Walk: Hill 99 – squirrel’s-eye view

📌 Kintessack, Moray
★★

Culbin Forest sprawls for several miles along the southern shore of the Moray Firth between Findhorn and Nairn. A maze of tracks and paths criss-cross this vast forest overlying sand dunes, intersections marked by junction numbers which often serve only to make you feel even more lost. Luckily the Forestry Commission have devised a number of circular walks (print off a map: link below), with the Hill 99 Viewpoint Trail probably the best introduction to the area. Hill 99 (named after its height in feet) is topped with a “squirrel’s-eye” wooden tower: steps access this excellent viewpoint above the tree tops. Manmade ponds elsewhere on the walk are a good place to spot dragonflies in summer, attracted by the fresh water that’s otherwise scarce amongst these coastal dunes.

📷 Chronological photo guide

🌍 Location

📌 Start / finish at minor road end 1 mi north of Kintessack

🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NH 998615

🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.631407,-3.680813

❌ No public transport within 1 mi

🚗 Car park (charge)

📝 Key info

▶ 6 km / 4 mi | ▲ 40 m | ⌛ 1.5-2 hr

Features: 💧 Gravel-pit Ponds; △ Hill 99 (29 m); Dragonfly Pool

⬤ Easy | Straightforward track and paths, mostly flat.

➡️ Anticlockwise circuit: start – Gravel-pit Ponds – Hill 99 – Dragonfly Pool – start. Route waymarked in black & on map 🔗 here (Hill 99 Trail)

Download file for GPS

🥾 On our last visit

Wildlife: A red squirrel near the Viewpoint Tower. Mallards with ducklings on the Gravel-pit Ponds. Lots of small birds, many annoying biting mosquito-like flies.

Weather: 15°C at start, big clouds & plenty of sunshine, light breeze.

May 2024