Glen Tanar

Glen Tanar
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)[1]
Scots pines in Glen Tanar
Scots pines in Glen Tanar
Map showing the location of Glen Tanar
Map showing the location of Glen Tanar
Glen Tanar shown within Aberdeenshire
LocationGlen Tanar, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Coordinates57°03′00″N 2°52′00″W / 57.050093°N 2.866778°W / 57.050093; -2.866778
Area41.9 km2 (16.2 sq mi)[2]
DesignationNatureScot
Established1979[1]
OwnerGlen Tanar Estate
www.glentanar.co.uk

Glen Tanar (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Tanar) is a glen in Aberdeenshire, eastern Scotland,[3] through which the Water of Tanar flows. Near the mouth of the glen, at Tower o' Ess, the Water of Tanar flows into the River Dee. This flows through Deeside into the North Sea at Aberdeen.[4] Glen Tanar contains the third largest area of Caledonian Forest in Scotland, and is of national and European importance.[5] It lies 29 km east from the British royal family's private residence of Balmoral Castle.

42 km2 of the glen is designated by NatureScot as a national nature reserve (NNR).[2] Most of the area remains under private ownership as part of the Glen Tanar Estate. However 182 ha is owned by NatureScot, being designated as the "Strict Reserve Zone" of the NNR.[6][7] Glen Tanar lies within the Cairngorms National Park,[8] and is also designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI),[9] a Special Protection Area (SPA),[10] and a Special Area of Conservation.[11] The NNR is designated a Category IV protected area by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[1]

Glen Tanar provides the eastern walking route to Mount Keen, Scotland's most easterly Munro. Starting at the car park at the end of the public road, walkers follow the glen through the native Caledonian Forest into open moorland before crossing the river to begin the ascent.[12]

  1. ^ a b c "Glen Tanar". Protected Planet. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Glen Tanar National Nature Reserve". NatureScot. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  3. ^ "Glen Tanar". portal.historicenvironment.scot.
  4. ^ "Glen Tanar". VisitScotland. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  5. ^ Glen Tanar SSSI Site Management Statement. p. 1.
  6. ^ Glen Tanar SSSI Site Management Statement. p. 4.
  7. ^ "Property Page: Glentanar". WhoOwnsScotland.org.uk. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Cairngorms National Park". NatureScot. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Glen Tanar SSSI". NatureScot. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Glen Tanar SPA". NatureScot. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Glen Tanar SAC". NatureScot. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  12. ^ Donald Bennet & Rab Anderson, ed. (2016). The Munros: Scottish Mountaineering Club Hillwalkers' Guide. Scottish Mountaineering Trust. p. 125. ISBN 9780907521945.