Walk of the Week: Broughton Heights, Borders

IT WAS a truly wintry day in the middle of John Buchan country. The literary giant spent childhood holidays here and enjoyed walking in the area, but the big wet flakes of snow that were dumping down as I parked would have put off many of his more rugged characters.

Determined to make the most of a precious day in the hills, I set off with as much enthusiasm as I could muster and entered the still, strange atmosphere that snowfall on a windless day creates.

What a good decision it was. With puzzled-looking sheep watching every step, I made my way up the side of Hollows Burn and into a quiet glen surrounded by steep-sided hills.

The weather meant views to Culter Fell and the Southern Uplands were out of the question. However, with winter sunlight being heavily filtered through low cloud and the crunch of snow on the higher slopes, the backdrop was special enough, and the conditions I enjoyed above Broughton made me feel privileged to be up so high.

DISTANCE: 6 miles.

HEIGHT CLIMBED: 1,540ft

TIME: 3 to 4 hours.

MAP OS: Landranger 72.

PARK: If heading south on the A701, turn left just before Broughton. Follow the metalled track past Broughton Place Farm and on, beyond a tower house. There is a car park at the end, on the left.

IN SUMMARY: Go through a wooden gate at the top of the car park and follow a grass track straight ahead. The track drops to cross Hollows Burn, then rises up again to go round the side of Clover Law. The gradient levels off below the law itself before increasing as the path bears left at a fork to reach a John Buchan Way marker at a T-junction. Go left, up to a fence. Go over a stile to the right of a gate in the fence and turn right to follow a path uphill. The path follows the fence over Broomy Side, bears left and continues over Green Law. After this, continue by the fence, bearing left again to drop down before going up to the top of Broughton Heights and its trig point (on the other side of the fence).

Retrace your steps to the start. On the return you can make a detour over the top of Clover Law and a descent to Hollows Burn, about half a mile beyond the top. This can be arduous, especially after wet weather, but does vary the walk and keeps you higher for longer.

REFRESHMENTS: The Laurel Bank tea room, bistro and bar, at the north end of Broughton, is worth a try.

WHILE IN THE AREA: The the John Buchan Centre (www.johnbuchansociety.co.uk) in Broughton has a good exhibition about the author’s life and work, though it’s closed in winter. At this time of year you can head for the Dawyck Botanic Garden (www.rbge.org.uk/the-gardens/dawyck), part of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.