Lion’s Face and the Cromlins

Start at the Braemar village centre car park. Walk up the pedestrian ramp to the A93, then take the lane left of the church for about 300 metres; a large gate leads into the woods. Keep to the main path at the left fork, bear right at a bench, then follow the stone wall through a gap to a cottage ruin. At the remains, take the made path to the left for this circuit. The broad downhill path to the right is Queen’s Drive, a separate walk back toward the village.

A bench opens the first big view across the Dee valley. The ornate house below is Invercauld House, not Braemar Castle, with Ben Avon’s granite tors on the skyline to the left. The route passes below the Lion’s Face crag, though its profile is easier to make out from across the valley and can be screened by trees from the path. At the Cromlins viewpoint, look back over Braemar and the Upper Dee; a small indicator helps name distant peaks. For a photo, include Invercauld House below the mountain backdrop.

The stone piles at the junction are all that remains of a cottage once lived in by the Thompsons, relatives of John Brown. The local story is that Queen Victoria visited them with Brown, bringing tea and tobacco. Beyond the Lion’s Face, the path drops to two small burn crossings on footbridges, then follows a valley track and a path beside the A93. It climbs by a quarry and passes a small trench built by Braemar’s Home Guard during the Second World War. From the gate beside the road, you can cross the A93 carefully for a separate visit to Braemar Castle, then return to the gate.

From the gate, climb beside the fence to the Cromlins viewpoint, then cross a large stile into the forest. This last stretch is rougher; follow the route markers and take the right-hand path downhill at the final junction to return to Braemar. The left branch climbs Creag Chòinnich and adds a separate extension. Dogs are welcome; keep them close, with a short lead near livestock and nesting birds, particularly from April through August.