Angus guide — Hidden Scotland

The four parts of Angus

A map of Angus in relief, with its towns and villages and its four parts

Angus sits on Scotland's east coast between Dundee and Aberdeenshire, and it packs a remarkable amount into one small county. Along the shore are red sandstone cliffs, long sandy bays and the fishing harbours that gave the world the Arbroath smokie. Inland, the broad, fertile valley of Strathmore is a patchwork of berry fields, potato fields and grazing cattle. Then, to the north, the land rises into the Angus glens, five long valleys that run up into the hills of the Cairngorms. You can have breakfast by the sea and lunch at the end of a Highland road.

Carnoustie, Monifieth and Monikie

Carnoustie and the south

Carnoustie's links have hosted the Open, with the Barry Burn winding through the famous finish and a long sandy beach running beside the course. Just inland, Barry Mill still grinds by water power, and Crombie Country Park has woodland trails and bird hides round its Victorian reservoir.

A curving sandy beach and rock groyne beneath a row of townhouses, a bird flying overhead.

A curving sandy beach beneath rock armour, houses lining the shore in the distance.

A stone footbridge crossing a burn before a row of hotel and clubhouse buildings lit by low sun.

Arbroath, Auchmithie and St Vigeans

Arbroath and the cliffs

Arbroath's red abbey stands at the top of the town, and down at the harbour the smokies are still smoked over wood. North of the town, a clifftop path runs past sea arches, caves and stacks cut into the red sandstone all the way to Auchmithie, and St Vigeans keeps its Pictish stones in two old cottages.

Boats and yachts fill a harbour beside stacked lobster creels, colourful terraced houses lining the quay behind.

A red sandstone sea arch frames a gap of blue water, a small second opening breaking through the rock below and a sandy beach at its foot.

A ruined abbey's round window and a slender pointed tower rise together against a pale sky, more broken walls visible beyond.

Montrose, Lunan Bay, Brechin and Edzell

Montrose and Brechin

Montrose has a long golden beach, one of the oldest golf links in the world and a great tidal basin full of birds. Lunan Bay lies to the south, and inland a heritage railway runs from the Bridge of Dun to Brechin, with its cathedral and round tower. Beyond, the road climbs through Edzell into Glen Esk.

A lighthouse standing on a headland beyond a sandy beach, waves breaking along the shore.

A stone road bridge with three arches crosses a shallow river lined with reeds and gravel banks under a blue sky.

A grand sandstone mansion with a pedimented entrance stands beyond a gravel drive, a mature cedar tree framing the view.

Glamis, Forfar, Kirriemuir and the glens

Glamis and the glens

Glamis Castle rises at the end of its long avenue, with walled gardens and woodland walks around it. Forfar and Kirriemuir, the red sandstone town where J.M. Barrie was born, are the gateways to the glens, where Glen Clova, Glen Prosen, Glen Isla and Glen Esk run quietly up into the hills.

A turreted red sandstone castle stands at the end of a tree-lined avenue, mown lawns stretching on either side.

A blue-painted arched footbridge crosses a garden pond, a stone fountain playing behind it among a Japanese maple and weeping willow.

A gravel path runs between tall clipped yew hedges towards a small classical stone pavilion at the far end of a formal garden.

Red sandstone cliffs enclose a narrow sea inlet, calm water reaching between grassy headlands under a partly clouded sky.

In their words

“It stretches right from the Cairngorms to the coast, with plenty of castles, waterfalls, history and beauty throughout.”

Graeme Johncock
Writer and storyteller, on a winter trip through Angus

Read it in From Angus to Iona: A Busy Month on Both Coasts

Best known for.

Angus is known first for the Arbroath smokie, haddock hot-smoked over hardwood, which has had protected status since 2004, so only fish smoked in and around Arbroath can carry the name. It is known for the Declaration of Arbroath, for Glamis Castle and for the Pictish carved stones of Aberlemno, St Vigeans and Eassie. The berry fields and Aberdeen Angus cattle of Strathmore feed the county well. Golfers come for Carnoustie and Montrose, walkers for the five Angus glens, and birdwatchers for the autumn geese on Montrose Basin.

More about Angus

Each of its towns has a character of its own. Arbroath has its abbey, its harbour and its smokehouses. Montrose sits between a great tidal basin and three miles of beach. Forfar is the old county town, Brechin has a cathedral and a whisky distillery, and Kirriemuir, the Wee Red Toon, is where J.M. Barrie was born. Between them lie villages such as Glamis, Edzell and Auchmithie, each with a good reason to stop. Carnoustie, on the coast towards Dundee, is a name golfers know the world over.

History runs deep in Angus. Pictish stones carved more than a thousand years ago stand in churchyards and museums across the county. The Declaration of Arbroath was sealed here in 1320, and Glamis Castle, the childhood home of the Queen Mother, has been in the same family since 1372. For all that, a quiet corner is never far away. It might be a clifftop path, a beach with nobody on it, or a glen road that simply ends among the hills.

What would you like to look at?

A turreted red sandstone castle flies a flag above its ornate skyline, a gravel driveway leading up to the entrance between mown lawns.

See and doAn abbey, a great castle and Pictish stones

Stacked lobster creels line a stone harbour wall, fishing boats moored along the quay beside a corrugated shed.

Eat, drink and shopSmokies, farm cafés and harbour kitchensWhere to stay

A large circular window pierces the red sandstone gable of a ruined abbey, a smaller tower rising beside it against a clear sky.

History and storiesFrom Pictish stones to the Declaration of Arbroath

A stone road bridge with four arches crosses a wide river lined with reeds and gravel islands under a partly cloudy sky.

ItinerariesFrom the mountains to the sea, stop by stop

A sandy beach and links course running along the coastline as far as the horizon.

Getting hereThe trains, the roads and the buses

A wooden boardwalk winds between shrubs towards a sandy beach and calm sea.

What is on in AngusSomething new from the region every day

What is on in Angus

Friday the 16th of October.

Sunrise 07:45, sunset 18:07.

Things you might not know.

Graeme Johncock
Graeme is the writer and storyteller behind Scotland’s Stories, sharing Scotland’s traditional folklore and legends.

Red bollards and creels on a cobbled harbour pier, lighthouse in the distance

The Bell Rock Lighthouse got its name from a 14th century warning bell. The Abbot of Arbroath placed it on this small rock, hidden just below the waves to warn approaching ships to steer clear.

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After the Battle of Culloden, the Laird of Balnamoon spent months evading capture in a hidden cave in Glen Mark.

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William Wallace was educated in Dundee where he is said to have killed the son of the castle’s constable.

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In December 1879, the Tay Bridge Disaster resulted in the death of over 59 people. Thomas Bouch, the engineer responsible for the design, had already begun work on the Forth Bridge but was quickly replaced.

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William Topaz McGonagall who spent much of his life in Dundee holds the infamous title of worst poet in history. Convinced of his own talent, he once walked 60 miles to Balmoral to perform for Queen Victoria, just to be turned away at the gate.

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The city of Dundee became famous for Jute, Jam & Journalism. These industries brought in so much money that Broughty Ferry became the richest square mile in Europe.

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Built in Dundee, the RRS Discovery was the first specifically designed polar research vessel. Transporting Captain Scott and his crew to Antarctica in 1901, it would spend 2 years locked in the ice.

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Roofless stone walls and wall tombs enclose a grassy ruined church interior

Restenneth Priory outside Forfar is believed to be the site of one of Scotland’s earliest stone churches. One of the burials recorded here was Robert the Bruce’s young son Prince John.

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