The Knockie and Cargill's Leap – A Gorge, Old Mills and a Hill
About 3.1 miles on foot.
The River Ericht squeezes through a rock gorge on the edge of Blairgowrie, where a hunted minister is said to have jumped it to escape the dragoons.
The council's Knockie Path takes in the gorge, the old linen mills beside it and the small hill above the town. It's 3 miles and about an hour and a half.
- Time
- About an hour and a half: a 5 km (3.1 miles) round, level by the river, with steep steps and a climb to the top of the Knockie.
- The path
- Level by the river, then steep steps beside the Cuttle Burn and a climb to the top of the Knockie.
- Where to start
- The Riverside Car Park in Blairgowrie, beside the River Ericht, free.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. The gorge is at its loudest after rain, and the riverside trees are at their best in late October.
- Children
- The gorge has deep, fast water below the walkway: keep small children close.
- Toilets
- Public toilets at the Wellmeadow in the town centre, with a small charge.
The walk
Park in the free Riverside Car Park in Blairgowrie, beside the River Ericht. The council's Knockie Path is a 5 km round from here and takes about an hour and a half. It's level beside the river, then climbs by steep steps beside the Cuttle Burn to the top of the Knockie. On the way the Ericht squeezes through a narrow rock gorge at Cargill's Leap.
Donald Cargill was a minister who was outlawed for refusing the bishops of Charles II. He's said to have escaped a party of dragoons by jumping the gorge, and he was executed in 1681. A timber walkway beside an old mill looks down on the water. The mills along this stretch once turned flax into linen and employed nearly 2,000 people at their peak, and the old mill road is now a trail of wildlife sculptures.
The Knockie is called the last foothill of the Grampians, or the first. From its top the view runs over the town to the Sidlaws and up the Lornty valley, and the Cateran Trail shares the farm track past it. Wear boots for the steps and the hill. The nearest public toilets are at the Wellmeadow in the town centre, with a small charge.
If it rains
The riverside path is level and partly under trees, so walk to the gorge and back on a wet day, about half an hour, and leave the hill.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
For further reading, before you go.
Photograph by John O'Boyle (Johno) via Google