📌 Menaway Hills, Aberdeenshire
★★★
Cairn William and Pitfichie Hill may be overshadowed by their celebrity big brother Bennachie, but they’re lovely hills in their own right, crossed by mountain bike trails and only a short drive from the Granite City, Aberdeen. Tracks snaking through gorse-rich countryside provide the longish approach, with a 4,000 year-old stone circle adding to the interest.
🌍 Location
📌 Start / finish 300m north of Tillyfourie, off minor road 2 mi west of Monymusk
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NJ 655132
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.208305,-2.572856
🚗 No public transport within 1 mi – nearest bus stop is at A944 / B993 junction (1.5 mi)
🚌 Car park
📝 Key info
▶ 17 km / 11 mi | ▲ 420 m | ⌛ 4.5-5.5 hr
Features: ⭕ Whitehills Stone Circle ★; △ Pitfichie Hill (381 m); △ Cairn William (448 m, sub-2000′ Marilyn)
⬤ Moderate | Steep & narrow mountain bike trails on summits (beware bikes), otherwise good tracks.
Download file for GPS➡️ Anticlockwise lollipop circuit with extension to Pitfichie Hill: start – Whitehills Stone Circle – Bogmore – map marker 13 – bealach between Pitfichie Hill and Cairn William – Pitfichie Hill – return to bealach by outward route – Cairn William – King’s Stane – Bogmore – return to start via outward route. Marked in white / red on map 🔗 here
🥾 On our last visit
Wildlife: Spectacular flowering gorse.
Weather: Hazy warm sunshine with temperatures in mid teens, but a stiff breeze.
May 2014
