Perdun three

Slow Way not verified yet. Verify Perdun here.

This is a good route, with over half of it along quiet roads & pavements beside roads, although at the Dundee end the road is very busy. The most difficult part of the route is approximately 1 mile (less than 2km) long, near Shien Hill, where the ground is very rough and could potentially be boggy. It is lined by gorse bushes for a short while and these are growing over the path. There are also a few gates which are difficult to open in this same area. There were cows and sheep along the route where it crosses the Ochils, in the vicinity of Shien Hill, Pole Hill and Shanry. The route would not be suitable for off road wheelers, due to the rough ground and gates, also there is a railway bridge at Invergowrie Station. It would be possible to avoid these problems by keeping to the minor roads, from Murrayshall continuing along the minor road to Gallowmyre and Kilspindie, to rejoin Perdun3 just southeast of Rait, and the station bridge can be avoided by keeping to the pavements in Invergowrie. However following these alternatives would mean that the great majority of the route would be on tarmac.

The route is adequately drawn, but care should be taken heading east from Murrayshall. At a track junction, take the left track towards Shien Hill, but shortly afterwards use an old overgrown gate (see 3rd photo of this review) on the right to leave the good track and head through the pasture, on the line of an old path, up to some ruins. Note that there is no gate higher up the track nearer Shien Hill, so the fence would have to be climbed if the old gate is missed.

Refreshments are available en route at Rait Antiques Centre, also there is a shop and an inn in Longforgan. There are frequent buses between Perth and Dundee, mainly along the A90 but less often through the bigger villages.

In more detail:
From Perth the route uses core paths (the Milkboys Walk, and part of the Coronation Road) and a quiet road past Murrayshall golf course (possibly a source of refreshments, off route). At the road T junction the route goes straight ahead to enter more remote country, (but as mentioned previously a right turn along the road leads eventually to Rait, thus avoiding the rough/boggy ground, livestock, and locked gates). Perdun3 leaves the good track at an old overgrown gate as mentioned earlier to head up to some ruins. The route threads through gorse, and becomes very rough through Pole Wood (felled long ago), however the views all around are delightful. A better track is gained 500m before the road. This route over the hill is not waymarked and could be tricky to follow in misty conditions.

The next part of the route past Shanry and Gasconhall is waymarked from the east between Gasconhall and Shanry, but is easier to follow than the previous segment. Again, livestock might be encountered, and I found some gates difficult to open. At NO 211 268 I took a route through the trees on the knoll, on the south side of the fence, which had been waymarked with arrows from the east. Much needed refreshments are available at Rait Antiques Centre (Rait Farm on OS mapping 1:25000 scale), which is open 7 days a week.

A long section of quiet road, with a speed restriction of 40mph, follows towards Ballindean. The route then heads upwards (photo 10) towards Hilltown of Ballindean on an unsigned core path, this is the steepest part of the route but is easy to follow. From Burnside the route follows tarmac driveways through Rossie Estate, then heads along a minor road to cross the A90 at the road underpass into Longforgan.

South of Longforgan the route uses tracks and field paths (part of the Bogle Burn Circular route) to avoid then reach a minor road, this then joins cycle route 77 for most of the rest of the route into Dundee. The road is relatively quiet, and has a 40mph speed restriction. It lies close to the Tay estuary and is quite scenic. Just before the railway bridge the route takes an access path to some houses (photo 13), which continues as a path to Invergowrie railway station where it crosses the railway on a bridge.

The next part of the route lies close to the busy A90, (but could be avoided by taking DunPer1 or DunPer2 via Perth Road and Blackness Road). A pleasant diversion from Riverside Drive can be made into Riverside Nature Park. Once the route gains the Dundee esplanade it is full of interest, passing the Tay railway bridge with memorials and sculptures.

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