The popularity of Duncanrig Rambling Club's Mystery Walk prompted the hire of a double-decker to accommodate the members and allowed this year's outing to be open to non-members for the first time. This event, which starts with tea and a scone, courtesy of the club, and finishes with a high tea, stresses the social and recreational aspects of the club rather than the physical and energetic so walkers can expect an undemanding, short ramble suitable for all. In keeping with the "Mystery" theme a complicit driver headed east along the M8, over the Forth Road Bridge then north up the M90 before returning west through Dunfermline where a pretend turn into an ASDA car park produced a howl of protest before eventually arriving at the Claremont Lodge Hotel in Alloa. Fortified by a scone, the ramblers undertook a 7.5 mile walk from Oakley to Clackmannan on a cycle track which was previously a railway track from Dunfermline to Alloa. The snow-covered track offered reasonable grip underfoot while the tree-lined railway cuttings provided effective shelter from the chilly north-east wind which became noticeable when the party was more exposed on an embankment or experienced the wind tunnel effect of the occasional bridge. Having stopped to admire an elegant Georgian villa the walkers also noticed a couple approaching with a peculiar walking style who turned out to be a pair of skiers making speedy progress on an ideal surface. The latter half of the walk with its more open outlook to the north combined with the day's excellent visibility gave a splendid view of the Ochils and the rays of the low winter sun from the west slanting across the face of the hills enhanced the 3D effect of the shadows in Alva Glen and Hill Glen below Ben Cleuch. Once seated with their feet under the hotel table the hikers found that they had done just enough to work up an appetite for the high tea before boarding the coach where the unexpected viewing of a 20-minute video of their July trip to The Giant's Causeway contributed to the feeling of well-being engendered by a wee bit of exercise in the fresh air.