parks near to home and I reckoned that it was now time to take him on his first hill walk! I chose Moncreiffe Hill just to the south of Perth. Although it is a Marilyn, it is more like a woodland walk than a true hill- it has wide tracks and gentle inclines so is just right for a wee dog. And it's summit is an excellent viewpoint for human companions. This is a view that I took of it from near to Bridge of Earn on a previous visit.....

We parked at the car park on the south side of the hill; here are Steven and Ben setting off on the walk.....

 Unfortunately, there has been a bit of timber harvesting recently and the tracks were well churned up. There were also some new tracks going in. The woodland was a mix of conifers and deciduous trees and although the best of the autumn foliage was past, I was pleased to see that there was still some colour left on what leaves remained.....

A steeper uphill section on a new track led to the summit- Moredun Top- which is clear of the trees. Apparently it contains the remains of an Iron Age fort; logical for one to be built here I suppose as the top looks down on all of the low ground for miles around. Here I am with Ben at the cairn with Stuc a'Chroin and Ben Vorlich in the far distance. All of the higher hills had some snow on them.....

And here is Ben topping out on his first Marilyn (Perth in the background). Isn't he a good dog sitting patiently to have his photo taken? Hmmm, not quite, what you can't see is Steven behind the cairn holding him in position.....

Moredun Top is a great viewpoint for such a small hill, particularly on a day like this. This is looking to the Lomond Hills in Fife.....

down the Tay towards the estuary; Norman's Law is the hill in the distance.....

and across the Friarton bridge to Perth with the Glenshee hills distant.....

We carried on following the track in an easterly direction and in places the mud got worse. Even so, it was a nice walk through the forest and it took us just over two hours....

Ben slept in the car on the way home, but was full of life again as soon as he got out.