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The Stockets first
outing of 2008 attracted a good turnout of ‘old’ along with some new faces
on a dry, crisp and largely sunny day. Santa’s gifts of new walking gear
were clearly evident, President Jim engrossed in reading the instructions
for his new GPS throughout the bus trip.
The day’s walk was a
rare Stocket outing to the dramatic Tap o’Noth near Rhynie and the
mysterious vitrified fort crowning its summit. Usually viewed as a
strenuous afternoon walk Steve,
our route planner, had extended it to a 9
mile trek with an interesting approach from the north via Forestry
Commission tracks.
First stop Asda at
Huntly. Surprised staff gathered at the tills at the prospect of record
early Sunday morning sales. But the strangely attired coach load of
‘shoppers’ were only interested in using their loos, although some did
ponder whether their outlay on the Stocket walk might have better invested
on Asda’s special promotion of £15 suits.
 The
walk itself set off from the Coynachie car park, ascending along
increasingly frozen forest tracks making walking difficult (if only I had
packed my crampons!). ‘Elevenses’ provided the first (of many) occasions
to take stock of numbers and debate whether it had been 20 or 21 that had
started the walk. ‘Stocktaking’ was not helped by the back-marker
being one of the first to reach the mid morning stop!
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Navigation through
the labyrinth of forest tracks was successfully accomplished after regular
‘huddles’ between Steve and Dave around maps and GPSs (Jim still reading
his instruction manual) .
5 miles into the walk the forest vistas opened to reveal our first view of
Tap o’Noth. Leaving the forest tracks the direct route to the Tap was
followed, initially oblivious to bushes and trees en route, and then an
increasingly windswept scramble over heather, patches of snow and rocky
scree to the summit.
The banks of the fort
on the top provided welcome shelter as the
 group
gathered for lunch. An opportunity to ponder and explore this remarkable
archaeological site with its fort probably dating back 2500 years, when,
in more clement climatic times, the lower slopes would have been heavily
populated.
A speedy descent
down the unfrozen southern slopes to Rhynie, initially via tracks and then
again by the ‘direct route’ - over farm gates and increasingly muddy
fields, to be reunited with Sylvie who had bypassed the Tap to stake out
the Gordon Arms Hotel. Time for another count (it must have been 20 that
started!), before a welcome drink, Ian meeting up with walking friends
from Majorca, and an earlier than planned return to Aberdeen.
A walk enjoyed by
all, with no one openly wishing they had spent their £15 on an Asda suit
rather than the day’s outing!
Peter Cockhead
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