IT IS CLEAR that the Ochil Hills, stretching along the Hillfoots, have had much upheaval with volcanic activity in ancient times.

Occupying the northern half of Clackmannanshire, the range contrasts with the Devon Valley and the low lying plains leading to the River Forth.

The most significant hills in the Hillfoots range are Dumyat, which still has the look of a volcano about it, and Ben Cleuch, the highest in the Ochils.

Other hills of note are Big Torry in Alva, The Law above Tillicoultry, Kingseat in Dollar and Seamab at Muckhart.

The hills are part of the fault line running between Stirling and Muckhart and this line has been active in the fairly recent past.

Made up of igneous rock on a base of Old Red Sandstone dating from the Devonian Age, the hills stopped abruptly, possibly thanks to thousands of feet of sedimentary deposits that were washed away and removed over the intervening millennia.

If this had not happened, the hills may have extended further south than what we see today.

An important event in the formation of the Ochils was also the Ice Age. Large swathes of ice pushed southwards, making inroads in the gaps, and creating sharp ridges and tall peaks.

As it moved along, it carried with it debris from elsewhere, such as granite which is known to have been deposited at Tillicoultry for example.

With the ice sheet melting, it left behind these deposits, and they can still be traced in the valleys within the hills.

Huge boulders were also left and are scattered all over the Ochils. The Ice Age also left corries and scree.

Ben Cleuch derives its name from the Gaelic meaning stony mountain, and is classed as a Graham, as it measures 2365 feet or 721m.

The hills and mountains in Scotland are classed as: Munros being over 3000 feet; Corbetts between 2500 and 3000 feet; Grahams roughly 2000 feet to 2500 feet; Donalds in the Scottish Lowlands for hills over 2000 feet; and Hughs being the smaller hills.

Dumyat is a Hugh, standing at roughly 1371 feet, or 418m.

The classification system was first devised by Sir Hugh Munro of Lindertis near Kirriemuir in Angus. Although born in London on October 16, 1856, he was brought up in Scotland and, as a keen mountaineer, developed and published Munro's Tables in 1891, listing the mountains of Scotland over 3000 feet.

Munro bagging is a popular pastime, but in Clackmannanshire, with no Munros to bag, Dumyat and Ben Cleuch are the hills locals want to conquer.