MacKinnons Brook Lane from Above

MacKinnons Brook Lane from above
[#1] Photo 11 of 24: MacKinnons Brook Lane from above
Taken 2005 August 17 from the Beinn Bhiorach Trail between the summit and “Little Benny”
GPS 46°10.02?′N 61°25.56?′W

The road in the center left of the photo is MacKinnons Brook Lane, along which the Beinn Alasdair Bhain (Fair Alistair’s Mountain) Trail runs for a distance, until it starts climbing towards the summit of Beinn Alasdair Bhain, the mountain in the far distance. The lane skirts a meadow and goes further on, where, if you look carefully, you’ll see a private house nestled at the left edge of the meadow in the upper right of the photo. MacKinnons Brook Lane is usually drivable with a suitable vehicle, but wash outs may make deep ruts that are impassible for normal vehicles; Ian Sherman of the CMTC advises that ”[a]s for the parked vehicles on MacKinnon's Brook Lane, the trail club has always encouraged visitors to walk rather than drive the narrow often washed out lane for obvious reasons. However, it is still maintained as a listed road by the NS Dept. of Transportation.” Beyond the gate past the first meadow, usually padlocked, the road is private and hikers are expected to stick to the trail which, by courtesy, runs across private lands here.

[2012] The Beinn Alasdair Bhain (Fair Alistair’s Mountain) Trail descending from the look-off has been rerouted to the east of its former course to avoid areas which have been cleared to remove the dead spruce, which would otherwise have posed a significant fire danger. This whole terrain looks significantly different today!