Walk: Burn o’ Vat – pothole of epic proportions

📌 Dinnet, Aberdeenshire
★★★

20,000 years ago the landscape of upper Deeside was covered by large glaciers. As the ice retreated, a torrent of meltwater exploited weaknesses in the bedrock to carve a huge, pink granite pothole. Even though sediment has long filled up the base of the pothole, 13-metre cliffs forming the top half remain. The river is also a shadow of its former self, allowing access by scrambling across stepping stones at the narrow entrance. The high walls, enclosed space and limited light makes it difficult to appreciate the sheer scale and grandeur of the place (“pothole” rather undersells it) in photographs, but in real life it’s an excitingly dramatic sight with a real “wow” factor when you first peer through the constricted opening. The direct path to the Vat is an easy one, with a hillier return option which passes a viewpoint over Loch Kinord.

📷 Chronological photo guide

🌍 Location

📌 Start / finish at Burn o’ Vat visitor centre, on the B9119 2 mi west of Dinnet

🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NO 430997

🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.084885,-2.943124

❌ No public transport within 1 mi

🚗 Car park

📝 Key info

▶ 1 km / <1 mi | ▲ 30 m | ⌛ 45 min

Features: 🏠 Burn o’ Vat Visitor Centre; 🌊 Burn o’ Vat ★★★★; 🌲 Muir of Dinnet NNR

⬤ Moderate | Clear, level paths for outward route, but entering Burn o’ Vat is on rough boulders & stepping stones (possibly impassable after heavy rain). Return route has a steep ascent (or you could return by outward route).

➡️ Clockwise circuit: start & visitor centre – Burn o’ Vat via direct (southern) path – start by upper (northern) path. Route in red on map 🔗 here

Download file for GPS

🥾 On our last visit

Wildlife: Small birds & fantastic fungus displays.* Lots of robins.**

Weather: Overcast with temperature in mid teens.* Settling snow & interesting ice formations on a previous visit.**

*September 2021 / **January 2011

Burn o’ Vat ★★★★