Loch Kinord

Loch Kinord is a shallow, roughly 79-hectare freshwater lake in Muir of Dinnet National Nature Reserve, set among birch woods, wetland and open water. The 6.2-kilometre (3.75-mile) loop is the best way to see more than one shore: it passes wooded islands, the Kinord Cross and long stretches of woodland. Allow 1.5 to 2.5 hours. It has little ascent, but narrow, rooty, uneven sections and mud after rain make it a slower outing than the distance suggests.

The marked circuit starts at the reserve visitor centre car park. The main approach comes off the A93 onto the B9119, so use the visitor-centre entrance rather than treating a pin in the middle of the water as a road entrance. The nearest bus stop is in Dinnet; a request stop at the A93/B9119 junction still leaves about 2.5 kilometres along a road without a pavement.

Public toilets near the visitor centre stay open year-round. Two picnic benches have a surfaced approach, but the loch circuit itself is narrow and uneven, so those facilities do not make the loop an accessible path. No food service is listed at the start, so plan lunch elsewhere.

Two wooded islands give the loch its archaeological character. One is a crannog, an artificial island settlement; the larger island held a castle site. You see them from shore, since the walking circuit does not go onto the islands. Kinord Cross is a carved Pictish cross-slab on the route, thought to date to the ninth century. Take a moment to look at the interlaced carving rather than treating it as another marker beside the path.

The surrounding protected area supports about 80 breeding bird species. Greylag geese and wigeon are among the waterfowl that use the lochs in winter, and the lochs are important feeding and rearing waters for young otters. In the clear, shallow water, look for aquatic plants such as water lobelia and quillwort; white water lilies flower in summer.

At an open stretch of shore, include a little water or reeds in the foreground and one of the wooded islands beyond; that gives the scene depth and catches the reflection when the surface is still. Lily pads add a distinct summer foreground.