The Hermitage
39 minute walk from Dunkeld & Birnam station · Stirling, Central and Fife · Free entry
The Hermitage is a National Trust for Scotland pleasure ground located on the banks of the River Braan in Craigvinean Forest. Created in the 18th century by the third Duke of Atholl to honor the bard Ossian, this historic site features Douglas-fir trees and the ancient Cedar of Lebanon.
Visitors can explore unique Georgian follies, including Ossian’s Cave and Ossian’s Hall of Mirrors. The grounds are famous for the Hermitage Bridge, built in 1770, and the dramatic Black Linn Falls.
You can enjoy various walks, including a popular riverside journey to Ossian’s Hall or a pass-for-all route for wheelchairs. The paths, some designed for 18th-century carriages, offer views of the forest and waterfall.
Visitor information
- Place type
- Historic landscape
- Good for
- Literature & writers, Lochs, rivers & waterfalls, Trees & woodlands, Walking
- Characteristics
- Designed landscape, Georgian, Open-air, Riverside, Woodland
- Admission
- Free
- Access
- Partial step-free access
- Region
- Stirling, Central and Fife
Stations within walking distance
- Dunkeld & Birnam station — 39 min walk, 3.1 km
Other places near Dunkeld & Birnam
- Birnam Institute — 4 min walk from the station
- Little Dunkeld Church — 10 min walk from the station
- Birnam Oak and the River Tay, Dunkeld — 15 min walk from the station
- Fiddler's Path, Dunkeld — 19 min walk from the station
- Birnam Hill, Birnam — 20 min walk from the station
- Dunkeld Cathedral — 21 min walk from the station