📌 Collieston, Aberdeenshire
★★★
The barren sands between the coastal villages of Newburgh and Collieston have a starkly otherworldly feel. Colossal dunes dominate the landscape, reducing walkers to an insignificant speck as they traverse the sands. Spare a thought for the 15th century inhabitants of the abandoned village of Forvie; a terrible 1413 storm drowned the houses in sand, leaving only the haunting, half-submerged shell of the Forvie Church as a reminder of the settlement. The dunes are still moving, and exploring the length of the inland dunes along with the varied coastline helps you get a sense of the area’s sheer scale. This ever-changing environment is an important habitat for terns, and nesting areas are closed to visitors between April and August – though this shouldn’t affect the route above.
📷 Chronological photo guide
🌍 Location
📌 Start / finish at Forvie NNR visitor centre, off B9003 just west of Collieston
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NK 034290
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.351084,-1.944869
🚌 Bus stops on A975 at Waterside, 1.5 mi north of Newburgh (1 mi from west side of walk route via track)
🚗 Car park
📝 Key info
▶ 8 km / 5 mi | ▲ 110 m | ⌛ 2-3 hr
Features: 🦢 Forvie NNR & visitor centre; 💧 Sand Loch; 🏖️ Hackley Bay; ⛪ Forvie Church
⬤ Easy | Paths, tracks and beaches – unsurprisingly mostly sandy underfoot!
Download file for GPS➡️ Clockwise circuit: start & visitor centre – Sand Loch – Hackley Bay via coastline – Forvie Church – Forvie beach to 🧭 NK 014254 – head west to River Ythan – north to track junction at 🧭 NK 004269 – Sand Loch via inland track – start
🥾 On our last visit
Wildlife: A few seabirds, otherwise not best day for spotting wildlife.
Weather: Cool and mostly cloudy, but dry.
January 2013
