Walks In & Around Crieff
21 Jul 2024
The Knock (Crieff)
The Knock, or to give the hill it’s full title The Knock of Crieff stands tall over the thriving town of Crieff. Crieff is said to have its’s feet in the lowlands and it’s head in the Highlands as the town rises from the River Earn to the hills in the north. The hill is part of Perthshire’s Big Tree Country and can be enjoyed by all Perthshire Big Tree Country.
To get to the view point at the top of the Knock is about a four mile walk, depending on the route that you take, either walking out from Crieff town centre or using one of the car parks at Crieff Hydro Hotel or if you would rather take public transport the town of Crieff is serviced by local and long-distance buses www.sweeneysminibuses.co.uk/classified/service45criefftowntimetable.pdf .
The paths run through attractive woodland before rising to the open heather slopes as you near the top giving you a variety of woodland wildlife to enjoy along with stunning views, so keep an eye out for Red Squirels, Red Kites and other birds. The path is steep but easily managed by all ages; there is a level route round the base of the hill for those who find the slope too much.
Once at the top you can see out over Crieff to the Perthshire lowlands and the Ochill Hills in the south and moving round to the spectacular views over Upper Strath Earn in the west to the highlands beyond with Ben Vorlich and Stùc a’ Chròin easily visible as they rise up from Loch Earn and to the north other munros of the highlands can be picked out.
Scotland’s bloody history is never far away and close to the path is Kate McNiven’s Crag, which commemorates her execution for being a witch in the 17th century, it is reported that she was by being rolled down the rocky slope in a barrel.
The Knock makes one of the best walks for dogs and can also be enjoyed on bikes as well.
After taking the air and enjoying the views on return to Crieff you have plenty of choice for rest and refreshments at the town’s excellent cafes, with Crieff Hydro being the closest to The Knock or others such as Rhubarb https://www.facebook.com/CafeRhubarb1/,
The Glass Onion https://www.chocolategalley.co.uk/ or the Crieff Foodhall and many more.
The Hermitage (Dunkeld A9)
The walk at the Hermitage, Dunkeld is possibly the best known in all of Scotland and is definitely one that should be on your “to do” list so that you can experience the peaceful forest which boasts some of the tallest trees in the UK. The walk is found just outside the popular Perthshire village of Dunkeld and is a short there and back or small circular walk of about 1.5 miles in all. There is easy access to it either walking out from the village or using the car park adjacent to the A9.
The paths through the tall trees follow the banks of a tumbling burn and lead you to a Folly built in honour the blind bard Ossian whose cave is also nearby. The path meanders through the wood but strays away from the burn so that there is more “surprise” as you come upon the dramatic Black Linn waterfall which thunders past the Folly. Ossian’s Hall, as the Folly is known is set at the top of the waterfall making it a picture perfect place. The Hall has been restored in recent years with its walls covered with decorative mirrors, sliding panels, and beautiful paintings making it a popular wedding venue. If you look carefully at the entrance to the hall you will see names of children who wrote on the wall when it was first built.
The Hermitage and surrounds are looked after by The National Trust for Scotland https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/the-hermitage and is part of the larger Craigvinean Forest managed by Forest and Land Scotland. There are further walks through the surrounding woods that take you further afield as it is a large woodland area originally designed and planted in the 18th century by the Duke of Atholl as his pleasure ground which has also been enjoyed by Queen Victoria, Wordsworth, Mendelssohn and Turner so you are in “excellent” company as you explore it for yourself.
While enjoying the walk don’t forget to look up to see the towering trees and do keep an eye out for the local residents who include red squirrels in the trees and grey herons, Dippers or if you are very lucky otters in the burn. The walk is open all year and autumn can be a great time to visit when the trees are showing their stunning autumn foliage and if you are lucky, you may see a leaping salmon as it negotiates the falls while it travels back up stream to the spawning grounds.
The paths are not made up so you will need good footwear but the route is generally level with no hills. So while you may not be out of puff you can still claim your reward by popping over to Dunkeld for some cake, tea, coffee, or even a spot of lunch. There is plenty of choice with the likes of Livvi’s little lunchbox’s delicious cakes https://www.livvislittlelunchbox.co.uk/ or a full sit down meal at Atholl Arms Hotel https://www.athollarmshotel.com/food-drink.
Ben Vrackie- (Pitlochry)
Ben Vrackie, meaning speckled mountain in Gaelic as it sparkles with the quartz that is spread across the heather slopes which rise to 841m (2757 Feet) at it’s summit. This makes it a Corbett Mountain as Corbetts are between 2500ft and 2999ft. The bustling Perthshire town of Pitlochry nestles into the foot of the mountain with the challenging walk starting just outside of Pitlochry. The route to the top makes a good day’s walking with the 10km out-and-back route taking about 5 hours to complete. https://pitlochry-scotland.co.uk/local-walks/walk-ben-y-vrackie.php . The exact distance depends where you start from as you can walk from the centre of Pitlochry itself or drive out to Moulin Hotel, which is on the edge of town where there is ample car parking as it is a popular summer walk. The route starts off through attractive woodland and follows the Moulin burn up onto the open heather slopes. While ascending to the top there may be the chance to see Red Deer, Red Grouse and if you are very lucky that elusive character, the Mountain Hare so do lift your eyes from your boots and take a moment to stop and rest as you take in the stunning views and wildlife as you labour up the hill.
The hard work to reach Ben Vrackie’s the summit is well worth the effort as the panoramic views extend to the north to the three Munros of the Beinn a’Glhlo range which form the southern edge of the Cairngorms, on round the compass taking in the the sweep of lowland Perthshire, possibly catching a distant glimpse of Arthur’s Seat on a good day and round to the west over Strathtay and Strathtummel in the west with views onto the Glen Coe peaks. There is a viewpoint marker at the summit to help identify the landmarks that can be seen.
The path up Ben Vrackie is maintained by Perth and Kinross Countryside Trust but it is still a challenging walk so you will need good boots and outdoor clothing as the weather can turn from summer to winter quickly and in poor conditions map and compass skills are needed. Even on a summers day it is likely to be windy and cool at the summit. It does however make it a good training route before taking on more challenging walks on other Corbetts or their Munro big brothers.
The walk back down Ben Vrackie can either just be by retracing your steps or by taking a slightly longer route to detour to the the picturesque Loch a’ Choire. Which ever return route you take you can enjoy your rewards with refreshment at the Moulin Hotel https://www.moulinhotel.co.uk/ or other cafes and restaurants in Pitlochry such as https://hettiesteas.co.uk/ and http://mackenziesofpitlochry.co.uk/
The Birks of Aberfeldy
The Birks of Aberfeldy is a short circular walk about 2 miles long and will take you up the steep gorge of the Moness Burn revealing several waterfalls along the way, this should take about 1 to 2 hours to complete. Throughout this walk you will be promised beautiful views from the very start, you will see lovely water trickling down from stream which the closer you get to the top turns into the magnificent waterfall.
The wildlife along the path is superb and you should keep a look out for the red squirrels and other wildlife that calls this area home.
The Birks of Aberfeldy was popularised in a song by Robert Burns and a statue of this great Scottish poet can be found at the beginning of the walk next to the rock pools https://www.visitscotland.com/info/see-do/birks-of-aberfeldy-p2556021 .
This is a walk for all of the family with a very clear path and a steady incline, there are a few steps on one side of the hill with benches to rest throughout the walk. When reaching the top of the Birks you will have a magical view over Aberfeldy and the surrounding area. The Birks has two levels to park at depending on how busy the walk is or if you prefer you can walk to The Birks from the town centre of Aberfeldy, this increases the walk by about a mile.
Aberfeldy is a popular wee town and well served with interesting shops and cafes, restaurants and pubs to visit, we recommend Piece take away https://www.takethepiece.com/ for a bite to eat on the go or The Croft Restaurant for a sit-down meal.
Lady Mary’s Walk
This is an easy walk along the picturesque banks of the River Earn in Crieff, as you might expect the walk is named after Lady Mary Murray, whose family were local landowners in the early 19th century. The path follows the river before returning along an old drove road. The path is looked after by the Perth and Kinross Countryside Trust and has been upgraded to make it accessible for wheelchairs and pushchairs https://www.pkct.org/crieff-strathearn. Lady Mary’s is beautiful any time of year but is especially good to visit during the autumnal months when the leaves display a colour of rust and gold.
Along the route is a small sandy “beach” where many children and adults like to dip their toes in to try the water during the summer months. The path along the drove road is lined with Oak, Sweet Chestnut, Beech and Lime with many over 150 years old and very tall.
When walking along side of the River Earn be sure to look out for herons, kingfishers, grey wagtails, oyster catchers, and dippers who all call this river home. During dusk, otters have even been seen. If you would like to extend your walk follow the signs for the Laggan Hill Path. Within the town of Crieff you will find plenty of cafés and restaurants for some light refreshments or lunch, you will find delightful treats at The Crieff Food Co https://www.thecriefffoodco.co.uk/ or Delvino https://www.delivino.co.uk/page/crieff/
There is plenty of parking to be found at the start of the walk at MacRosty Park, the park makes a nice place to picnic with pretty clumps of trees and plenty of picnic benches.
