Wel­come to Boat of Garten

A peace­ful High­land vil­lage on the River Spey with­in the Cairngorms Nation­al Park. Abund­ant wild­life, mag­ni­fi­cent scenery, diverse sport­ing and leis­ure activ­it­ies and a tra­di­tion­al High­land wel­come can be found as you explore the vil­lage. Boat of Garten is the hub of the Strath­pey Rail­way and also makes a great stop­over for walk­ers on the Spey­side Way and cyc­lists on Nation­al Cycle Route 7.

Cairngorms Paths

Boat of Garten

Trails

Dis­cov­er the Osprey Village

Boat of Garten Trails

A net­work of paths and tracks lead out of the vil­lage, provid­ing a vari­ety of cir­cu­lar routes to enjoy with fine views, a rich loc­al his­tory and oppor­tun­it­ies to spot some nat­ive wildlife.

This leaf­let sug­gests eight way­marked trails of vary­ing length, most of which start and fin­ish in Boat of Garten, so you can give the car a rest! How­ever, please take a few minutes to read the route descrip­tions on the map before you set out, just to make sure that your chosen trail is suit­able for you and any oth­ers in your group. Tim­ings are very approx­im­ate depend­ing on how fast you walk and how much wild­life you see!

You can also com­bine some of the trails to make a longer exped­i­tion. Many trails are also great for cycling.

For inform­a­tion on paths, loc­al events, facil­it­ies and accommodation:

Vis­it­or Inform­a­tion Centres Grant­own on Spey: 01479 872 242 Aviemore: 01479 810 930 RSPB Osprey Centre: 01479 831 476

Use­ful web sites: www​.boatofgarten​.com www​.cairngorms​.co​.uk www​.vis​it​cairngorms​.com

If you enjoyed using ​‘Boat of Garten Trails’, look out for oth­er Com­munity Paths leaf­lets to help you explore more of the Cairngorms Nation­al Park.

The Ori­gin­al Osprey Village

Boat of Garten is the ori­gin­al Osprey Vil­lage. Ospreys dis­ap­peared from Scot­land in the early 20^th cen­tury, but a pair estab­lished a nest­ing site at nearby Loch Garten in 1954, her­ald­ing a return of this icon­ic bird as a breed­ing spe­cies across Scot­land. The RSPB Osprey Centre at Loch Garten is now a major tour­ist attrac­tion that enthrals thou­sands of people every year with this con­ser­va­tion suc­cess story.

You can walk, cycle or take the bus to the centre, watch­ing out for ospreys and oth­er wild­life as you go.

Osprey Trail

Longer walk or cycle route from Boat of Garten to the Osprey Centre at Loch Garten, ini­tially by road (beware of traffic) then way­marked forest tracks. Return same way or com­bine with oth­er route. Start from Sta­tion Square.

• Pave­ment, short sec­tion on road, way­marked forest paths (Spey­side Way and RSPB Red and Blue Trails). — 3 miles / 4.8 km — Allow mod­er­ate ¹⁄₂ hrs

Garten Woods

Cir­cu­lar wood­land walk using RSPB Red and Blue (also Spey­side Way) way­marked trails. Start from the Car Park on B970 in Boat of Garten woods.

• Forest Tracks — 2 miles / 3.2 km — Allow mod­er­ate Ihr

Loch Malach­ie

Cir­cu­lar way­marked walk link­ing Loch Garten with Loch Mal­lach­ie. Start from Loch Garten Car Park.

• Forest Tracks, muddy in places — ¹⁄₂ miles / 2.4 km — Allow mod­er­ate 45 mins

Red Squir­rel Trail

Cir­cu­lar walk that takes you out of the vil­lage, through Scots Pine woods before join­ing Kin­churdy Road and back to Sta­tion Square. Start from Sta­tion Square.

• Pave­ment, uneven forest path and tracks, steep where the trail joins Kin­churdy Road but this can be avoided by join­ing the trail at the end of the pub­lic road. — 3 miles / 4.8 km — Allow mod­er­ate ¹⁄₂ hrs

Her­on Trail

Short walk from vil­lage to reach cir­cu­lar, pur­pose-built path at Milton Loch Wood­land. Start from Sta­tion Square.

• Pave­ment, well made path — I mile / 1.6 km — Allow easy 30 mins

Roe Deer Trail

Cir­cu­lar walk extend­ing Red Squir­rel trail into wood­land by forest tracks and small path. Start from way­marked junc­tion in woods.

• Broad forest tracks, smal­ler link­ing path. — ¹⁄₂ miles / 2.4 km — Allow mod­er­ate 40 mins

Sal­mon Trail

Cir­cu­lar walk along Kin­churdy Road to the edge of the vil­lage, across the rail­way by gate, and along­side the River Spey. Start from Sta­tion Square.

• Quiet road, forest track and gate cross­ing, farm track. Keep dogs on leads near live­stock. — 22 miles / 4 km — Allow mod­er­ate Ihr

Pine Marten Trail

An ​‘out and back’ trail to a small loch with views of the moun­tains. Route is adja­cent to Strath­spey Rail­way and good for cyc­ling. Start from Sta­tion Square.

• Quiet road and uneven forest track, mostly flat. — 7 miles / 11.3 km — Allow mod­er­ate ³⁄₂ hrs