OK everybody I have a rough plan that I will flesh out and recon between now and May. My plan is based on the fact I live at the North East end of the Pentland Hills and thus my knowledge of the trails is at that end.
Start point will be Flotterstone Visitors Centre:
http://www.pentlandhills.org/pentlandhi ... _centres/3
Which lies behind the Flotterstone Inn off the A702 near Penicuik.
There is a carpark and public toilets. We will assemble from
10ish for a 11am start.
Stage One will be a tarmac climb to the mid point of Glencorse Reservoir then off road Northwestward between Bells Hill and Harbour hill down to Harlaw reservoir where a catering van can supply you with coffee to help you deal with the warm up.
Stage Two will involve crossing the dam wall between Harlaw reservoir to the north and Threipmuir Reservoir to the south before skirting the west side of Black Hill in a southern direction. We will then pass between Black Hill and Hare Hill passing a waterfall and fording a stream twice before reaching the southern end of Loganlee Reservoir. We will follow the road back to the mid point of Glencorse Reservoir before striking north this time between Harbour Hill and Capelaw Hill. We will head north skirting Bonally reservoir before a long fast descent down to Dreghorn Junction by the A720 bypass.
Watch out for sheep as they can leap out in front of you !!!
We will then make our way across a field, under the bypass and around Dreghorn baracks by some entertaining single track before heading along a path to
The Hunters Tryst Pub for refreshments. This pub has a beer garden if the weather is nice and a couple of log burning fires if it is not, they also do food.
Stage Three is back south of the bypass through Swanston village to paths and tracks above the golf courses that will take us eastward to Hillend Ski Slope which we skirt before heading south on the eastern edge of the Pentlands to Boghall farm. At this point we will leave the pentlands and using a combination of tracks and paths head back to Flotterstone through Midlothian farmland. Another stream will need to be forded.
At Flotterstone another pub exists if any more refreshment is required.
I hope my plan is not a killer but I will be tweaking it as my mild ME is a great barometer of what is doable and what is not.
