Over Phawhope, Ettrick, Borders, Scotland

Though this beguiling scene looks far away from the beaten track, it isn't that far removed from a tarmac road either. Given that situation, it is a little surprising to find a bothy still here at Over Phawhope and available for those wandering through these hills. In fact, two folk were settling down there for the evening as I passed it. That line cut into the hillside behind the bothy is a track along which the Southern Upland Way goes and leads towards 2 miles or 4 km of road walking too. In the autumn heat, I didn't find that so inspiring that it helped a little when it came to making some progress; there were no hills to be ascended or descended. For the record, those hills in the background are Pot Law and Potburn Rig, respectively. The presence of forestry atop one of them confirms that they aren't that high though there is no need for height to test legs when a sharp gradient will do the trick.