Page 150 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Scotland

148  SC O TLAND REGION B Y REGION THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS  149

f Royal Deeside Tour 4 Muir of Dinnet
Nature Reserve Tips for Drivers 0 kilometres 5
Since Queen Victoria’s purchase of the An information centre Length: 111 km (69 miles). 0 miles 4 Peterhead
Balmoral Estate in 1852, Dee side has on the A97 provides Stopping-off points: Crathes
an excellent place
been best known as the summer from which to explore Castle café. Open May–Sep: daily;
The castle grounds are home to a
home of the British Royal Family, this beautiful mixed GoApe treetop adventure course.
though it has been associated with woodland area, formed
royalty since the time of Robert the by the retreating 3 Banchory
glaciers of the last
Bruce in the 1300s. This route follows Ice Age. Just south of the town is the
the Dee, one of the world’s most 18th-century Brig o’ Feugh,
prolific salmon rivers, through some where salmon leap.
magnificent Grampian scenery. Peterculter
Dee
Dee
Dee
Aboyne Crathes
Gairn
J
Tanar
Braemar, Perth J Stonehaven
Muick 1 Drum Castle
This 13th-century keep was granted
2 Crathes Castle and by Robert the Bruce to his standard-
Gardens
5 Ballater This is the family home of bearer William de Irwyn in 1323, in
6 Balmoral The old railway town of the Burnetts, who were gratitude for his services.
Bought by Queen Victoria for Ballater has royal warrants made Royal Foresters of
30,000 guineas in 1852, after its on many of its shop fronts. Drum by Robert the Bruce.
owner choked to death on a It grew as a 19th-century Along with the title, he Key
fishbone, the castle was rebuilt spa town, its waters gave Alexander Burnett the Tour route
in the Scottish Baronial style reputedly providing a cure ivory Horn of Leys, which Other road
at Prince Albert’s request. for tuberculosis. is still on display.
g Speyside Malt  Cardhu Distillery h Elgin over 40 cars and motor bikes,
Whisky Trail Knockando. Tel (01479) 874635. Moray. * 23,100. 3 @ n Elgin dating back to 1904.
Open Jul–Sep: Mon–Sun; Oct–Jun:
Moray. n Elgin (01343) 562608. Mon–Fri. & 7 ∑ discovering- Library, Cooper Park (01343) 562608. E Elgin Museum
( Sat.
∑ maltwhiskytrail.com distilleries.com 1 High St. Tel (01343) 562608.
 Glenfiddich Distillery With its cobbled marketplace and Open Apr–Oct: 10am–5pm Mon–Fri,
Such are the climate and geology Dufftown. Tel (01340) 820373. crooked lanes, Elgin retains much 11am–4pm Sat. 7 8
of the Grampian mountains and Open daily. 7 8 - = of its medieval layout. The 13th- E Moray Motor Museum
glens border ing the River Spey ∑ glenfiddich.com century cathedral ruins are all Bridge St. Tel (01343) 544933. Open
that half of Scotland’s whisky that remain of one of Scotland’s Easter–Oct: 11am–5pm daily. & 7
distilleries are found on Speyside.  Glen Grant Distillery architectural triumphs. Once - ∑ moraymotormuseum.org
They span a large area so a car is Rothes. Tel (01340) 832103. known as the Lantern of the
required. The signposted “Malt Open daily. & 8 7 limited. North, the cathedral was severely
∑ glengrant.com
Whisky Trail” takes you to seven damaged in 1390 by the Wolf of
distilleries and one cooperage (a  The Glenlivet Distillery Badenoch (the son of Robert II) in
place where barrels are made), all Oak casks, in which the maturing whisky is stored at the distilleries Glenlivet. Tel (01340) 821720. revenge for his ex communication
with excellent visitor centres and Open Easter–Oct: daily. & 8 by the Bishop of Moray. Further
tours of their premises. in old oak sherry casks for 3 to purchase of a bottle of whisky. A 7 limited. ∑ theglenlivet.com damage came in 1576 when
There is no secret to whisky 16 years, during which time it different slant on the process is  Speyside Cooperage the Regent Moray ordered the
distilling (see pp36–7): essentially mellows. Worldwide, an aver age given at the Speyside Cooperage. lead roofing to be stripped.
barley is steeped in water and of 30 bottles of Scotch whisky are Here the visitor can learn about Craigellachie. Tel (01340) 871108. Among the remains is a Pictish
Open Mon–Fri. & 8 7 limited.
allowed to grow, a process called sold every second. the making of the wooden casks - = ∑ speysidecooperage. cross-slab in the nave and a
“malting”; the grains are then The visitor centres at each that are used to store the whisky. co.uk basin where one of the town’s
dried with peat smoke, milled, Whisky Trail distillery provide benefactors, Andrew Anderson,
mixed with water and allowed similar, and equally good, guid ed  Benromach Distillery  Strathisla Distillery was kept as a baby by his
to ferment; the frothy liquid goes tours of the workings and audio- Forres. Tel (01309) 675968. Open Oct– Keith. Tel (01542) 783044. Open mid- homeless mother. The Elgin
through a double process of visual displays of their individual Apr: Mon–Fri; May & Sep: Mon–Sat; Mar–mid-Nov: daily; Jan–mid-Mar: Museum has anthropological
distillation. The final result is a raw, histories. Their entry charges are Jun–Aug: daily. & 7 8 Mon–Fri. & 8 7 limited. and geological displays, while Details of the central tower of the
rough whisky that is then stored usually redeemable against the ∑ benromach.com ∑ spiritofspeyside.com the Moray Motor Museum has 13th-century Elgin Cathedral
For hotels and restaurants see pp176–7 and pp187–9 For additional map symbols see back flap

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