Staying Home Sucks, home
Upstream River Dee
Dee, Grampian Drumoak. Photo: Stanley Howe, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Dee, Grampian Drumoak

Kayak spot · UK

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

56Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: Wind 3 kn gusting 7, Air 10 °C, River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 59 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
10°C
Rain
0.8 mm

Wed 4 · 57 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
9°C
Rain
0 mm

Thu 5 · 57 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
9°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 55 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
5kn
Air
8°C
Rain
1 mm

Sat 7 · 55 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
5kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 54 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
6kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0.9 mm

Mon 9 · 49 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
5°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 359, fair
  2. Wed 457, fair
  3. Thu 557, fair
  4. Fri 655, fair
  5. Sat 755, fair
  6. Sun 854, fair
  7. Mon 949, fair
  8. Tue 1051, fair
  9. Wed 1124, poor
  10. Thu 1223, poor

The spot in three facts

  • Grade Iat its hardest
  • Moving waterthe water
  • Best in Jul6 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Dee, Grampian Drumoak
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Tue 3Nov59, fair3 kn7kn10°C0.8 mm
Wed 4Nov57, fair3 kn7kn9°C0 mm
Thu 5Nov57, fair3 kn8kn9°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov55, fair3 kn5kn8°C1 mm
Sat 7Nov55, fair1 kn5kn8°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov54, fair2 kn6kn7°C0.9 mm
Mon 9Nov49, fair3 kn9kn5°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov51, fair3 kn7kn6°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov24, poor13 kn27kn3°C0.3 mm
Thu 12Nov23, poor9 kn23kn2°C0.6 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

best in Jul

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for new paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May3of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun4of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug5of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep3of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov0of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
  12. Dec0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

put-in, take-out, its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Dee, Grampian Drumoak

Downstream River Dee
Photo: Stanley Howe, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Durris Bridge over the River Dee
Photo: Ralph Greig, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
River Dee from Durris Bridge
Photo: Scott Cormie, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More kayaking near here

3 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Dee, Grampian Drumoak

A river section on the Dee, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade I, on the international scale. Suits new paddlers and up, by its grade. No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map. For new paddlers the best month is usually July, with about 6 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Banchory.

  • River Dee
  • Grade Grade I, on the international scale.
  • Who it suits Suits new paddlers and up, by its grade.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,390–US$2,600 each

about US$1,390–US$2,600 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to EDI, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$423–US$886
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$235
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$322–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$188–US$349
Totalabout US$1,390–US$2,600

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Banchory

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Banchory

about 10 min by car · 10 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 10 places to stay in Banchory · Booking.com

About Banchory its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$121 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 14h 35m

About 14h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → EDI, direct, then 2h 40m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

River level

River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go.

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 50 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits

Saved: this link opens the same trip

Email itRemind me to book

The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.