Portsoy

Aberdeenshire | Village | ★★★

[Portsoy old harbour]

Portsoy is one of the North East's most picturesque seaside villages. Its fishing heritage is not just strong but inescapable: there are not one but two harbours - a charming old stone construction separated by a rocky headland from its thriving replacement. The Scottish Traditional Boat Festival turbo-charges a reasonably popular resort into an all-out party for a couple of days each summer (26-27 June in 2021); visit during the winter months and your experience will be quite different again. A wander west along the coast path to Sandend is well worthwhile.

[Red Haven, on the coast path to the west]

Location & info

📌 Portsoy ★★★
Aberdeenshire, G.R.: NJ 589661 ///foggy.wider.shallower

🚶 Coast paths extend in both directions - west leads to Sandend, but the route eastwards eventually fades to nothing. The village itself is fairly compact.
🚌 Portsoy is served by buses on the Buckie - Cullen - Banff coastal route.



See & do (<1 mi away)

>> Walk: Harbouring a Portsoy dram ★★★

Nearby (1-3 mi away)

>> Sandend page: Sandend ★★; Glenglassaugh Distillery ★★★; Sandend Bay ★★★ (2 mi ←)
>> Walk: Sandend to Cullen - clifftop caper ★★★ (2 mi ←)
>> Findlater Castle ★★ (3 mi ←)

Comments

Post a comment

Popular posts from this blog

Walk: Livingston's jaw-dropping waterfall

Image
West Lothian | Livingston | Short walk | ★★★ ⚠ Route currently impassable - see red text below [Linn Jaw lower falls] What springs to mind when someone mentions Livingston, West Lothian? Sprawling road junctions, retail parks, 1960s architecture... how about a splendid waterfall? Under a mile from the town's southernmost suburbs, the Camilty Water drops into a short but beautiful gorge sharply at odds with the gentleness of the surrounding farmland. Two substantial waterfalls and several smaller ones tumble into the depths; the largest is actually fed by a crumbling mill lade (the mill no longer exists) but this isn't obvious from below. Parking is limited, but the walk from the nearest road begins promisingly. The last few hundred metres of the route are however a bit sketchy: stepping stones across a side burn, and a very slippery slope to reach the best viewpoint - more details below. Important The house and gardens alongside the path are someone’s home, and alt
More >>

Campsie Glen waterfalls

Image
East Dunbartonshire | Clachan of Campsie | Waterfalls | ★★★★ [Middle of the Campsie Glen upper waterfalls] In bygone years a path used to snake up the narrow gorge north of Clachan of Campsie. Rockfalls and warning signs now block the middle section, but short linear walks into the gorge from each end are still well worth it. A quick stroll from the bottom car park leads to the lower section of rapids. The upper car park on Crow Road is reached by a steep, 300 metre walk or a winding, 3 mile drive. Heading downhill from here (instead of uphill towards Cort-ma Law ) accesses the middle of 3 more waterfalls. All are worth a visit following wet weather if you don't mind a bit of scrambling, but the bottom one of this trio deserves special praise - as you can walk behind it. [Lower of the Campsie Glen upper waterfalls - seen from the cave behind (easily tall enough to stand up in)] Location & info 📌 Campsie Glen Lower Falls ★★ On the Kirk Burn immediately north o
More >>

Cleeves Cove

Image
North Ayrshire | Dalry | Cave | ★★★ [Main, west entrance to Cleeves Cove] Compared to the underground labyrinths of England and Wales, Scotland isn't generally noted for its caving. Cleeves Cove (also known as the Elfhame - you can guess why) therefore comes as a welcome surprise to unadventurous speleologists: three obvious openings above the Dusk Water in rural Ayrshire lead to hundreds of metres of connected underground passageways through limestone, originally carved by the burn in a different era and climate. The cave was a popular attraction in the 1800s, when a certain John Smith removed tonnes of silt deposits to facilitate access. Disrespectful past visitors have sadly removed all but the tiniest stalactites, but cave spiders, moths and the reasonably complex network of natural tunnels remain. The caves are deep enough to cause serious problems if all your torches failed, and should not be entered without someone who has prior caving experience. [Cave passage]
More >>