Glen
Glen Doll
The forested head of Glen Clova — the start of Jock's Road, a right of way won in court in the 1880s.
- Munros
- 4
- Bothies
- 1
- Highest peak
- Broad Cairn (997.1m)
Glen Doll is the upper arm of the Glen Clova system, reached from the Forestry and Land Scotland car park and Ranger Base near Braedownie. It is the start of Jock's Road, the old Tolmount droving route over the Mounth to Braemar by Glen Callater and Auchallater, established as a right of way in the 1880s after a landowner tried to close it. ScotWays describes it as one of the most serious walks in its Heritage Paths project: the path climbs to about 900m on a high, exposed, featureless plateau that is often swept by storms in winter, when the path can be buried under snow for months.
Below Jock's Road, the lower glen has forest trails for an easier day, and a marked path from the car park leads up to Corrie Fee.
The road in
Single-track road etiquette
Pull into passing places to let oncoming vehicles pass. Don't park in passing places. If a faster vehicle is behind you, pull over and let them past. Do not reverse at speed — wait in a passing place.
Parking1 spot
Glen Doll car park (Ranger Base)
Charging details not published online — check signs on site
Hills from Glen Doll4 Munros
Bothies in the glen1 in range
What's in the glen
Jock's Road
The Tolmount route (Jock's Road) from Glen Doll to Braemar, crossing the Mounth by Glen Callater. The Scottish Rights of Way and Recreation Society (now ScotWays) took Duncan Macpherson to court after he tried to close it; the Court of Session heard the case in 1886–87 and the House of Lords in 1888, and the route was proved by the long practice of drovers taking sheep over it to Cullow market. It is a serious mountain crossing over a high, featureless plateau and needs full navigation skills.
Corrie Fee
A glaciated corrie reached by a marked path from the Glen Doll car park, known for its upland plants.
Our take
Glen Doll is a stepping stone to somewhere bigger — either the Corrie Fee for an easier day or Jock's Road for a serious through-route. The forestry trails are good for a short day.
History
It is often said that Jock's Road is named after a John Winter ("Jock") who testified against the landowner Duncan Macpherson. ScotWays says the story appears to be apocryphal: the name predates the court case, and the Society's own Walter A Smith later said Jock's identity was a mystery.
The case itself was brought by the Scottish Rights of Way and Recreation Society after Macpherson tried to close the route, and went to the Court of Session in 1886–87 and the House of Lords in 1888. It turned on the drovers who had long taken sheep from Braemar over the Tolmount to the market at Cullow, near the foot of Glen Clova. On New Year's Day 1959 five experienced hillwalkers died in a storm on the route; Davy's Bourach, the shelter on Jock's Road, was built by Davie Glen in their memory in 1966 (ScotWays, read 2026-10-28).
Practical
- Mobile signal
- No signal beyond the car park.
- Midges
- Low–moderate(2/5)
- Public transport
- No public transport to Glen Doll that we can confirm — check Traveline Scotland. Car or taxi from Kirriemuir.
- Dogs
- On lead — livestock or ground-nesting birds present.
Map
Hills (green), bothies (brown), parking (blue), wild swimming (light blue).
Nearby glens
Scotland outdoor updates
Route guides, condition reports and seasonal picks — once a month, no noise.
Glen Doll — common questions
- What kind of road runs through Glen Doll?
- Single-track with passing places. Build in extra time for the approach.
- Can I take a motorhome or campervan into Glen Doll?
- We'd say no for larger vehicles: Glen Doll's narrow road, tight turns and limited passing space punish motorhomes and big campervans. Leave the van at a road end elsewhere and come in on foot.
- Are there midges in Glen Doll?
- Expect a moderate midge season in Glen Doll (2/5), running late May to September. The worst of it comes on sheltered, humid evenings — breezy spots and the high tops stay clearer. Smidge and a head net earn their place from May onwards.
- Can I wild camp in Glen Doll?
- You can. Scotland's Land Reform Act 2003 gives a right to wild camp on most unenclosed land, subject to the Scottish Outdoor Access Code: stay off enclosed agricultural ground, keep numbers small, leave no trace. Note the Loch Lomond and Trossachs Camping Management Zones and their seasonal restrictions do not cover Glen Doll.
- Can I get to Glen Doll without a car?
- No public transport to Glen Doll that we can confirm — check Traveline Scotland. Car or taxi from Kirriemuir.