Glen Lui

Glen Lui runs north from the Linn of Dee through ancient Caledonian pinewoods toward the heart of the Cairngorm massif. The approach from the large National Trust car park at Linn of Dee (10km west of Braemar) follows a wide track through the Derry pines to the ruined Derry Lodge — a 10km return walk at low level that is one of the finest Caledonian forest walks in Scotland. Beyond Derry Lodge, the routes branch toward the Cairngorm plateau, Ben Macdui, and the Lairig an Laoigh.

The forest here is some of the finest remnant Caledonian pinewood on Deeside — old-growth Scots pine with a diverse understorey of juniper, blaeberry and heather. Crested tit and Scottish crossbill are both reliably present. The glen forms the southern approach to the Cairngorm plateau's most remote terrain.