Braemar is the kind of Highland village where the cold is part of the identity. It sits at about three hundred and thirty metres in the upper valley of the River Dee, ringed by the Cairngorm hills, and it holds a record for the lowest temperature ever measured in Britain, shared with another Highland site: minus 27.2 degrees Celsius, in 1895. Even in summer a night here can be frosty. By day, in good weather, the village is a pleasant cluster of grey stone buildings with a small castle, a few cafés and shops, and a steady stream of walkers heading for the hills.
The village is also famous for the Braemar Gathering, a Highland games held on the first Saturday of September, with caber tossing, hill racing, piping and dancing, which members of the royal family traditionally attend, since Balmoral Castle lies about fifteen kilometres down the valley. Braemar Castle, a seventeenth-century fortress later used as a Hanoverian garrison after the Jacobite risings, stands just outside the village, and it is run by the local community.
The riding is a main reason to come. From the south, the A93 climbs from Blairgowrie over the Glenshee pass, which at 665 metres is the highest main road in Britain, and descends into Braemar through a wild upland landscape of heather, grouse moor and bare hills. It is a fine road, with wide, open bends and good surface, but the weather can be fierce. Snow can come as early as October and as late as May, and the road is often closed in winter, with gates at both ends. In summer, the heather turns purple in August, and the long days mean you can ride into the evening. Watch for sheep, deer and slow-moving campervans.
Down the valley, the A93 follows the Dee through pine forest towards Ballater, with the river on one side and the Cairngorm foothills on the other. It is a lovely road, with a mix of open stretches and gentle bends, and you may see red deer, red squirrels and even golden eagles. Beyond the village, a narrow road runs to the Linn of Dee, where the river is squeezed through a rocky gorge, a good place for a short walk.
Braemar has a few cafés, a bakery, small hotels and some shops, and there is normally a small filling station, but it is wise not to rely on it. Ballater, about twenty-two kilometres to the east, is the nearest sure option. A hot drink and a slice of cake at a village café is the best response to the weather.