visited often, taking daily walks there from his manse. The story goes that the Fairies of Doon Hill were angry with the Rev. Kirk for going into the domain of the Unseelie court, where he had been warned not to go, and decided to imprison him in Doon Hill — for one night in May 1692, the Rev. Kirk went out for a walk to the hill, in his nightshirt. Some accounts claim that he simply vanished, however he suddenly collapsed. He was found and brought home, but died soon afterwards. He was buried in his own kirkyard, although local legends claim that the fairies took his body away, and the coffin contains only stones. The huge pine tree that still stands at the top of Doon Hill is said to contain Kirk's imprisoned spirit. Kirk's cousin, Graham of Duchray, was later to claim that the spectre of Kirk had visited him in the night, and told him that he had been carried off into the Celtic Otherworld. Having left his widow pregnant, Kirk told Graham that he would appear at the baptism of his unborn child. Graham was to throw an iron knife at the apparition, which would set Kirk free from his imprisonment by the fairies. However, when the Minister's spectre appeared at the baptism, Graham of Duchray, similarly to Orpheus, was too shocked to throw the iron knife, and Kirk faded away forever. Today, visitors to Doon Hill write their wishes on pieces of white silk, or other white cloth, and tie them to the branches of the trees for the Good People to grant. Unfortunately some people tie plastic confectionery wrappers instead, which slightly spoils the magic of the location and may harm the ecology of the forest. It is also said that if one runs sunwise around the great 'Minister's Pine' tree at the summit seven times, then the Fairies will appear. Some people have tried this and afterwards claim to have seen apparitions. Others merely get a bit dizzy and fall over. Use in fiction Aberfoyle was used as the location and inspiration for the adventure novel "Les Indes noires" (English title: The Child of the Cavern) by Jules Verne. The "Clachan of Aberfoil", then (in 1715) a small hamlet, plays a significant role in the second Volume of the novel Rob Roy by Walter Scott. Aberfoyle is where two grandfathers grew up in