8 Best Places to See the Autumn Colours in Perthshire
Autumn is arguably the season in which Perthshire looks its best. The ‘big tree country’ really comes into its own when every one of those trees is a slightly different but glorious shade of red, orange, brown, gold or evergreen and the ground is carpeted with bright leaves in corresponding colours.
It’s also pleasant to reflect that we can all enjoy the bounteous beauty of autumn no matter our circumstances. Glowing colours, the scent of a fresh, cool morning, smooth acorns and spiky conkers, all of these are freely available. What’s more, the grandeur of nature can inspire us with the knowledge that there are bigger things out there than just ourselves.
In this article we’ve come up with a few of our favourite places to see the autumn colours in Perthshire and made sure that there’s a variety of different ways you can see them, whether for a short walk, longer walk, a drive, or simply within this magazine if you’re located further afield:
The Hermitage
No list of autumn walks in Perthshire is complete without mentioning the Hermitage. It’s a beautiful, manageable walk for all the family that can be as long or as short as you like and there’s lots of interesting things to see, such as Ossian’s Hall, and of course the Hermit’s cave that gives the place its name. The trees are spectacular and it’s also a good time to see the Black Linn Falls, especially if there’s been some recent rain.
The Black Spout
This is a steep but short walk from the town of Pitlochry up to a lovely viewpoint over a waterfall with an abundance of beautiful trees. One advantage of this walk is you can get yourself coffee and cake or lunch in Pitlochry afterwards! For a longer walk you can continues up the hill and end up at the pretty village of Moulin, also within an easy walk downhill back to Pitlochry.
Garry Bridge
The scene of many extremely popular autumnal Scotland shots, the Garry Bridge near Killiecrankie makes a wonderful viewpoint to look out over the narrow gorge surrounded by trees in all shades. There’s a car park just next to it, so if you fancy a one minute stroll rather than a walk, this could well be the spot for you. And if you want you can continue along the picturesque road past Queen’s View to Tummel Bridge and from there choose to go on to Rannoch or loop back towards Aberfeldy.
Glen Lyon
Ideal if you want a longer drive down a tree-lined glen, Glen Lyon is perfect on a drizzly day if you’d rather not really get out of the car! It’s a very long glen, but about half way along the trees thin out and then give way to moorland, so you don’t need to go all the way down unless you want to, which is likely since you may find it hard to tear yourself away from all that scenery. Take a picnic or visit the Glen Lyon Tearoom during your trip.
Kenmore
If you want to gaze at scenery but don’t want to walk or drive much, then Kenmore is the destination for you. Take a flask of coffee, park up next to the loch and drink in that view (and the coffee), surely one of the best in Scotland. If you want to stretch your legs and enjoy the fresh air, you could go for a wander along the beach.
Acharn Falls
If you’re out near Aberfeldy and Kenmore, the Acharn Falls along south Loch Tayside are a great destination for reasonable walkers. It’s fairly steep and up a rocky track, so wear robust shoes, but the view is definitely worth the climb! It’s not an especially long walk either, taking around 15 minutes to get to the falls.
Den o’ Alyth
Just a brief drive outside the small town of Alyth, this walk has a convenient car park and well-kept path, though it can be muddy in places. After a short slope downwards, past a children’s play park and grassy area, the path flattens and takes you down into a gorge, with the atmospheric Alyth Burn running alongside. There’s benches dotted throughout this walk, and because there’s a couple of bridges over the burn, you can take a slightly different way back if you wish to see the other side of the river at any point.
The Birks of Aberfeldy
It’s fitting that, having started with the Hermitage, we finish with another rightly famous Perthshire walk. This walk is slightly longer than the others if you do the full circuit—taking about 2 hours if you’re not rushing—and is steep and narrow in some places, but the scenery is spectacular and the waterfall is really special once you get there, as is the view over the Tay Valley. It’s a great walk for a day out, and Aberfeldy itself has some lovely options for lunches or snacks. And, if you don’t fancy doing the full circuit, beautiful autumn colours can be seen by walking just a little way in at the entrance to the Birks.
So there you have it, our top 8 places for seeing the autumn colours in Perthshire. Hopefully we have an idea to suit most people and eventualities here and, even if you can’t go and see the colours in person this autumn, at least you can get some idea of what they’re like through Nathan’s gorgeous photos.
