A glimpse ahead at Glen Tanar

January has seen some very wintry weather; periods of snow and deep frost interspersed with deep Atlantic low pressure systems bringing wind and rain.  The last few days have brought that sort of cycle in miniature, and created conditions in which a hillwalker became disorientated and lost his life on Lochnagar.

The very day after that tragic event there was a brief gap, just a morning, when it was possible to get a glimpse forward towards the end of winter - although for sure there's plenty of winter still to come.

We took a walk in the beautiful pine forest of Glen Tanar, near Aboyne.  In many respects a traditional estate, Glen Tanar is also a National Nature Reserve and is administered by a charitable trust.  There's a car park signposted off the south Deeside road (with a daily charge) from where a number of waymarked walks radiate.  We decided on one of our favourites; a 10km route which goes up the glen towards Mount Keen.

Adjacent to the fine packhorse bridge just across the road from the car park there's a small visitor centre with information about the estate and its wildlife.  Outside, we chatted to the ranger who was enjoying a coffee in the sunshine.  We remarked that this was the first day since November when it's been warm enough to do that! The birds seemed to have felt it too - Great Tits and Blue Tits were calling away as if it was early Spring rather than the middle of winter.

The chapel of St Lesmo's was lit with warm sunlight;  benches placed along a south east wall catch the best of any morning sun.

The lochan near to Glen Tanar House was almost completely iced over even though in full sun; it will have been this way for several weeks.

The pine forest is a real joy to walk through at any time of year and maybe especially so in winter when the evergreen pines are a contrast to the bare branches elsewhere. 

The Water of Tanar drains the corries below Mount Keen and the Mounth, giving its water to the River Dee at Aboyne.  There was sufficient warmth in the morning to spend some time just watching the water flow (time doing this is never wasted!).  We heard, then glimpsed a pair of Dippers zipping down the river, and in another glimpse ahead, singing their bright song.

By the afternoon rain and wind had arrived as another low pressure system passed overhead, and 24 hours later the temperature has fallen from double figures to near freezing, with a raw northwesterly wind.  Yes, there's plenty of winter to come, but it was good to get a glimpse ahead!

A riverside walk in Glen Tanar

Home at last after a long four months working away, the perfect way to settle back in seemed to be a riverside stroll.  After looking at wide and empty horizons for so long, the intimate surroundings of Glen Tanar provided a beautiful contrast.  We started near Bridge o' Ess and walked along the minor road up the glen to the old pack bridge which gives access to a small visitor centre before heading back downstream along the Water of Tanar.

The river is at a low summer level, much different than the brawling spates of late winter when huge boulders can be moved downstream.  The Tanar is born high in the hills which separate Deeside from the Angus Glens and starts life as a typical highland stream before passing through pinewoods to join the River Dee near Aboyne.

 

There are quiet pools in the river in which we saw lots of tiny Brown Trout, and sections of moving water running gently over granite boulders.

 

The late summer flowers were in full bloom - this I think is Creeping Forget-Me-Not (Mysotosis secunda)

A much easier one to identify here, Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra), also known as "hardheads" and used by generations of small boys  to hit each other with!

Here and there under the birches and alders of the riverbank were small stands of beautiful Bluebells.  the nomenclature is slightly confusing - the "official" name for this plant is Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia) and it is also known as Scottish Bluebell to distinguish it from the slightly smaller and more brilliantly blue flower known here as "English Bluebell".

 Whatever name you use, the fragile beauty of the flowers is a joy.

In a slightly more open area we found the delicate flowers of Herb-Robert ( Geranium robertianum). This plant has a traditional use to treat toothache and nosebleeds, and has an unusual odour of burning rubber when the leaves are crushed, the source of another common name of "stinking bob".

The wildflowers were attracting butterflies too.  Under the more open pinewood we saw several species including several Ringlets (Aphantopus hyperantus).  A recent colonist in the Cairngorms region, the caterpillars of this butterfly feed on grasses rather than specific food plants.

Soon we were back at Bridge o' Ess; it had been a great short walk and the feast of colour and greenery along with the gentle flow of the river had definitely eased the jet lag!