River Quoich

The River Quoich is a tributary of the River Dee in Aberdeenshire. It runs south for about fifteen kilometres, including its upper reaches called Quoich Water. The clachan of Allanaquoich sits just above where the Quoich meets the Dee. Nearby stands the Linn of Quoich, a waterfall that cuts through a narrow ravine. A bridge spans the narrowest part of the gorge, and beside it is the Earl of Mar’s Punch Bowl, a natural rock hollow once used as a punchbowl after deer hunts. The river joins the Dee roughly two and a half kilometres west of Braemar. The Linn of Quoich has seen several tragedies in recent years. A male doctor took his own life there after overwork, and a ten-year-old girl drowned after falling into the water. Visitors walk the paths beside the river and cross the bridge at the Linn of Quoich. The ravine walls rise steeply around the falls, and the punchbowl rock lies midstream. The surrounding forest offers quiet glades and open moorland beyond. The Dee’s wide valley appears downstream, while upstream the hills close in. The route from Braemar follows the river’s gentle curve to the gorge.