Posts for November, 2024

Join us for festive family stargazing on Thursday, December 19th, 2024. We’ll have tea, hot chocolate and festive treats in the Discovery Centre before going outside to look for stars, planets, and constellations. Santa hats, bells, and reindeer noses and antlers welcome!

Toilets are available in the Tomintoul & Glenlivet Discovery Centre.

If the weather isn’t suitable on the day, we’ll endeavour to run an alternative session on the 20th.

As we will be outside in December, please dress extra warmly for cold and changeable weather. Please also wear appropriate shoes for wet, and wintry conditions.

Join Cairngorms Astronomy Group and Tomintoul & Glenlivet Development Trust in The Square, Tomintoul for an all ages telescope moon viewing session on Saturday, December 7th, 2024. The first quarter Moon is a great time to view and learn about the moon. Jupiter is also at opposition, which means that Jupiter is directly opposite the sun in the solar system from Earth’s perspective. This alignment makes Jupiter appear larger and brighter than usual, and is the best time to observe it. Saturn will also be in the sky and makes a superb telescope target. We’ll meet at Tomintoul & Glenlivet Discovery Centre at 43 The Square, Tomintoul at 6:30pm.

The Glenlivet and Tomintoul area is one of the best places in the Cairngorms National Park to discover the wonders of the night sky. Not only does this remote area have stunning dark skies but it also has easy access allowing everyone to enjoy a night sky brimming with stars.

We’ll have the Celestron telescope and a smartphone bracket on the night that will allow you to take the moon home in your pocket!

Toilets are available in the Tomintoul & Glenlivet Discovery Centre.

If the weather isn’t suitable on the day, we’ll endeavour to run an alternative session in the days following.

As we will be outside in December in the highest village in the Scottish Highlands, please dress warmly for cold and changeable weather. Please also wear appropriate shoes for wet, and wintry conditions.

Would you like to learn more about the night sky and constellations? Join us at the Glenlivet Hall on Thursday, December 5th. We’ll have tea, biscuits, and a brief presentation in the hall before going outside for a short stroll in a group to look at stars, planets, and constellations and share resources for improving your celestial knowledge.

The Glenlivet and Tomintoul area is one of the best places in the Cairngorms National Park to discover the wonders of the night sky. It is Scotland’s second International Dark Sky Park and the most northerly in the world.

Dearest Brave Soul,

The mysterious Marilyn asked to spend an evening in the castle, but little did the castle team know that her intention was to hold a séance! Hold it she did and when the team returned to the castle the next day they found things were….different. Doors opened by themselves, mist seemed to hover in the halls, the walls seemed to be talking. What has she done?! So many spirits now seem to walk the rooms, the grounds, and the very fabric of the castle. Just how many spirits are there? The castle has been around for 400 years!

We need you to come to the castle so that we can encourage the spirits to rest once more…if you dare.

Best wishes
The Castle Team

The “tour” will take between 30 – 40 minutes. (Tours at 1830, 1900 & 1930)

There will be a free cleansing brew at the end of the event to ward off any spirits that may have attached themselves to you.

The castle gets very cold and will be quite dark so you must wear sensible shoes and warm layers.

The castle is not designed for people with mobility issues, which there is nothing we can do about. Sorry.

Small print: All tickets are non-refundable unless the event is cancelled by the organiser. This is not an event for those of a nervous disposition. The castle is not wheelchair accessible. There will be smoke, lights and loud noises in the castle so only buy a ticket if these will not be problematic for you. There will be a mock-séance, so if this is something that makes you uncomfortable then this event is not for you. No under 16s unless accompanied by a parent or guardian, no under 14s under any circumstances.

Art and craft fair including the following stalls –
Photography
Metalwork
Soaps
Books
Art
Produce

Digging in the archive of the mostly absurd – choosing songs and other items by Joyce Grenfell, Flanders and Swann, and some others. We’re delighted to have the hugely talented Robin Versteeg joining us.

The weekend will offer a full fashion immersion against the backdrop of the majestic mountains of the Cairngorms National Park. The Scottish Highlands have long been steeped in style inspiration. This deep-rooted connection can be found within Dior’s long-standing love affair with Scotland to Elsa Schiaparelli, (the iconic designer for whom we named our cocktail bar), being a frequent guest of Frances Farquharson former editor of Harper’s Bazaar who lived at Braemar Castle.

Join us for an exciting and immersive weekend transporting you to the heart of the global fashion community. This year’s lineup includes talks from Dame Anya Hindmarch, Charles Jeffrey, Justine Picardie, Kazu Huggler, Giles Deacon, Lisa Armstrong OBE, Samantha McCoach, Georgina Ripley and many more.

Book your tickets today to join a celebration of international fashion and, of course, Scotland’s enduring contribution to this fascinating world.

Join Cairngorms Astronomy Club and members of the Tomintoul & Glenlivet Dark Sky Park Group at the Field of Hope, Tomintoul for a comet spotting session. Please meet at the Field of Hope from 6:00pm.*

The comet will be closest to Earth on October 12th with good visibility in the northern hemisphere. Assuming clear skies we hope to be able to see it in the telescope at the Field of Hope. As comets are notoriously unpredictable, there’s no way to know at this time exactly how bright this comet will become. The comet is named after the observatories that discovered it. In this instance it was discovered by the Tsuchinshan or “Purple Mountain” Observatory in Nanjing, China on January 9th, 2023 and also by the ATLAS telescope in South Africa on February 22nd, 2023.

We’ll have the Celestron telescope on hand for comet spotting.

(*If the weather conditions are unfavourable on the 12th, the event will run again on Sunday, October 13th.)

The Glenlivet and Tomintoul area is one of the best places in the Cairngorms National Park to discover the wonders of the night sky. Not only does this remote area have stunning dark skies but it also has easy access allowing everyone to enjoy a night sky brimming with stars.

Public toilets are available in Tomintoul at Tomnabat Lane, opposite the public carpark. As we will be outside in October please dress appropriately for cool autumn conditions and changeable weather.

Limited parking is available at the Field of Hope, but you can also park in the village and walk down to the bird hide.

Tickets are free for this event. Donations are also always appreciated and can be made on the night if you wish.

Thanks for supporting our Dark Sky Park!

Come and find some unique Christmas gifts that have been crafted with love at our annual club craft sale

Would you like to learn more about the night sky? Join us at the Discovery Centre in Tomintoul for an all ages stargazing session during the new moon. We’ll have a presentation in the Discovery Centre before walking down to a nearby stargazing site in a group to look at stars, planets, and constellations and share resources for improving your celestial knowledge. The Glenlivet and Tomintoul area is one of the best places in the Cairngorms National Park to discover the wonders of the night sky. It is Scotland’s second International Dark Sky Park and the most northerly in the world.

The new moon is an ideal time to go stargazing as the moon is not visible in the sky, which means there is no moonlight to wash out the light from fainter stars.

As we will be outside, please dress appropriately for cold and changeable weather. Lots of layers, along with gloves and hat will make your stargazing experience more enjoyable. Please also wear appropriate footwear for potentially wet and wintry conditions.

If conditions are unsuitable on the day of the event the organiser will email attendees.

Toilets are available in Tomintoul and in the Discovery Centre.

Suggested donation £5 on the night helps to support the Tomintoul & Glenlivet Cairngorms Dark Sky Park.