30,000 steps to Glencorse and Loganlea
I always like to start a new month off with a positive step forward, and today I managed 30,000+ positive steps forward. That’s not a bad way to start July and it’s certainly a fantastic way to kick off the start of the second half of 2020. (Although I do acknowledge that my legs might be slightly sore tomorrow, it will be a worthwhile pain.)
Most of the day’s steps were earned as part of an evening walk into the Pentland Hills with a friend. The 10-mile journey took us past the Glencorse and Loganlea Reservoirs (a regular walk of which I never bore!) with a stop in between the two for a picnic dinner.
On the way to the reservoir, we took a little spur path towards the filter beds to see the waterfall, only it wasn’t flowing. It’s the first time I’ve not seen the falls, but then I realised that it’s also the first time I’ve been to that bit of the area in the summer. Still, it was a nice wee detour past a couple of decrepit old buildings that I quite like.
After we rejoined the main road, I was pleased to see that there weren’t too many people out and about, making social distancing that much easier. Although that could also be down to it being an overcast Wednesday evening! Still, have been wondering about adding the reservoir to my running repertoire, and after seeing the (lack of) crowds I might give it a go one of these days. But I digress…
By the time we got past Glencorse, we were in the open range area which meant there were sheep all along the road. Sheep… and sheep poo! That meant lots of side-stepping to avoid piles of crap, but I always enjoy seeing the sheep up close, so I didn’t mind that in the slightest. We also saw a lot of birds, which my friend was able to identify for me. It’s always nice to know the real names of things, instead of the made-up names I like to give them!
Once we got to the end of the paved road, just past Loganlea, a decision needed to be made: Turn around and re-trace our steps (without the waterfall detour) or carry on over the hills. But by then it was a little after 8 pm and we had already walked a little over 5 miles. With only a couple of hours’ daylight remaining, and the cool breeze already kicking in, we decided to take the known path home as to not risk getting stuck in the hills.
So that’ll be a walk for another day.
At the end of the walk, which took about four hours, we clocked spot-on 10-miles which made me happy. And my step count was a little more than 30,000 which made me even happier! That’s a fantastic way to start the month and a positive way to start the second half of 2020.
