Burnt Hill

Rising above the Girnock Burn near Ballater, this rounded, heather-clad summit offers a quieter alternative to the busier Deeside massifs. Its broad, peaty slopes provide an unfettered vantage point across the Muick woods towards the distinctive, craggy northern corries of Lochnagar and the distant white-topped peaks of the high Cairngorms.

• •The name likely refers to the practice of muirburn—the controlled burning of heather to encourage new growth—which has been a standard land management technique on these eastern Grampian grouse moors for centuries.
• •The summit offers a clear perspective of the Morven of Culblean to the north, a prominent landmark that dominates the skyline above the Muir of Dinnet.
• •The hill overlooks the Girnock Burn, a valley noted for its long-term scientific research into Atlantic salmon populations, making the surrounding glens some of the most studied waterways in Scotland.
• •Despite the name suggesting a scorched landscape, you are far more likely to find yourself knee-deep in very healthy, very stubborn heather than walking across charcoal.