The Aberdeenshire Canal

Previous: Pitmedden

After leaving Pitmedden, the road parts from the railway and canal to go uphill, and the three do not meet again until they reach the hamlet of Kinaldie.This was the site of another railway station, which served also the villages of Blackburn and Hatton of Fintray, along with the farmlands of Kinellar. The road from the Blue Hill to Kinaldie was not built until some tuime after the railway opened, and it is believed that it was constructed to allow easy accesss to the railway station for the farms on the hill.

The road approaches the railway at right angles, and then turns sharply 90 degrees just before reaching it, and immediately crosses the Black Burn. The bridge that does this is of unusual design, and it is believed that it is in fact the bridge built for the canal, albeit modified.

The road that crosses the Black Burn, which is believed to be the canal bridge modified.

The arch of the bridge is much lower than the road surface, and on the south side (as seen in the photo) low retaining walls suggest that it was originally much wider. The design of this bridge is atypical of those used elsewhere on roads during this period, and has been compared to surviving work by John Rennie, the engineer of the Aberdeenshire Canal, amongst others.

The canal route then passes through the old goods yard of Kinaldie station, and after the road that runs between Hatton of Fintray and Blackburn is crossed, the route of the canal is indicated by a farm track that runs immediately north of the railway. Milestone No. 12 exsists in a wall that runs by the path, although I could not find it. I later found out that it is incorporated into the wall as a stile, and I will try to find it again the next time I visit.

The canal route by the site of Kinaldie station.

After this, the route of the canal is inaccessible, as the road climbs over another hill, which the canal and railway skirts. Milestone number 12½ survives in the garden of Kirkton of Kinellar on this road, which is on a hill way above the route of the canal. It is not until the road meets the railway and canal again that the route can be seen.

Next: Dalwearie