The Clootie Well – A Living Custom in a Black Isle Wood
In a wood beside the road near Munlochy, on the Black Isle, the trees are hung with strips of cloth.
This is the Clootie Well, where people have come for centuries to tie a rag by a spring with a wish for someone who is unwell, and they still do. Two short waymarked paths take you up to the well and round the wood, about three quarters of an hour in all, with the Allangrange in the village for lunch at the weekend.
- Time
- About a quarter of an hour by Forestry and Land Scotland's Well Trail, 0.25 km; about half an hour by its Woodland Trail, 1.2 km. Short woodland walks.
- The path
- Gravel and uneven earth with rocky steps, tree roots, muddy patches, some steep slopes and a narrow bridge.
- Where to start
- The Clootie Well car park, beside the A832 about two and a quarter miles from the Tore roundabout, on the right before Munlochy.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. For lunch at the Allangrange, go on a Saturday or Sunday; it is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and opens at 4pm on other days.
- Dogs
- Keep dogs away from the cloots.
- Children
- Short paths with steps; a quiet place, so keep small hands off the cloots.
- Toilets
- The nearest toilets are in Munlochy, Tore and Fortrose.
- Before you set out
- A cloot should be small and of pure wool or pure cotton.
The walk
The Clootie Well car park is beside the A832, on the right about two and a quarter miles from the Tore roundabout, just before Munlochy. You'll know it by the cloth tied to the trees at the entrance. Forestry and Land Scotland's Well Trail goes up to the spring from here, a quarter of a kilometre on gravel and earth with some rocky steps, and takes about a quarter of an hour. For centuries people have come here to dip a strip of cloth, a cloot, in the water and tie it to a branch, with a thought for someone who is ill or in trouble.
The belief is that the trouble fades as the cloth rots away. The trees all round are hung with cloots, and with ribbons, shoes and small keepsakes. People still keep the custom, so go quietly and leave everything as you find it. If you'd like to tie a cloot of your own, Forestry and Land Scotland asks that it be small and made of pure wool or pure cotton, which will rot as it should.
There's a second waymarked path in the same wood, the Woodland Trail, a loop of 1.2 km round the Big Burn under tall Douglas firs and western hemlocks, which takes about half an hour. Both paths are uneven, with tree roots, muddy patches, some steps and a narrow bridge, so wear boots after rain. There are no toilets here.
If it rains
The wood gives some shelter and both paths are short, so light rain needn't stop you, though the earth stretches turn muddy. The Allangrange is three minutes away when you've had enough.
Afterwards
3 min by car
The Allangrange
Lunch
The Allangrange is the village inn in Munlochy, on Millbank Road, 3 minutes' drive on along the A832. At weekends it opens at 11.30am and serves until 9.30pm on Saturdays and 8.30pm on Sundays, when there are roasts, so it suits lunch after the walk. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays it opens at 4pm, which makes it an early supper instead, and it's closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Those are its hours for spring and summer 2026, so from November ring 01463 819862 before you set out. You can book a table on its website, and there's a children's menu.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Newhall Mains in Balblair, 8 miles away.
Book a table on the Allangrange website or on 01463 819862.
Where to eat
The Allangrange, a restaurant in Munlochy.
For further reading, before you go.