RUTH LUCKHURST
is a guidebook writer and regular Country Walking contributor. She’s fortunate enough to call the Highlands home.
‘‘ Established by Queen Victoria as a holiday destination, today Pitlochry’s sumptuous architecture is complemented by everything you’d want for a great weekend on foot. Good paths lead up through woods into a moorland landscape littered with archaeological remains: hut circles and standing stones, some dating back to Neolithic times. There are spectacular views over the River Tummel, Loch Faskally and the rich pastoral landscape above them, to the distant mountains beyond. For the experienced hillwalker with the right gear, Ben Vrackie hovers temptingly over it all. ’’