Scotland
Hill of Garvock
277M
909FT
About Hill of Garvock
Rising as a prominent, elongated ridge above the Howe of the Mearns, this Marilyn offers an easy-going ascent with expansive rewards. While modest in height, its isolated position ensures commanding views across the fertile plains below toward the high granite plateau of the eastern Cairngorms and the sharp profile of Mount Battock.
Key Statistics
Rank
353rd Highest in Region
Parent Range
Lochaber
Prominence
?
219m
Nearest Town
Laurencekirk
Geology
You are hiking across the Deep Conglomerate Formation, a rock made of rounded pebbles naturally cemented together into a solid, durable mass.
Nearby Fells
Woodstone Hill
Hill of Morphie
Paul Matthew Hill
Cloch Hill
Kenshot Hill
Find It
OS Grid Reference
NO726691
Latitude
56.8126°N
Longitude
2.4504°W
Did You Know?
- •The name likely stems from the Gaelic 'Garbh achadh', meaning 'rough field', referring to the stony or uncultivated nature of the ridge before modern forestry and farming improvements.
- •The summit features the Johnstone Tower, a stone folly erected in 1832 to celebrate the Reform Act; it remains a landmark visible for miles across the A90 corridor.
- •Its status as a Marilyn—a peak with at least 150 metres of prominence—is significant here, as the hill stands entirely detached from the main Grampian mass to the north.
- •To the west, the view across the deep red soils of the Mearns offers a clear sightline to the granite tor of Clachnaben and the sprawling heather moorland of Glen Tanar.
- •Local legend claims the hill's base was the site of the 'Sheriff’s Kettle' in 1420, where a group of disgruntled lairds reportedly boiled an unpopular sheriff in a cauldron after taking a royal grievance too literally.