Walk: Toil & trouble beyond Shakespeare’s Dunsinane

📌 Sidlaw Hills, Perth & Kinross
★★

“Macbeth shall never vaquished be, until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him.” So said William Shakespeare in Macbeth, in which the summit features as the title character’s castle. There are indeed some impressive ramparts, but they’re the remains of iron age hill forts, no doubt providing the inspiration for the playwright. A deep cleft separates Dunsinane from a broad ridge leading to Black Hill and King’s Seat, with the latter reached by toiling across heather on only intermittent paths. If that seems too much like hard work, the first section to Dunsinane is a pleasant leg-stretcher on a good path. But you’d be missing out on some excellent views across the Sidlaw Hills and beyond.

📷 Chronological photo guide

🌍 Location

📌 Start / finish at track junction on minor road just southeast of Collace

🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NO 207321

🛰️ GPS coordinates: 56.474560,-3.288771

🚌 Bus to Saucher (1 mi)

🚗 Limited parking at track junction – don’t block access

📝 Key info

▶ 7 km / 4 mi | ▲ 380 m | ⌛ 2.5-3 hr

Features: △ Dunsinane (310 m); △ Black Hill (360 m); △ King’s Seat (377 m, sub-2000′ Marilyn)

⬤ Moderate | Good track then path to Dunsinane; narrow and intermittent paths through heather to King’s Seat, occasionally wet.

➡️ Out-and-back walk, omitting Dunsinane on return: start – Dunsinane – Black Hill – King’s Seat – return by outward route, bypassing Dunsinane to north

Download file for GPS

🥾 On our last visit

Wildlife: Grouse and roe deer (including one hiding in the heather until we were about to step on it).

Weather: Cold and sunny with light winds, with a hard frost in areas untouched by the sun. -1°C on return to the car.

November 2016