This is more a climb than a walk, Cairntable being 1,944 feet above sea level. It is the chief 'mountain' in the shire and takes its rise some 24 miles from the sea. The route follows what is known locally as the March fence.

A progress marker is reached on ascending The Steele which is 1,356 feet above sea level Auld House burn, one of the small tributaries of the River Ayr. which flows through Muirkirk, has its source at 1,750 feet, A climb to the top is well rewarded by a magnificent view.

On a clear day the Isle of Arran and Ben Lomond can be seen on the horizon. A cairn on top was built in 1920 in memory of the men and women of the village who fell or served in the Great War. It was built in line with two smaller cairns.

Cairntable has been called the hill of a hundred springs. Down the western side is a fine spring of pure water named Cairntable Cauldron (or the boiling well). The route is also over a grouse moor and like other walks is a sanctuary for bird life. In season can be spotted the golden plover, lapwing, curlew, snipe, skylark and hen harrier.

Several fabulous stories abound about Cairntable. One has it that the Picts made use of the spring water there to steep heather of which they made a delicious drink.

Cairntable dominates the skyline to the south of the village and in season takes on magnificent colours when the heather is blooming.