This excellent short circular walk visits the Dounie glens to the west of Rothes, with some very pleasant woodland, interesting features and lovely views.
Bog Factor
Waymarked paths and tracks.
Rothes.
Bus to Rothes.
NJ278492
Park in the centre of Rothes; there are several spaces just off the main road on Seafield Square. Head back to the main road, with a fine church on the corner, and turn right briefly and then left onto Burnside Street. The road soon leads to Glenrothes Distillery; ignore a footpath over a bridge on the left (signed for the Castle) and continue ahead, passing between the distillery buildings. Once past the main part of the distillery turn left over a footbridge which is signed 'The Dounie'.
Turn right on the far side on a grassy track. This leads leads through woodland with the burn on your right, crossing a tributary via a bridge. The Muckle (big) Dounie and Little Dounie are a pair of wooded glens and are very popular with Rothes' folk. The delightfully grassy route now continues up the Muckle Dounie, at first a little away from the burn and then close beside it. Ignore a path forking right to a bridge, another off right to a hydro hut, and a steep path off left.
After a little over a kilometre up the glen a signpost ('Dounie and Fairie's Well') indicates where to turn left away from the burn into the Little Dounie. The former commercial plantations here have been felled, and native woodland planted. The well itself is covered with a manhole lid; it provides the water source for the Glenrothes whisky. The Little Dounie has steep rocky slopes on either side. The path is well marked, climbs and then descends before climbing again (as a track) to emerge at another signpost; the former viewpoint for the Linn waterfall on the right here is now blocked by trees, whilst the route itself turns left. A short distance further on it reaches a larger track at a T-junction; turn left again.
When the track reaches yet another T-junction, turn left again. Now keep on the main track, soon emerging from the forest beside Rothes golf course. Keep straight on until the track reaches the club house, where the route becomes a tarmac lane.
The lane continues a slow descent towards Rothes. Just before returning to the village, a signpost indicates a diversion on the left to visit the castle. Only a single, though massive, wall remains of this structure, built by Peter de Pollock in around 1200; the path to the left visits it whilst a path down on the right just before the castle leads back down to the tarmac lane.
The lane passes the entrance to Glen Spey distillery before emerging on the High Street in Rothes. Turn left along this as far as the church with the clock-tower, and then turn right to return to the parking at the start.
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