The first section of the Formartine and Buchan Way runs from Dyce, a western suburb of Aberdeen where the airport is through farmland to Udny Station. Well suited to cycling, this section is also popular with local walkers and joggers.
Bog Factor
Shared cycle track, sometimes muddy, some stony sections
Dyce railway station.
Buses and train to Dyce.
NJ884128
The Formartine and Buchan Way runs along the trackbed of the disused railway of the same name. Running north from Dyce near Aberdeen, it soon reaches open countryside. The narrow corridor of the shared cycle route is also managed as a nature reserve and there are good opportunities to spot birds, animals and wild flowers in spring and summer. The route starts from the northern end of the car park at Dyce railway station. It's an inauspicious start, with the route running alongside industrial units with diesel fumes wafting over from the adjacent airport, however soon the buildings, recreation field and new housing are left behind and the local countryside starts to open up.
Once over a red bridge crossing a road the route crosses the Don, which is now nearing the end of its journey from the Cairngorms mountains to the North Sea at Aberdeen. The section near the bridge is popular with ducks and diving birds. 1.5km from Dyce there is an ornate marker post indicating that the Way forms part of the National Cycle Network (part of Route 1 connecting Dover with the Shetland Islands if you're feeling energetic!).
For a short section the path runs alongside the Goval Burn before reaching an area where dogs should be kept on leads due to free range hens. After passing the house here the Way continues through more rolling farmland. A wire sculpture which has seen better days is passed on the left just before a green bench as the houses of Newmachar come into view to the left. To detour to Newmachar - which has a couple of shops, pubs and a chippie - it is best to continue on the Formartine and Buchan Way which takes a wide loop east, and then passes through the old station where the backs of houses are passed on the left, until the parking area just north of the village is reached, from here it is only a short walk down the road to Newmachar.
Next to the small car park (sometimes very litter strewn) on the Way at Newmachar is a picnic bench and soon the Way heads through a cutting where trains sometimes got stuck in snow drifts in this fairly exposed area. The railway line was built between 1861 and 1865 and was important in ferrying fish from the large fishing ports of Fraserburgh and Peterhead to markets further south. The line was closed to passenger in 1965 with the last freight trains running from Fraserburgh in 1979. As well as the old platforms and stations a number of linesmen's huts can still be seen, some made from pre-cast concrete, others made from wood with a concrete chimney for the all important stove.
Heading north the landscape becomes less flat with a mixture of large fields, woodlands, and horse grazing pastures. A couple of small windfarms come into view. Where the Way crosses a minor road the old level crossing gates from the railway can still be seen. After a passing under a road bridge and through an area of gorse (known locally as whins) which is ablaze with yellow blossom smelling of coconut in summer, the Way passes a small duck pond on the right.
This was formed from the crater of a bomb dropped during the second world war. The pond, surrounded by high reeds is a haven for wildlife, it can be accessed although it can be boggy and visitors do so at their own risk. Soon after, the old platform at Udny Station comes into view. The recreation field on the right used to be the goods yard. To head into Udny Station go right here through the recreation field and past a picnic table. Udny Station has a bus stop on the Aberdeen, Pitmedden, Tarves route, the hotel that used to be here is now closed.
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