River Ugie

The River Ugie, or Ugie Water, winds through Buchan in Aberdeenshire. It begins where the North Ugie and South Ugie streams join near Longside. From there it travels east for about twenty kilometres to reach the North Sea at Buchanhaven, just north of Peterhead. Along its banks lie several small settlements arranged from west to east. Old Deer stands at the river’s upper end, followed by Stuartfield, Mintlaw, Inverquhomery and Longside. The river has shaped life in this quiet corner of Scotland for centuries. Its name appears in early records of the area’s religious houses, especially at Old Deer where monks once lived. The Ugie’s steady flow powered mills that ground grain for local farms. Today the water still irrigates fields and pastures around Mintlaw and Peterhead. Visitors follow the Ugie’s course through gently rolling farmland and patches of woodland. Footpaths run beside the river from Longside towards the sea, passing old bridges and weirs. Near Peterhead the river widens into a tidal estuary where seabirds gather. The Collie Burn and Laeca Burn add smaller streams to the main channel before it reaches the shore.