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Aberdeenshire and Moray
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Dunnottar
Castle is one of Scotland's finest ruined castles, a huge 9th century
fortress set on a three sided sheer cliff jutting out into the sea. Once the principal
fortress of the northeast, its ruins are splattered with bloodstained
drama. In 1297 the entire English Plantagenet garrison were burnt alive
by William Wallace, and in 1685, 122 men and
45 women Covenanters were imprisoned and tortured, an event 'whose dark shadow is for
evermore flung athwart the Castled Rock.'
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Aberdeen Maritime Museum combines a modern airy museum with the aged
corridors of Provost Ross's House, and is an engrossing and
imaginative tribute to Aberdeen's maritime traditions. While large sections of the museum are devoted to North
Sea oil and gas, the older industries of herring fishing, whaling and
shipbuilding also have their place. View multimedia displays and exciting exhibitions then visit the museum shop and licensed Leading Lights café.
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With its clean clear water, benign climate and gentle upland terrain, Speyside is the heart of Scotland's whisky industry. Plenty of distilleries are located in attractive historic buildings and
go to some lengths to provide an engaging experience for visitors. There are eight distilleries on the Malt Whisky Trail. All offer a
guided tour which is either free or at a price which will include a
voucher redeemable against a bottle of whisky from the distillery shop.
All tours usually round off with a tasting!
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Aberdeen's splendid Art Gallery, which opened in 1885, is one of the
city's most popular tourist attractions. In its elegant marble-lined
interior is displayed a varied collection of works of art, including
outstanding examples of Modern Art, and work by the Impressionists and
the Scottish Colourists. Visitors can also see contemporary craft,
Aberdeen silver and a wide range of decorative art. There are regular changing displays and an exciting programme of special exhibitions, events and activities.
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The coastal town of Fraserburgh is
home to the excellent Museum of Scottish Lighthouses, where you can see
a collection of huge lenses and prisms. It also has a display on various members of the famous
lighthouse designing Stevenson family, which included author Robert Louis Stevenson. Highlight
of the museum is the tour of Kinnaird Head lighthouse, preserved as it
was when the last keeper left in 1991, with its century old equipment
still in perfect working order.
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Situated in the world famous castle country of northeast Scotland and
standing at the gates to Royal Deeside on a ridge overlooking the River
Dee, Drum Castle combines a medieval keep, a
Jacobean mansion house and a later Victorian extension. The keep is one
of the three oldest tower houses in Scotland, probably dating from 1290. In the castle grounds, look for beautiful medieval chapel, or
enjoy one of the lovely country walks through the historic Old Wood of
Drum.
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Nestled on the Eastern side of the Cairngorms National Park, Ballater
is surrounded by terrain suitable for mountain bike riders of all
abilities, from easy forest trails to single-track descents. The Old Deeside Railway Cycle Route is especially suitable for
families with tearooms and river-side views. The Bike Safari Route is
great for spotting wildlife including Buzzards, Red Squirrel, Osprey
and Highland Cattle, and the Glen Muick to Glen Girnock Route is a
great adventure for the more energetic.
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The River Spey is one of the largest rivers in Scotland and is one of the classic salmon rivers.
From its source at Loch Spey, 350 metres above sea level in the
Monadhliath Mountains, the river travels in a northeasterly direction
to the Moray Firth at Tugnet. The Spey is similar to many Scottish Highland rivers and supports
fish species including Atlantic salmon, migratory sea trout and
resident brown trout, European eel, Arctic char, pike, stickleback and
flounder.
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Starting at Buckie on the Moray Firth Coast, the Speyside Way follows the fast
flowing River Spey from its mouth at Spey Bay south to Aviemore, with
branches linking it to Dufftown, Scotland's malt whisky capital., and
Tomintoul on the remote edge of the Cairngorm mountains. At 65
miles long it can take 5
to 7 days to complete, but its proximity to main roads and small villages
means that it is excellent for shorter walks or bicycle trips.
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Findhorn was founded in 1962 by Eileen and Peter Caddy, their three
children, and friend Dorothy Maclean. With
its emphasis on inner discovery and enlightenment, but unattached to
any particular doctrine or creed, the Findhorn Foundation has since
blossomed into a permanent community of a couple of hundred people,
with a well developed series of courses and retreats on subjects
ranging from astroshamanic healing to organic gardening, drawing
another 8000 or so visitors each year.
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