Standing stone at Spittal of Glenshee - geograph

The Spittal of Glenshee (, ) lies at the head of

Glenshee Glen Shee () is a glen in eastern Perthshire, Scotland. Shee Water flows through the glen. The head of the glen, where Gleann Taitneach and Glen Lochsie meet, is approximately 2 km north-west of the Spittal of Glenshee; it then run ...

in the highlands of eastern

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. It is bordered by Highland (council area), Highland and Aberdeenshire to the north, Angus, Scotland, Angus, Dundee, and F ...

, Scotland, where the confluence of many small streams flowing south out of the

Grampian Grampian () was one of nine local government regions of Scotland. It was created in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and took its name from the Grampian Mountains. The regional council was based in Aberdeen. The region was abol ...

s form the Shee Water. For centuries, there has been a hostel or inn at the site and, in modern times, the small village has become a centre for travel, tourism and winter sports in the region, sited at a bend on the A93 trunk road which leads from Blairgowrie north past the Spittal to the

Glenshee Ski Centre Glenshee Ski Centre is an alpine snowsports area in the Scottish Highlands. It is located above the Cairnwell Pass at the head of Glen Shee on either side of the A93 road between Blairgowrie and Braemar. Glenshee is Britain's largest alpine ...

and on to

Braemar Braemar is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, around west of Aberdeen in the Highlands. It is the closest significantly-sized settlement to the upper course of the River Dee, sitting at an elevation of . The Gaelic ''Bràigh Mhàrr'' p ...

. Inhabitation in the

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

period is indicated by a

Megalithic A megalith is a large Rock (geology), stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. More than 35,000 megalithic structures have been identified across Europe, ranging ...

standing stone behind the old kirk, and the ''Four Poster stone circle'' on a nearby mound. When interest in

ski mountaineering Ski mountaineering (abbreviated to skimo) is a skiing discipline that involves climbing mountains either on skis or carrying them, depending on the steepness of the ascent, and then descending on skis. There are two major categories of equipment ...

revived after the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and the Scottish Ski Club was resuscitated in 1929, they restarted weekly snow reports with reporters appointed at Lix Toll near

Killin Killin (; ) is a village in Perthshire in the central Highlands of Scotland. Situated at the western head of Loch Tay, it is administered by the Stirling Council area. Killin is a historic conservation village and sits within the Loch Lomond ...

Dalwhinnie Dalwhinnie ( ; "meeting place") is a small village in the Scottish Highlands. Dalwhinnie is located at the head of Glen Truim and the north-east end of Loch Ericht, on the western edge of the Cairngorms National Park. Location Dalwhinnie sits a ...

and the Spittal of Glenshee. The Dundee Ski Club used the ''Spittal Hotel'' as its meeting place, and pioneered improvements, setting up the first ski tows in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

at Glenshee in December 1950. The hotel burnt down in 1959 and was rebuilt in Scandinavian style. However it was once again destroyed by fire in August 2014 and currently the site is for sale. The village also provides a stopping place on the ''Cateran Trail'' waymarked

long distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exce ...

which provides a 64-mile (103 km) circuit in the glens of Perthshire and Angus. Scotland's folklorist,

Hamish Henderson (James) Hamish Scott Henderson (11 November 1919 – 9 March 2002) was a Scotland, Scottish poet, songwriter, communist, intellectual and soldier. Henderson was a catalyst for the folk revival in Scotland. He was also an accomplished folk s ...

, spent a number of years in the village and developed his interest in Gaelic culture there.

References

Villages in Perth and Kinross Neolithic Scotland {{PerthKinross-geo-stub