Stonehaven

城市概覽

Stonehaven could be called the most northerly town of the lowlands. Central lowland Scotland is a rift valley, walled by the Highland Boundary Fault which trends diagonally from Helensburgh on the west coast to Stonehaven on the east. Southeast of this line is Old Red Sandstone, bright red from its iron oxides, built into roseate castles such as Edzell, and with red soil in the lowland cattle fields. Northwest are the granite Grampian highlands. As the fault line approaches the coast, it funnels all the transport routes — for cattle-drivers, armies, traders and mail coaches — to the rocky headland where Dunnottar Castle stands guard. The coastal plain then opens up again further north towards Aberdeen. The "Highland Line" is as much cultural as geological, and this area was an early adopter of lowland agricultural methods, land tenure and industries, and of English in place of Gaelic. Stonehaven's last military upheavals were in the Jacobite campaigns of 1715 and 1745, when it was a supply port for the rebels. Thereafter it was simply a provincial market town, though busy in the 19th century with herring fishing. Its many dank medieval turrets were converted into mansions: these are mostly private residences, but may be occasionally open in summer as part of the Scotland's Gardens Scheme. Stonehaven was the county town of Kincardineshire, but that was abolished in 1975 so it's now part of Aberdeenshire, with a population in 2022 of 11,000. Stunning Stonehaven is the online visitor information portal.

如何抵達

By train Hourly trains from Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street take two hours via Dundee, Arbroath and Montrose, and continue to Aberdeen. A few are direct from London Kings Cross or Leeds via York and Newcastle, but from England it's usually quicker to change in Edinburgh. The Caledonian Highland Sleeper to Aberdeen runs Su-F from London Euston, departing after 9PM to reach Stonehaven around 7:15AM. The southbound train picks up around 10PM to reach Euston towards 8AM. You could also take the Lowland Sleeper from Euston towards midnight and change to a day train in Edinburgh. Going back, you need to leave Stonehaven before 8:30PM to join the southbound Lowland Sleeper at 11:30PM from Edinburgh. 1 Stonehaven station is a mile west of town centre. There's a ticket office, machines, toilets and a waiting area, with step-free access to both platforms. Exit onto Arduthie Rd, where the Station Hotel has a bar and serves meals; head downhill east for more food and pubs in the centre.

By bus

Stagecoach North Bus 8 runs hourly daytime from Aberdeen Union Square, taking an hour via Portlethen, Newtonhill and Chapeltown. At night take Bus X7. 2 Barclay Street is the main bus stop, at the corner with Cameron Street a block south of Market Square. Coaches from Edinburgh, Glasgow and the south towards Aberdeen scoot past on the A90 and don't stop in Stonehaven.

By road From north or south the quickest road is A90, which cuts inland. For a slower scenic route (eg cycling) take A92, which follows the coast from Dundee via Arbroath and Montrose. To reach the Cairngorms, A957 northeast (the lyrically-named "Slug Road") joins A93 at Crathes: this is the route between Glenshee, Braemar, Balmoral and Aberdeen.

當地交通

Stonehaven is a small town, so walking is your best bet. For Dunnottar Castle either take the path ascending from the harbour, or the cycleway from further south along main road. These meet below the War Memorial, then the clifftop path winds onward to the castle entrance. Or drive south to join A92, and another half mile brings you to the castle car park. Stagecoach Bus 4A and 4C make a figure-of-eight loop around the town M-Sa hourly. Local taxis are Dash Cabs +44 7400 442880 and Zip Cabs +44 7300 616465.

必看景點

Around town

1 The harbour is centrepiece of the town, which remains a fishing port. On the north quay, the Tolbooth is a 16th-century red sandstone building that has variously been a courthouse and a prison. In 1648/49, three Episcopal clergy were imprisoned here for holding a religious service for more than nine people: it was a sort of social-distancing rule, as the "Piskies" spread the contagion of Jacobitism. The Tolbooth is now a small museum, open Sa Su noon-3:30PM, free. The beach is shingle, with a ribbon of shingly sand below the highwater mark. Dogs are welcome. St James the Great Episcopal Church is an attractive 19th-century church just south of the Carron Water. Town centre is a Victorian grid pattern stretching north to the other river, the Cowie Water. 2 The War Memorial is along the clifftop path to the castle. In sort-of Doric style, its unfinished look is deliberate, to acknowledge the incomplete lives of these lost in two World Wars. 3 Dunnottar Castle, Stonehaven AB39 2TL (2 miles south of town via A92), ☏ +44 1569 766320. Daily Apr-Sep 9AM-6PM, Oct-Mar 10AM-4PM. Medieval castle perched on a rocky promontory, with cliffs plunging down to the sea. Earlier forts were destroyed so the present structure was built circa 1400 and extended into a palace from 1581; it was partly dismantled in 1720. One of its famous episodes was the protection of the Scottish crown jewels and regalia. After Charles I was executed, his son landed in Scotland and was proclaimed King Charles II at Scone. Oliver Cromwell came in pursuit and eventually Charles had to flee, only regaining the throne from 1660. Meanwhile the crown jewels were brought to Dunnottar for safekeeping then, when Cromwell laid siege, they were somehow smuggled out to be hidden in Kinneff church 10 miles south. Adult £13, child £6, conc £11.50. (updated Mar 2026) 4 Dunnottar Woods, a mile inland along the Glaslaw Burn, were the estate of Dunnottar House, now demolished. The main feature is the paris

體驗活動

1 Stonehaven Golf Course, Cowie AB39 3RH, ☏ +44 1569 762124. Breezy challenging course on the cliff tops. White tees 5103 yards, par 66. (updated Mar 2026) 2 Open Air Pool, Queen Elizabeth Park AB39 2RD, ☏ +44 1569 766454. Jun-Aug M-F 1-9:30PM, Sa Su 10AM-6PM. A Stonehaven institution, an Olympic-sized open air pool with sea water heated to 28oC. Inflatables and water-aerobic sessions. Adult £10. (updated Mar 2026) The Leisure Centre is next to the Open Air Pool. It's open M-F 6:30AM-10PM, Sa Su 9AM-5PM. Stonehaven Folk Festival is next held 10-12 July 2026. Stonehaven Highland Games are probably next held on Su 19 July 2026, tbc. Drumtochty Highland Games are held at Drumtochty Castle 5 miles north of Laurencekirk in June, see Montrose (Scotland)#Do. Evolve to live on land and breathe air: the rocks of this region have few fossils, as they were laid down on land in a time before life slithered out of the sea. But one important example is Pneumodesmus newmani, named for Mike Newman the bus driver who found it on Cowie beach in 2004. It's a millipede, sort of, with spiracles that show it breathed air. It's about 415 million years old, early Devonian, one of the first air-breathing creatures. The beastie lived