Cairneyhill Circuit (2.3 miles)
Start at Nicky's Garage in the centre of Cairneyhill. Here you can buy hot and cold snacks to sustain you during this walk. Proceed uphill on the main road and note Fairley's Garden Centre to your right - it has a cafe which is a potential refreshment point at the end of the tour. As you pass the masonic hall which has a postbox outside, turn right before the next cottage and continue down a single-track road. Glancing through the gaps in the crumbling stone wall reveal the remnants of an old orchard. The road leads to a farm but we take the grass strip at the end of the housing scheme. Glance left before leaving the stony track and you will see squat concrete buildings in the next field over. They are old wartime structures put in place to help defend the Forth Bridge. Indeed the modern Queensferry Crossing pokes its head up on the horizon.
Pass into a large park area. About half way along, look for a wooden bridge over the narrow drainage ditch on the left-hand boundary. Take the obvious public right of way through the field towards the bridge over the railway line. You now follow a dirt track towards the farmhouse in the distance. Bear round the steading and merge with Muirside Road, continuing towards the A985. You are now on the Fife Pilgrim Way
Cross the main road with care and go through a metal gate on the opposite side. This brings you to an abandoned stretch of road which dips down towards a patch of woodland. This is a good place to spot wildlife in the surrounding hedgerows and trees. The route rises after crossing the Torry Burn and you emerge at the point where the railway passes under the B9037. Turn right towards Cairneyhill and negotiate the large roundabout. You can follow the main pavement into the village or take a secluded path at the point where the unclassified road to Oakley splits off. This is again part of the old infrastructure before the roundabout was installed. There is always bird activity among the vegetation. Rejoin the main road and arrive back at the start.
