Best easy walk in Aberdeenshire

Published on Tuesday 17 March 2009 18:35

BENNACHIE – MILLSTONE HILL Lovely Bennachie is the best known and most popular hill range in North East Scotland, with nine distinctive tops, and is home to abundant wildlife including roe deer, grouse and ospreys. Starting at Don View car park, this waymarked walk climbs through forest on to open hill before reaching the summit of Millstone Hill, where beautiful views of Bennachie, Kemnay and the Howe of Alford await you.

HAZLEHEAD PARK, Aberdeen Hazlehead is the largest park in Aberdeen and straddles the boundary between the city and the countryside. It is home to three golf courses, a famous maze and various sculptures, as well as the Piper Alpha Memorial Garden. Originally part of the freedom lands granted to the city of Aberdeen in 1319, the park has a number of short and interesting woodland walks.

KEMNAY TO KINTORE A linear walk between the villages of Kemnay and Kintore is an attractive trip through a less known part of Aberdeenshire. Kemnay is 16 miles west of Aberdeen and the famous Kemnay granite has been used in Princes Street in Edinburgh, the Forth Bridge and the London Cenotaph. The walk to Kintore, four miles further east, passes the site of a Roman camp.

COUNTESSWELLS The small wood at Countesswells is deservedly popular. Three waymarked walking trails and a horse trail lead you through varied woodland to open viewpoints over the surrounding farmland. You might see native red squirrels.

CRATHES CASTLE GARDENS AND ESTATE Aberdeenshire is famed for its castles and Crathes Castle is one of the finest in the area, renowned for its painted ceilings. About 15 miles west of Aberdeen city centre, it is easy to reach by public transport and the walks in the pristine gardens and attractive woodland estate make the journey well worth the effort. In the summer, enjoy tea, coffee and cakes from the Courtyard Caf afterwards!

&#149 Walks in these areas have been run as led walks by local ramblers' groups. www.ramblers.org.uk/scotland for further information.