Fife and Tayside are packed with great spots to watch the sun sink on the summer solstice.
The summer solstice is an ideal excuse for many to head outdoors and soak up the atmosphere.
And if the weather plays ball then all the better.
Here are a few of our local favourites.
Norman’s Law in North Fife
This relatively easily accessible 285m hill offers a brilliant panorama into Fife and over the River Tay to Dundee and even upstream to Perth in the distance.
The hill retains some of the character of the Iron Age fort that was once a feature of the commanding summit.
For the shortest route up, there’s very limited parking in a layby on the Luthriebank Road.
Today, there’s a stone cairn and two trig points to let visitors know they’ve reached the summit.
It’s a great spot to catch the sunrise or sunset at any time of year.
So if the weather is kind on the summer solstice evening itself expect the silvery Tay to turn fiery red as the sun drops out of view.
Kinpurney Hill near Newtyle, Angus
If it’s a vista which shows Tayside in all its glory that you’re after, you could do worse than Kinpurney Hill.
On a clear day the view stretches out to the Lomonds in Fife, across the Sidlaws to Dundee, and north and west to the crags of the Cairngorms and the Ben Lawers range.
And that old domino-shaped stone tower at the top is no monument, it’s an observatory built at the behest of the 18th Century Angus astronomer and politician James Stuart Mackenzie
Kinpurney is also believed to have been the site of an iron-age hill fort. So what better place to celebrate midsummer?
Your ancestors may have done the very same thing on the very same ground.
Mills Observatory in Dundee
The obvious choice would be Dundee Law. But for those looking for a quieter city summer solstice spot then the grounds around the observatory provide a nice alternative.
Britain’s first purpose-built public observatory may not be open to the public on the evening of June 21. Its cracking woodland setting, however, should create the perfect kind of atmosphere.
Balgay Hill offers some lovely tree-lined views out across the River Tay.
Parking is available relatively nearby at Balgay Street Car Park and shouldn’t pose a problem.
Frequent visitors to the park describe a beautiful and a calm place for people who want fresh air and space.
Marry that with the setting sun and there seems little not to love.
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