We spent a pleasant afternoon walking above the village of Braemar last weekend. To the south west of the village on the lower slopes of Morrone is the Morrone Birkwood ("Birk" is the Scots name for Birch). Although named for the Downy Birch (Betula pubescens), the wood has been designated as a Site of Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of the good amount of Juniper Juniperus communis) in the understorey of the wood.
Climbing from the village, a road goes up past a duck pond and becomes a track which climbs to a viewpoint. There's a good view back to the village, which sits in a hollow above the River Dee at 340m/1115 ft. The relatively high site in a bowl between big hills is part of the reason that Braemar has (twice) recorded temperatures of -27.2 degrees Celsius (-16.9 Farenheit) - a record low for the UK.
The viewpoint has an indicator post mapping all the summits which can be seen - near at hand the main Cairngorms massif looms large.
THere's a definite touch of autumn colour on the high ground now; the heather has turned to rich brown and patches of bracken are bright yellow.
On the birks, the first sprinkle of gold is among the leaves as this lovely tree starts to colour up towards its climax in early October.
On the woodland floor fungi are numerous and some make for patches of vivid colour such as this Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria).
Poisonous and hallucinogenic as it is, the Fly Agaric is quite beautiful in its own way - and an early sign of the purple of late summer beginning to give way to the reds and golds of autumn.
This short walk is about 5km in distance with 120 metres of ascent and takes a couple of hours. There are sign boards in the village and some waymarking along the path itself - a good short walk with great interest and super views.
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