10 superb Scottish autumn views

Trip ideas

31 Aug

Award-winning travel writer, Robin McKelvie takes, us on a tour of his favourite spots for taking in all of Scotland’s autumnal colours.

Scotland is a land of epic landscapes, soul-stirring views and camera teasing wildscapes. And in autumn it really excels as the leaves turn and the heather blooms. The deer descend from the mountains too, the mountain hares consider a change of coat to a white winter hue, the salmon are leaping and the red squirrels get serious about stocking up for winter. But where to start? Grab a warming cuppa now – even better the hug of a wee dram – and cosy in as we explore ten great places in Scotland where you can savour world-class autumnal views.

Few have conveyed the romance and beauty of Scotland as eloquently and profoundly as Sir Walter Scott. The 250th anniversary of the writer’s birth has been celebrated throughout 2021, so it’s the ideal autumn for heading to ‘Scott’s View’. Perched up here, gazing out towards the snaking River Tweed and the hulk of the Eildon Hills, you stand not just with Scott’s ghosts, but also the Roman legionnaires who lived on the biggest Roman fort in Scotland just below – Trimontium. The trees put on quite a show with burning oranges, fiery reds and deep yellows. So too does the new Great Tapestry of Scotland Gallery and Visitor Centre, which opened in summer 2021 in Galashiels.

Image: Scotfocus

Ben A’an offers arguably the finest effort to reward ratio of any Scottish hill. And it’s in the Trossachs – the much eulogised ‘Foothills of the Highlands’ – so it’s within easy reach of both Edinburgh and Glasgow. Ben A’an is only 454m high, but it’s a lovely ascent through thick forest. A steep, rugged rock trail gets your heart going before you burst out on to the surprisingly wide summit. There are rock slabs to stand on for social media friend-wowing selfies and remarkable views. Loch Katrine unfurls below, its watery necklace shining back at you as you admire a wildscape of water, crag and forest, a wildscape that looks its best in autumn.

Many presume that Perthshire’s ‘Queen’s View’ must be so named after Queen Victoria who famously kicked off Scottish tourism and the romanticisation of all things Highland. She did like to picnic here, but even few Scots realise it’s actually named after Queen Isabella, wife of King Robert the Bruce, who loved it here. It’s one of the finest views in Perthshire and that is saying something as this is fabled ‘Big Tree Country’. The loch shimmers below, while the trees put on a show of their own. In the background Schiehallion, the ‘Fairy Hill of the Picts’, dials the romance up to eleven. There is a handy parking and a visitor centre that tells the story of this jaw-dropping viewpoint; a café too.

While the barren slopes of much of the Highlands are not forested the lands around Pitlochry’s Loch Faskally boast an abundance of arbour. This deeply scenic loch rests below a fold of hills and its banks are kissed by forest; it’s a place definitely at its best in autumn. If you want to get out on the waters hook up with Wee Adventures and the brilliant ‘Biscuit’. He is an outdoor instructor and enthusiast (read that as serious enthusiast!) as adept at getting the most out of big kids as he is their whooping offspring. He’ll have you out on the water not just gazing at Autumn, but paddling right through a seasonal postcard bursting with colour.

You could easily just flash by here bundling north on the A9 to Inverness. Don’t. This wonderland of flora and fauna is a sheer joy. Hundreds of species have been brought in to flourish here. Wander by the gushing River Braan looking out for leaping salmon and red squirrels. Then crick your neck up trying to find the distant tops of the Douglas Firs. Make sure to stroll as far as Ossian’s Hall to take in the view of the Black Linn Falls from this old folly.

Image: Ian Dick

The Queen gets this one seriously wrong every year. Shortly after she flees south from her annual Scottish holiday at Balmoral, autumn descends in earnest and a brilliant technicolour show envelops the rich forests by the River Dee. It’s no wonder that Lord Byron came here to Deeside and fell in love with the heavily wooded oasis. One of the greatest views is of and from the soaring peak of Lochnagar. This mighty Munro mountain is Prince Charles’ favourite. Byron felt his own country’s beauty paled in comparison to the mountain: “England, thy beauties are tame and domestic…the crags that are wild and majestic: the steep frowning glories of dark Lochnagar.” A less arduous way to appreciate autumn and its life-affirming views in Royal Deeside is to tackle a stretch of the Deeside Way long-distance walking route. It snakes its bucolic tentacles 41 miles from Aberdeen to Ballater, and even on a short stretch you’ll be enlivened and refreshed.

Image: phil smith

The world owes that ‘Fairy Hill of the Picts’ a serious debt as the gravitational theory that brought the world contours on maps was developed here on this perfectly conical peak. It’s not a mountain to be taken lightly and as always with Scotland’s mountains employing a guide is a great option. The view from the 1,083m summit is mind-blowing. It looks like all of autumnal Perthshire is unfolding before you and further too as you peer out towards the high hills across Rannoch Moor.

Image: Gordon Hatton

Most of Scotland’s native Caledonian Forest was ravaged centuries ago and even when it’s replaced it’s often been the poor substitute of commercial Scandinavian pines. Not so in the Rothiemurchus Estate near Aviemore. Here swathes of Caledonian Pine thrive with a riot of gnarly Scots Pine, birch, rowan and heather. A handy network of trails ease through the woodland – you can walk or cycle. For the best views head to one of a brace of lochs. Larger Loch Morlich offers more open views taking in mountains as well as forest, while Loch an Eilean’s forests views come with a wee island in the waters topped with a craggy ruined castle. Disney couldn’t conjure up a more romantic setting.

Image: caroline legg

The Caledonian Forest thrives again here much further north and deeper into the Highland wilds. It’s seriously remote as roads barely bother Glen Affric and you’ll need to proceed on foot, or a decent mountain bike. Yomping along here with a ripple of autumnal colour flanking one side, and the sweeping waters blinking back on the other, your shoulders will drop and you will get Scotland in a way it’s hard to when you’re stuck on the beaten track.

Don’t fancy hiking up a mountain to see your view, or even snaking along a loch? Then just ease into the ultra-remote Applecross Inn. Your car will no doubt be tired after tackling the madcap mountainous ribbon of tarmac that straddles the Bealach na Ba, but you’ll be ready. Ready that is to enjoy a grandstand view of autumnal Skye across the water and the dappled, pinky autumn light that kisses the Cuillin ridge at this time of year. You’ll enjoy the view with a plate of plump Applecross Prawns, ‘prawns’ in these parts meaning the plumpest langoustines you’ve ever savoured. They are washed down, of course, with a wee dram of smoky, spicy Talisker from just across the water on Skye. Slainte!