The Cock and Bull
Owned by the same family since 1996, when it was purchased as a traditional watering hole and…
Forvie National Nature Reserve
LOCATION
KIRKTON OF LOGIE BUCHAN, ABERDEENSHIRE
RECOMMENDED BY
Our View
The massive dunes of the Forvie NNR create a sandy desert stretching along the North Sea coast, 16 miles north of Aberdeen. In some places tough marram grass has tamed the ever-shifting sand, and the dunes have been anchored to create patches of rare dune heathland. The Ythan estuary borders the reserve and is home to the largest colony of breeding black-and-white eider ducks in the UK. During the summer months four species of nesting terns hover, dive and twist in the air, while inquisitive seals can be seen further out in the estuary. The stark beauty of the empty sand dunes is complemented by the call of eider ducks wafting like gentle gossip across the reserve. With the constant shifting of the dunes, layers of history have come and gone, revealing the half-buried remains of a 12th-century church smothered during a massive sand storm in the 15th century.
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Discover Aberdeenshire
Visitors to Aberdeenshire with any kind of interest in history are in for a treat. There are more castles to the acre in Aberdeenshire than anywhere else in Britain. They range from evocative ruins to lonely tower houses, from well-kept baronial strongholds to royal palaces. Four notable castles worth factoring into your itinerary are Dunnottar, Fyvie, Huntly and Tolquhon.
At Buchan Ness you’ll find yourself at the easternmost point of Scotland. From here you can follow the coast further down this stunning north-east shoulder of Scotland south to Peterhead, once an important whaling community. Beyond it is Aberdeen, where the eastern spur of the Grampians gives way to the North Sea, and two famous salmon rivers, the Don and the Dee, reach the end of their spectacular journey.
Heading west out of Scotland’s granite city, you are soon in a magical world of heather moorland, rolling hills and densely wooded valleys, cut by meandering rivers and picturesque lochs. It is here that you can discover the staggering number of castles and ancient strongholds. However, it’s not all palaces and ruins. Bottlenose dolphins are an everyday sight in the Moray Firth and off the Aberdeenshire coast so grab your binoculars and head to the shores.
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