Hill of Fare

Having missed out recently on the planned walk up Hill of Fare due to low cloud, I had a brief window this afternoon to do it. It was Friday - one of my days off - and a lovely day to boot, and with Jo off swimming with her pals, I was at a bit of a loose end, so I decided now was my chance.

I drove up Raemoir Road and turned left towards Torphins and parked off road at what I assume was the old entrance to the Raemoir Estate. There's enough room for 4-5 cars there and it's a good starting point if you don't want to cheat and use the Raemoir Hotel car park.

The track upwards is all Land Rover quality. Initially it winds through woods, but when you get nearer the top, it all opens out and you get glorious views of the whole of Deeside - west to Lochanagar and the Cairngorms, east to the sea and north to Bennachie.

There's a tiny little cairn at the top:

On the way back, I spotted the other cairn which is apparently a few feet higher, but there's no obvious route up to it, other than over 100 metres or so of thick heather, so I passed it by.

The view of the distant Cairngorms was excellent:

The pathway west to Torphins was clearly visible - might be worth a trip some time. Walk up and over, quick pint in the Learney and bus back to Banchory.

It took me not much more than 2 hours to get up and back, covering 5.3 miles and climbing over 1,200 feet. Here's the official stats and the route:

Incidentally, it was the most peaceful walk I've ever been on - I didn't see another soul the whole way up and down. I think it's the only walk I've ever been on when I could say that.