Dorback Drove Roads Circuit

Dorback Drove Roads is a 15-mile (24 km) loop from Nethybridge Hotel through open ground around Dorback and into Abernethy Forest. Allow about six to seven hours. It is a long day, with roughly the first 9 km on minor roads before the route turns into fields, rough footpaths and forest tracks. Choose it for the changing landscape and the old Nethy-to-Dorback route; skip it if you want a short walk close to the village.

The road reaches Ballintuim, where a small car park sits about 9 km into the circuit. From there, the signed route passes through gates and fields, then follows a fence line to the Dorback Burn. The ford is described as shallow, but the gravel channel shifts and the crossing can be difficult in wet conditions. On the far bank, the path climbs through the cleft at Eag Mhor, starting muddy and turning rocky near its end.

Beyond Eag Mhor, a narrower footpath leads to a second ford at Faesheallach Burn. The exit is steep. Follow the forest road west past Loch a’ Chnuic, then watch for the northbound branch at NJ031141: it is easy to miss because the main track continues downhill. A narrower terrace path through the trees drops to a forest road and a bridge over the River Nethy near Forest Lodge. Roads lead back toward Nethy Bridge.

The wider drove road is thought to have run from Nethy Bridge via Dorback toward Tomintoul. An early twentieth-century map marks a “Thiefs Path” toward Dorback. This loop follows two route variants between Nethy Bridge and Dorback, so the old history belongs to the corridor; it does not mean every metre follows an intact historic track.

The described start is Nethybridge Hotel on Main Street; the hotel is a separate place to eat or stay. Public parking at the hotel is not confirmed, so arrange parking in Nethy Bridge before setting out. The small Ballintuim car park is well into the walk, not the loop’s trailhead.