The Pyramids of Scotland: Wonderful Cairngorms Walk
When most people think of Scotland, they think of rugged landscapes, majestic castles, midges, Irn Bru, and probably rain (sorry Scotland). Something that probably doesn’t spring to mind are pyramids. But believe it or not, the Cairngorms National Park in Aberdeenshire is home to the (not-so) hidden Pyramids of Scotland!
Amongst the woodlands of Balmoral is a series of stone structures that make for interesting viewing. In this post, I will tell you more about the Balmoral Cairns, exploring the Pyramids of Scotland, and other key information to make the most of your visit.
About the Pyramids of Scotland
The pyramids that you will find in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland are known as “cairns”.
Now, you’re probably wondering: what is a cairn?
A cairn is a man-made pile of rocks used as a marker for a variety of purposes such as burial points, monuments, or navigation.
In the case of the cairns of Balmoral, they are memorials. In total, there are fourteen cairns in total scattered across the Balmoral estate. The majority were built to commemorate the marriages of Queen Victoria’s children. However, the largest cairn (Prince Albert’s Cairn) was constructed in memory of her late husband after he passed away in 1861. Purchase Cairn was built to commemorate the purchase of Balmoral Castle and its estate in the 1850s.
Prince Albert’s Cairn is a granite pyramid standing 35ft tall with a base of 41x41ft. This huge Scottish pyramid is located in a clearing overlooking the rest of the area.
Getting to Balmoral (+ Parking)
Travel to Balmoral Cairns by car
The best way to get to the Balmoral Cairns walk is by car. I drove via Balmoral from Aberdeen as a scenic detour on my way to Inverness.
The nearest car park to Prince Albert’s Pyramid and the Balmoral Cairns walk is Balmoral Carpark located near Crathie Tourist Information Centre. If you are using a SatNav, use the postcode AB35 5TL or use the map below.
There are plenty of spaces here which are big enough to park campers and motorhomes.
Balmoral Car Park fees (paid by cash or card) are as follows:
- Car: £5
- Minibus: £5
- Campervans: £10
- Coaches: £15
There are other parking options near Royal Lochnagar Distillery, however, these fill up faster. Parking here would save you around 20 minutes of walking time in each direction.
Travel to Balmoral Cairns by public transport
The best way to get to Balmoral Cairns using public transport is by getting the 201 bus to Crathie. It takes less than 30 minutes to reach Crathie from both Ballater and Braemar.
The Ballater Braemar bus timetable can be found here.
Balmoral Cairns Walking Routes
All of the Balmoral cairns are only accessible by foot. You have two options:
The terrain for both walks is easy-going, with the majority of time spent on woodland paths and tracks. There are no ridiculously steep ascents or declines, though the big pyramid is at the top of a hill.
Be aware that some sections of the circular walk can become very muddy in certain sections after heavy rain. On these occasions, I recommend wearing walking boots, otherwise walking shoes will suffice.
Walk to Prince Albert’s Cairn
If you are solely here for the pyramid (Prince Albert’s Cairn), then this is the route for you. This is the quickest route to and from Prince Albert’s Cairn.
The route is around 3km and should take around 30 minutes in each direction. Be aware that this route is steeper than the circular as you are going directly to the viewpoint.
- From the car park, cross the River Dee over the green bridge. You will pass a memorial on your left.
- Follow the road as it veers to the left. On the right, you will see the main gates to the Balmoral Estate.
- Continue walking along the side of the road until you reach Easter Balmoral.
- You will see a road sign for Royal Lochnagar Distillery. Turn right up the hill towards the distillery.
- At the next junction, turn right and cross the small bridge. This should take you away from the signage towards the Royal Lochnagar Distillery.
- Instead of continuing into the village of Easter Balmoral, take the first left.
- Follow this path up the hill until you reach a sign for Prince Albert’s Cairn. Take the left turn and follow the path for the next kilometer.
- The route will take you past Princess Beatrice’s Cairn.
- Continue the steep incline to the summit where you will find Prince Albert’s Cairn in a clearing to the right.
You can retrace your steps back down to your car. Or you can continue onwards to find the other cairns in the Balmoral Cairns circular walk.
Pyramids of Scotland Circular Walk
This route is just over 10km in length with an elevation gain of around 360m.
The route will take you via Princess Helena, Princess Louise, Purchase Cairn, Prince Leopold, Prince Arthur, Princess Alice, Prince Albert, and Princess Beatrice’s cairns. It will also give you fantastic views of Balmoral Castle and the surrounding landscapes of the Cairngorms.
The start: From Balmoral to the first cairn
Starting from Balmoral Car Park, cross the bridge over the River Dee and follow the B976 towards Easter Balmoral.
Follow the private road past several cottages. Instead of turning left towards Prince Albert’s cairn, stay on the path slightly longer as this route leaves the biggest pyramid as the finale!
Turn right just after the gate, leading you behind a stone house. Follow the path slightly downhill until you reach a junction. Take the left turn and follow the path up towards a footbridge.
Once across, take a right onto the main pathway you will be sticking to for most of this walk. Shortly after, there is a thin pathway up to the left that leads to Princess Helena’s Cairn.
The first Cairn you will reach is Princess Helena’s Cairn. It is positioned in a clearing with views up to the main pyramid.
Exploring the cairns: Princess Helena’s cairn to Princess Alice’s cairn
Rejoin the main path you were just on by following the path back down. Then turn left.
The second cairn you will reach is Princess Louise’s Cairn. It should take you just over 10 minutes to reach the second cairn from the first. This cairn is positioned on a hill, however, the surrounding woodland restricts the view.
The third cairn you will reach is Purchase Cairn. This cairn has a segment cut from it, giving it a more distinctive shape. From Purchase Cairn, you have expansive views over the beautiful Scottish countryside.
The fourth cairn of the route is Prince Leopold’s Cairn. It is a short (5-10 minute) detour away from the loop meaning that you will need to double back on yourself. But it’s worth it for the view!
Continue down the path from Purchase Cairn, and turn right at the junction. This path will lead you to Prince Leopold’s Cairn. From here you will have great views over Balmoral Castle. There is a bench here if you want to sit down and take a lunch/snack break.
If you are not bothered about seeing this cairn and Balmoral Castle, you can miss it and turn left at the junction instead to save some time.
After this short detour, return to the path and continue straight. You will reach Prince Arthur’s Cairn and Princess Alice’s Cairn shortly after.
To the pyramid: Princess Alice’s cairn to Prince Albert’s cairn
After Princess Alice’s cairn, continue following the path in the same direction. You will lose altitude as you make your way to the boundary of the grounds.
When you reach the fence at the bottom, turn left and follow the dirt track up this gentle incline. Eventually, you will reach a wide gate spanning the whole track.
Turn right and start to climb more steeply as you make your way towards Prince Albert’s Cairn.
Follow the path up to the summit as it curves around to the left. You will be rewarded with fantastic views over the Cairngorms National Park as well as the huge pyramid!
Once you’ve taken enough pictures, rejoin the woodland path and continue the loop. Follow the path down, being particularly careful of tree roots.
This route follows the same route as outlined in the direct route to Prince Albert’s Cairn and is downhill all the way!
You will find one final cairn on the way down – Princess Beatrice’s Cairn.
You can do the circular route in both directions. I personally prefer doing it anticlockwise and searching for the smaller cairns first. This means I can spend more time enjoying the view from Prince Albert’s pyramid as I have already completed the majority of the walk.
Pyramids of Scotland Walk: Hints and Tips
Toilet Facilities
There are no toilet facilities available on the circular walk of the pyramids.
The nearest public toilets are in Ballater and Braemar. Both are roughly 15-minute drives away.
If you need the toilet whilst exploring the pyramids of Scotland, please consider the advice below:
Whilst toilets are closed. If you need to pee, please do so at least 30 metres from lochs or streams. If you need to defecate, do so as far away as possible from buildings, paths, water courses and farm animals. Bury faeces in a shallow hole and replace the turf. pic.twitter.com/K4EfGGuAFf
— Balmoral Castle & Estate (@Balmoral_Castle) June 28, 2020
Food and Pubs near Balmoral
Balmoral Castle is open to the public on certain dates during the summer and has a coffee shop. You can go in as a regular customer or book cake or afternoon tea experiences. I presume this also has toilet facilities for paying customers.
Other food options within walking distance are The Highlanders Bakehouse, a great restaurant/bakery, or Tarmachan Cafe which provides homemade soup and cakes.
The nearest pubs are located on either side of Balmoral in Braemar and Ballater. The Balmoral Bar in Ballater is approximately 10 minutes away and serves reasonably priced food.
Navigation
There is limited signposting throughout the route. Only Prince Albert’s Cairn has any signage. Therefore the circular route through the pyramids of Scotland needs careful navigation.
If you don’t have a map and compass to navigate, you can follow the directions of this walk by saving this post and following the steps. Equally, you can follow the route using maps.me or by downloading the route in advance from AllTrails.
Other
Please respect those living at Balmoral Castle and estate.
You can contact the Balmoral Visitor Centre to check if royalty is occupying the estate. If the monarch is in residence, the Royal Standard flag will be raised from the castle.
Before you go
Thank you for reading my travel guide on the Pyramids of Scotland walk. If guides and travel content like this interest you, head over to my blog page to find out more.
If you are new to Matt’s Next Steps, check out the About Me page to find out a bit more about who I am, my travel adventures and why I wanted to become a travel writer.
Please comment below and let me know your thoughts and experiences, or if there is anything else you want information on.
Happy hiking!
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