The Winding Walks – A Duke's Woodland Garden Above Fochabers
Two hundred years ago the Duke of Gordon planted a woodland garden of conifers from around the world on a hillside east of Fochabers, and laid narrow paths through the steep gully below it.
Today it's a forest with four waymarked trails, from an hour's stroll among the old trees to a two-hour climb to a monument with a view to Sutherland. Pick one to suit the day.
- Time
- One to two hours: four waymarked trails from one car park. Peeps View Trail 2.3 km (1.5 miles), an hour; Small Burn Loop 2.4 km (1.5 miles), an hour; Secret Loch Way 3 km (1.75 miles), an hour; Monument Trail 4.9 km (3 miles), two hours. All moderate.
- The path
- Wide, uneven gravel and earth paths with roots, muddy patches, long slopes and short flights of steps.
- Where to start
- Winding Walks car park, on the A98 about a mile east of Fochabers. £2 for up to an hour, £2.50 for up to three hours, £3 all day, by coins, card or RingGo; free with a Blue Badge.
- When to go
- All year in daylight; lovely in autumn. The Monument Trail is on a signed diversion at present. From November to January start the Monument Trail by 12.30pm.
- Dogs
- Under close control.
- Children
- The loops are short, but the glen is steep-sided: keep children close.
- Toilets
- None at the car park: the nearest public toilets are in Fochabers, a mile west.
- Before you set out
- The Monument Trail is on a signed diversion after a washout: read the map on the information board. There is open water at the site.
The walk
The Winding Walks car park is on the A98, about a mile east of Fochabers on the road to Buckie. IV32 7PG is the nearest postcode. Parking is £2 for up to an hour, £2.50 for up to three hours or £3 for the day, by coins, card or RingGo, and free with a Blue Badge. There are no toilets here: the nearest are in Fochabers. Four waymarked trails start from the car park, and Forestry and Land Scotland grades them all moderate.
The Small Burn Loop, 2.4 km and an hour, goes through the woodland garden of exotic conifers that the Duke of Gordon planted 200 years ago. Below it, the rugged, narrow paths he designed criss-cross a gully, and those are the Winding Walks themselves. The Peeps View Trail, 2.3 km and an hour, climbs by steps to a viewpoint over Fochabers and Strathspey. The Secret Loch Way, 3 km and an hour, leads to Longhowe Loch, which was once a curling pond. The longest is the Monument Trail, 4.9 km and two hours, up to the pyramid of stone on Whiteash Hill raised in memory of the Duchess of Richmond, with a view north to the mountains of Sutherland.
Part of the Monument Trail has been washed out and a diversion is signed, so read the map on the information board before you set off on that one. The paths are wide, uneven gravel and earth, with roots, muddy patches and short flights of steps. The burn, or stream, runs in a steep-sided glen, so keep children close. From November to January, start the Monument Trail by 12.30pm.
If it rains
Tall trees give good shelter, and the Small Burn Loop is short enough for a wet day. The steps and roots are slippery when wet, and the two viewpoints want a clear day.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
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For further reading, before you go.
Photograph by Martin Reynolds via Google