Parking
A car park is marked by the Community Hall near Station Square. Capacity and fees have not been established.
Overview
About Red Squirrel Trail, Boat of Garten
Why go
- A village start leads into Scots pine woodland
- A loop avoids retracing the same route
Heads up
- Uneven forest footing and a steep road join
- Published and mapped distances differ
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Cairngorms map
Full mapElevation222–258 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Cairngorms alerts
- CautionStorm Boelo high windsStorm Boelo will bring extremely windy weather to the Cairngorms; take extra care and limit time outdoors. - The Park Authority expects the very windy weather to last until Monday 26 October.Official details
- ClosureGlenmore wildfire closures and dangerous treesWildfire damage has closed Allt Mor car park and the path to Sugarbowl/Utsi’s Bridge; keep out of the closed area.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Cairngorms Tour Guide
Your drive to Red Squirrel Trail, Boat of Garten, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Cairngorms National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Cairngorms audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Boat of Garten and the Spey0:00 / 0:27
“Boat of Garten is ahead, a good village stop if you'd like a meal and some time beside the Spey.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Cairngorms Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Garten Woods and the Two Lochs
- The Jay’s Hidden Oaks
- The Boat in Boat of Garten
- A Crown Among the Needles
- 298 audio storiesacross Cairngorms’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Red Deer, Reindeer, Osprey, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 260 trails, 90 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Red Squirrel Trail, Boat of Garten
A village loop through pine woodsRed Squirrel Trail is a moderate loop from Station Square through Scots pine woods and back…
Red Squirrel Trail is a moderate loop from Station Square through Scots pine woods and back along Kinchurdy Road. The published distance is 3 miles (4.8 km), though a mapped trace and another route figure are closer to 2.5 miles (4 km). Treat the distance as approximate and allow about 1½ hours.
The route underfootLeave Station Square west along paved village streets and follow Deshar Road into the woods.
Leave Station Square west along paved village streets and follow Deshar Road into the woods. The waymarked loop continues over uneven forest paths and tracks through Scots pine, then returns to the village on Kinchurdy Road. The steepest section is where the woodland path meets the road. You can avoid that steep join by entering the wooded part at the end of the public road, though that changes the full loop.
Looking for wildlifeRed squirrels are the wildlife to look for here, but sightings are never guaranteed.
Red squirrels are the wildlife to look for here, but sightings are never guaranteed. From 1 April through 15 August, stay on paths in the woods and keep dogs on a short lead to avoid disturbing nesting capercaillie.
Start and parkingStart at Station Square.
Start at Station Square. A car park is marked by the Community Hall, close to the start; its capacity and fees have not been established. The mapped line begins on Deshar Road just northwest of the station area.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Cairngorms
159 sightingsRed DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
63 sightingsReindeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
102 sightingsOspreyMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
37 sightingsBlack GrouseMost seen around 4 AMSighting map
72 sightingsRed GrouseMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
82 sightingsPine MartenMost seen around 9 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Cairngorms. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
