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Perthshire

Birnam Oak

An ancient oak on the bank of the Tay at Birnam, perhaps 600 years old, its low branches on crutches, said to be the last tree of Macbeth's Birnam Wood.

Welcome

On the bank of the Tay below Birnam, an old oak spreads its great, gnarled limbs over the riverside path, so wide and heavy that its lower branches now rest on wooden crutches.

Visited and photographed by Simon Hird

The first few metres of its trunk are hollow, and it is believed to be around six hundred years old.

That would make it a mature tree when Shakespeare wrote Macbeth, in which the witches promise Macbeth he is safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane. The soldiers who come against him cut branches from the wood to hide their numbers, and the Birnam Oak is said to be the last tree of that wood still standing. Whether or not the story is true, it is a tree to stand under quietly, moss thick on its bark and the river running past.

It stands on the riverside path a few minutes' walk from the village, and the path runs on to the Birnam Sycamore, a younger giant of around three hundred years.

Before you go

The oak stands on the riverside path along the Tay from Birnam, a few minutes' walk from the village; the path runs on to the Birnam Sycamore and Ring Wood.

Free, at any time.

Where
The riverside path on the south bank of the Tay, below Birnam.
Nearby
The Birnam Sycamore, a 300-year-old tree on the same path.

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Did you know

The mossy, knotted bark of an old oak tree trunk, autumn leaves clinging to its branches
Did you know

Hollow inside.

The first few metres of the oak's trunk are hollow.

A gnarled old oak tree with autumn leaves, a carpet of fallen leaves covering the path beneath
Did you know

A younger neighbour.

Along the same path stands the Birnam Sycamore, about three hundred years old, with a girth of eight metres.

A gnarled old oak tree with autumn leaves, a loch visible through the bare branches beyond
Did you know

On crutches.

Its lowest branches are so long and heavy that they rest on wooden props.

Graeme Johncock

The Birnam Oak just outside Dunkeld is one of the last remnants of the Birnam Wood mentioned in Macbeth. At around 600 years old, it would have been present when William Shakespeare visited the area, possibly helping inspire him to write the Scottish Play.

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Where it is

On the south bank of the Tay below Birnam, opposite Dunkeld.

Close byBirnam and Dunkeld.
  1. Birnam, PerthshireBirnamA Victorian railway village on the Tay, famous from Macbeth.Under a mile 2 min by road
  2. Beatrix Potter GardenBeatrix Potter GardenBronzes of Beatrix Potter's characters, behind Birnam Arts.Under a mile 2 min by road
  3. A marble table for two with bentwood chairs in front of a wall of wooden wine racks at Redwood Wines in Dunkeld.Redwood WinesUnder a mile as the crow flies
  4. Picnic tables on a lawn with a canopy, church spire and townhouses behindThe TaybankUnder a mile 4 min by road
  5. ARAN BakeryARAN BakeryFlora Shedden's bakery on Atholl Street in Dunkeld, named from the Gaelic for bread, with sourdough loaves, pastries, cakes and lunches.Under a mile 4 min by road
  6. Gothic arched windows line the sandstone cathedral beside a mossy treeDunkeld CathedralThe half-ruined cathedral on the north bank of the Tay.Under a mile 4 min by road
Directions
Shelves of gifts, baskets and jars fill a small shop interiorShoppingLÒN Store0.8 miles
ShoppingHairy Coo & Co, Dunkeld0.9 miles
Woman walks towards a stone hut through autumn woodlandAttractionsThe Hermitage1.6 miles
A red timber cabin with a steep pitched roof stands on a hillside among pines, a covered deck and chairs to one side.DunkeldJuniperSleeps 2 · 1.9 miles
Bronze stag statue on a flowerbed outside a white turreted country houseAttractionsDunkeld House Hotel2.3 miles
Loch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve, PerthshireAttractionsLoch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve3.3 miles
The round stone café and ice cream parlour at Stewart Tower Dairy on a sunny day, with farm fields and the Perthshire hills behind.ShoppingStewart Tower Dairy5.2 miles
Little Pheasant, PerthshirePerthshireLittle PheasantSleeps 4 · 6.6 miles
An aerial view shows a stone and timber cottage with a round hot tub in the garden, hills rising behind a dry stone wall.KincraigiePheasant CottageSleeps 6 · 6.6 miles

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The Daily for 22 October, from Scotland with love. An aerial view of the Kylesku Bridge curving across a sea loch at sunset, Sutherland

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Stay nearby

Places to stay near the oak, and when each is next free.

A red timber cabin with a steep pitched roof stands on a hillside among pines, a covered deck and chairs to one side.Juniper
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Dunkeld
  • A mile from the Birnam Oak
Check datesAn aerial view shows a stone and timber cottage with a round hot tub in the garden, hills rising behind a dry stone wall.Pheasant Cottage
  • Sleeps 6
  • In Kincraigie
  • 5 miles from the Birnam Oak
Check datesLittle Pheasant, PerthshireLittle Pheasant
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Perthshire
  • 5 miles from the Birnam Oak
Check datesA stone cottage with a gabled dormer window catches evening light among autumn trees, a bench and picnic table on the gravel outside.Charlottefield
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Tulliemet
  • 8 miles from the Birnam Oak
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in PerthshireAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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From the magazineA Walking Guide to Dunkeld
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