Loch Muick and Ballater: a day in Glen Muick

Aberdeenshire

Loch Muick – Victoria's Lodge, the Linn and Craigendarroch

A day by car, from Ballater and back.

The route

The walk round Loch Muick is a Deeside favourite.

A single-track road climbs Glen Muick from the Bridge of Muick, across the Dee from Ballater, to the Spittal of Glenmuick. Beyond it, a long, dark loch lies in the hills below Lochnagar, with Queen Victoria's lodge of Glas-allt-Shiel on its shore. On this day you walk all the way round it, then stop at the Linn of Muick, a waterfall just below the road, on the way back down. Back in Ballater, a Victorian village of granite round its church green, there's tea at the old station before the steep climb through Craigendarroch's oak wood to a view of Lochnagar.

Before you go

Book a bed near Ballater
The day starts and ends in Ballater, and summer beds in the village go early, the week of the Highland Games in August above all.
The nearest of ours is Darroch Learg in Ballater.

The day

Glen Muick

A day up Glen Muick and home again, with the loch walked all the way round. It sets off early from Ballater for the Spittal at the end of the glen, follows the shore to Queen Victoria's lodge and comes back by the far side. The Linn of Muick comes on the way down, and the afternoon is Ballater's: tea at the old station and the climb up Craigendarroch.

40 min at the wheelAbout 18 miles by carAbout 10.5 miles on foot

Loch Muick
An attraction
It's 20 minutes' drive from Ballater, over the Dee and up the single-track road through Glen Muick to the Spittal of Glenmuick, where the road ends. The loch lies just beyond, 20 minutes' walk on, below the hills of Lochnagar. The walk round it is about 12.5 km with 170 metres of climbing: allow three to three and a half hours. Come early, with a picnic: on fine summer days the car park can be full by mid-morning, and if it is, climb Craigendarroch first.
More about Loch Muick
About 1 hr 26 min on foot
Glas-allt-Shiel
An attraction
It's about 5 km, an hour and a half's walk, over the River Muick, past the lodge at Allt-na-giubhsaich and an old stone boathouse, and along the track above the north-west shore to Glas-allt-Shiel, Queen Victoria's widow's house of 1868. It belongs to the King, so keep to the path in front. Behind the house, a steep, rough path climbs beside the Glas Allt to its falls, an hour there and back.
More about Glas-allt-Shiel
About 1 hr 46 min on foot
The Spittal of Glenmuick
Back to the Spittal is about 7 km, nearly two hours on foot. The path rounds the head of the loch by little wooden bridges and sandy beaches, a good place for lunch. Along the south-east shore it's a narrow path through the heather until it climbs to a bridge and a track, which takes you the rest of the way past a newer boathouse. You may well see red deer. At the Spittal, the Balmoral estate's rangers keep a small visitor centre, with public toilets beside it.
8 min by car
The Linn of Muick
It's 8 minutes' drive back down the glen road to the Linn of Muick, where the river drops over rock ledges into a plunge pool just below the road, screened by trees. There's no sign, only a small lay-by or two, so watch for it, and never stop in a passing place. A rough, steep slope with no path leads down to the water over wet, slippery rock, so take care. Twenty minutes is plenty, and it's at its best after rain.
12 min by car
Ballater
It's 12 minutes' drive on down the glen and back over the Dee to Ballater, a Victorian village of granite round its church green, which grew up from about 1770 to lodge visitors to the spa well at Pannanich, across the river. Park in Station Square, by the Old Royal Station, the end of the line from Aberdeen from 1866 until 1966. Inside, the Rothesay Rooms café serves tea and cake until 4pm from Wednesday to Sunday. Bridge Street's galleries and shops are a minute's walk away.
More about Ballater
5 min on foot
Craigendarroch
From the station, walk 5 minutes along the Braemar road, past the old church, to the signed Craigendarroch Walk. The path climbs in steep zigzags through oak, pine and birch to the top at 402 metres, where a cairn looks down on Ballater's streets and a bench faces Lochnagar's corrie. The way down looks across the Pass of Ballater to its crags, with a steep drop beside the path. Allow an hour and a half to two hours for the 4.5 km and 250 metres of climbing.

If it rains

In low cloud or a shower the loch is still a good walk on firm tracks, though the hills vanish and it's colder than Ballater: bring waterproofs and a warm layer. In real rain or a gale, walk from the Spittal to the foot of the loch and back instead, an hour or so, and leave out the path to the falls behind the lodge, which turns treacherous. The Linn of Muick runs fuller after rain, but its slope is at its most slippery, so look from the road. Craigendarroch's zigzags and its drop are no place in the wet: give the afternoon to Ballater instead, with tea at the Rothesay Rooms in the old station and the village's galleries and shops on Bridge Street.

Worth a detour

The falls of the Glas Allt
From the lodge, a steep, rough path climbs behind the house beside the Glas Allt to its falls, where the burn drops about 150 feet off the hill. Allow an hour there and back. It's best after rain, but only when it's dry underfoot, and it's not a path for young children.
Knock Castle
At the foot of the glen road, turn west on the South Deeside Road, over the Bridge of Muick, and in under a mile Knock Castle stands on its knoll on your right, between the road and the Dee: a roofless tower house of about 1600, in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and seen from outside at any time. Pull in at the lay-by on the B976 and walk up the farm track, never drive up it; it's a short climb.