Millhockie Hill

The walk up Millhockie Hill takes about forty minutes if you're not dawdling, though most people do. It's a proper Aberdeenshire hill - nothing dramatic, just honest moorland with a decent enough payload of views once you've climbed. From Tullynessle, it's straightforward to find the start, and the path itself is well-trodden enough that you won't need a map on a clear day.

What you get at the top is Deeside sprawling out below you, with glimpses of the higher Cairngorms in the distance if the light's behaving. The summit isn't dramatic - there's no cairn, no grand stone monument, just you and the landscape. It's the sort of walk that works best on a brisk afternoon when the air's clean and you fancy stretching your legs without committing to a full day on the hills.

Families with older kids will manage it fine; younger ones might find it a bit long. This is really walkers' territory, people who want something proper but don't need a peak that'll exhaust them. If you're basing yourself at Haughton Holiday Park nearby, it's easily done as a morning outing before you head elsewhere in the area.

The moorland can be boggy in places after rain, so decent boots are essential rather than optional. Go on a clear day - on a wet one it's just a slog through cloud with nothing to show for it.