Scottish

Towns

Rannoch Forest

Length: 5 miles Height climbed: 500ft./153m Grade: B Parking: Car parks at start of walk Toilet facilities: At car park The Black Wood of Rannoch is a peaceful enough place now, but it was not always so. At one time its inhabitants were outlawed and landless clansmen who used the wood as a centre for cattle raids throughout the Scottish Highlands. Indeed, so notorious was the place that to be a man whose "head is under the wood" became a Gaelic expression for outlawry. The wood has been much reduced since those times by succeeding generations, but its remaining fragments still comprise one of the largest surviving areas of the original Caledonian Pinewoods - at one time covering the entire Highland area. These fragments are now protected. To find the walks, which are located to the east of the main residual area of the Black Wood, leave Kinloch Rannoch on the road which runs along the south side of Loch Rannoch. Follow this road for about 3 miles. There are two car parks in quick succession on the left hand side of the road; turn into the Carie car park, the second of the two. There is ample space here for parking and picnicking, plus a map of the signposted paths, two of which are very short and ideal if you wish simplt to stretch your legs. The third and longestwalk takes you up the side of Allt na Bogair (Bogair Burn) which flows through a steep-sided gorge. The gorge contains natural woodland of Scots Pine, Birch and Rowan, while the hills to either side are covered by a man-made forest of Lodgepole Pine, Scots Pine, Sitka Spruce, Larch and Birch. At the furthest extent of the walk, where it crosses the burn to return through the woods on the opposite slope, there is a small stand of naturally seeded Scots Pine, which gives an idea of how the forest would once have looked. For the more adventurous walkers the path can be continued along a right of way to Bridge of Balgie in Glen Lyon, but be sure NOT to attempt this route without proper maps and hiking equipment. You should also consult the estate owners before walking it in the shooting season (August-October).

©