Bellabeg Forest Walk

This 3.5 km (2.2 mi) loop climbs from Bellabeg through conifer forest, then returns above Forbestown. Allow about 1–1½ hours for 119 m of ascent. The opening path is steep; the forest tracks ease off, and a bench gives a broad view over upper Strathdon. The route is only partly waymarked. From the bench, keep to the main track: the marked path branching left is not this loop’s return. Watch for the later grassy downhill turn and the signed path above Forbestown.

Use the parking area on the right of the road signed “Lost” on the west side of the River Don; do not take the turn signed “Lost Gallery.” Walk back to the main road, pass the war memorial, turn left over the River Don, then pass the shop and stay on the road. At the green signpost, take the left path uphill with a fence on your left; ignore the other wooden footpath sign. The climb opens views back towards Bellabeg.

At the forestry track, turn left uphill. Pass a mast and the bench, then continue on the main track rather than the marked path going left. When the track swings sharply right, follow it as it cuts back across the hillside, ignoring branches to the left. About 1.1 km after the bend, turn right onto the grassier track downhill; after roughly 350 m, follow its sharp right turn. Near the fenced plantation, the track swings left and descends to a T-junction above Forbestown. Turn right, then stay straight and slightly uphill when another track joins from the left. After the barrier, take the signed grassy path left back to Bellabeg and retrace the road to the start.

The bench is the walk’s clearest viewpoint: frame the timber seat with the fields and hills beyond to show the upper Strathdon setting. Bellabeg sits where the Water of Nochty meets the River Don and was once known as Invernochty. Large conifer forests began reshaping Strathdon in 1815, and timber felling still changes the views through the valley. Dogs can accompany walkers under the usual access rules; keep them close and use a lead where local signs request it.