Posts for January, 2022

Our feral Konik ponies make light work of grazing the Marshes, keeping the habitat in tip-top condition for the special birds that live there.

Join us to learn all about them, before going on a short walk to find out about how they fit in with our wider work managing the reserve and our plans for the future.

Wednesday 2nd February
10am-12noon

This event is free, but booking is essential as places are limited by parking capacity – please email: insh@rspb.org.uk

(Our walk will be about 1 mile over uneven pathless terrain with one small, but fairly steep slope. Unfortunately this route is not suitable for wheelchairs or buggies. Wellies are essential as the entrance to the field regularly floods in winter – we do have a small number of pairs available to borrow, please let us know and we’ll see if we have your size!)

Come and experience all our new Christmas activities and exhibits this December!

Letter to Santa
Have you written your letter to Santa yet? No, well we have everything you need to write your letters at our magical posting station in Bamboozeleum.Watch out for the elves coming through the Elf Portal to collect your letters from our magical postbox. They will keep checking in, right up until Christmas Eve. Santa might have a letter for you too!!

Winter Mystical Mashup
Santa and some of his wintery friends have mysteriously teleported into our Tropical Hot House and are having a blast in tropical style… see how many of these unusual guests you can spot and what they are getting up to?

Duetting Reindeer
Stop in and see our talented duetting reindeer, singing some of your favourite Christmas songs in Wonderwoods! Don’t worry, they are more than happy for you to join in if you know the words (or… even if you don’t!).

Majestic Unicorn
A truly majestic unicorn has blessed us with it’s presence at Reception- who would like a selfie with this magical beauty?

Every year since 1984, mushers from the UK have gathered in the forests around Aviemore for the biggest event in the British sled dog racing calendar, The Siberian Husky Club of Great Britain Aviemore Sled Dog Rally January 29th-30th will return after a year out due to the covid pandemic.

Organised by the Siberian Husky Club of Great Britain in conjunction with Forestry and Land Scotland and sponsored by CSJ specialist canine feeds, Leucillin, and Photizo Light Therapy .The race is run on forest trails around the beautiful Loch Morlich, in the shadows of the Cairngorm mountains.

From an original of only 12 teams, the race is now one of the most prestigious sled dog races in the UK . The race features teams of between two and eight dogs pulling their musher on a sled around a four to seven mile trail. If there’s no snow at ground level for the event, the races still go on with mushers using a three-wheeled or four wheeled rigs. There are eight adult classes and two children’s classes and mushers range from just 8 years old to over 60. Along with the Siberian Huskies, race dogs include Alaskan Malamutes, Samoyeds, Greenland Dogs and Canadian Eskimo Dogs – the pedigree breeds of dogs first bred to pull sleds in Arctic conditions hundreds of years ago

The trail is a designated cross-country ski course and is clearly defined. The Start lies just over the wooden bridge from the car park and runs parallel to the ski road for a short distance before entering the forest. The first part of the trail is quite demanding, but then runs along the loch side to the Finish without great problem.

There will be available viewing areas for public viewing but please be aware of any covid restrictions that may be in force during that time.

We have some fun additions to the park this Winter.

First, meet our duetting reindeer in Wonderwood. They love nothing more than singing their favourite tunes…you might find yourself joining in with them!

Then there is something rather unusual happening at the Tropical Hot House- some familiar wintery creatures have mysteriously appeared and are enjoying the tropical climate in style.

See if you can spot them all!

Finally, we have a magical Winter wonderland photo op in Bamboozeleum- plus all those cool exhibits to play around with. We are sure some little ones will love to take photos with our majestic Winter unicorn at Reception.

Let’s celebrate together the community spirit that has seen the return of an ice rink to Aviemore
.
Join us Friday 10th December at the Aviemore Ice Rink, Aviemore 3 pm-7 pm for some family festive Winter Chill Fun
There will be BBQ, festive refreshments, winter activities and plenty of Christmas music.

Santa Skate from 5 pm to 6 pm (how many Santas, Elves, Elsas, Cindy Lous, Olafs and Kristoff’s can we get on the ice) 🎅 and to round off the evening, there will be an ice hockey exhibition game from 6.30 pm

Enjoy a burger from the BBQ, grab some Ghluwein or Hot Chocolate and Mince Pies from the Bothy Box. Toast a marshmallow on the Fire Pit🔥 write your name with Sparklers
.
Entry to Winter Chill Fest is Free. BBQ and Refreshments are donation-based, and funds raised will support BSSSA (Badenoch and Strathspey Snowsports Association) and Aviemore Ice Rink

Join us in festive fancy dress for the Santa Skate and skate for £3. For all other skate sessions, usual session fees apply.

Looking to make the move from summer to winter hiking? Our guided Cairngorm winter walking weekends are all about having amazing experiences in spectacular places. Join us and a bunch of other enthusiastic walkers for a memorable weekend in the mountains.

This two day guided experience will take place in the Cairngorms National Park. On the first day we will look at planning a day out (weather and avalanche forecasts, route choices, equipment selection), before heading out on the hills for a refresher on the skills required to travel in the mountains in winter. On our second day we will aim to tackle one of the larger peaks in the park, such as Ben Macdui, the second highest mountain in the UK.

Looking to make the move from summer to winter hiking? Our guided Cairngorm winter walking weekends are all about having amazing experiences in spectacular places. Join us and a bunch of other enthusiastic walkers for a memorable weekend in the mountains.

This two day guided experience will take place in the Cairngorms National Park. On the first day we will look at planning a day out (weather and avalanche forecasts, route choices, equipment selection), before heading out on the hills for a refresher on the skills required to travel in the mountains in winter. On our second day we will aim to tackle one of the larger peaks in the park, such as Ben Macdui, the second highest mountain in the UK.

Our guided Highland winter walking week is a great way of experiencing some of the best Scottish Munros.

The week starts in the Cairngorms with a day of winter skills training, looking at winter planning, equipment and practical skills such as crampon and ice axe use and ice axe arresting. On the second and third day we will attempt to tackle some of the highest mountains in the UK, such as Ben Macdui and Cairngorm itself.

On the fourth day we have a scheduled rest day on which people can spend time traveling from the Cairngorms to Lochaber/Fort William. Along the way there are various tourist attractions and tours which can be used to rest and relax, such as a distillery tour.

The final part of the week starts with an attempt to climb Ben Nevis, at 1345m the highest mountain in the UK, then on the last day a shorter mountain walk to round off the week before everyone travels home.

Day 1 Cairngorms Skills

Day 2 Cairngorm Summit

Day 3 Cairngorm Summit

Day 4 Rest/Travel Day

Day 5 West Coast Summit

Day 6 West Coast Summit

A degree of flexibility is important in winter, so this plan is subject to change based on weather and conditions during the week.

Join us for an atmospheric torchlight parade through Grantown on Spey. This event will be led by the Fireservice followed by Santa and his trusty reindeer. There will be carols in The Square and mulled wine and mince pies for sale.

Fireworks at the bells to celebrate the New Year