Posts for August, 2024

This event is organised by the Grant Arms Hotel, and you can join our wildlife guide Nick Baker at Insh Marshes Reserve looking for some of our local and iconic wildlife.

We may move between the three hides and take a walk along some of the trails taking in woodland, heather moorland and marsh.

Potential sightings include Curlew, Lapwing, Redshank and Snipe, Goldeneye, Roe Deer, woodland birds on the feeders as well as Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff, Red Squirrel, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Hen Harrier and passing Ospreys and Eagles.

Meet at the car park RSPB Insh Marshes by 2pm.

Limited to 15 people.

Pre-booking essential, please ring our Reception Team on 01479 872526 to avoid disappointment.

£15 per person payable upon booking.

Credit James Stevens

Join our wildlife guide NICK BAKER for a guided stroll, appr 2 hours, from the Grant Arms Hotel through Anagach Woods looking for some of our local and iconic wildlife.

Possible sightings include Blue, Coal, Crested, Great and Long Tailed Tits, Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Chaffinch, Crossbill, Goldcrest, Robin, Siskin, Treecreeper, Wren, Great-Spotted Woodpecker, Song Thrush, Buzzard, Red Squirrel and Roe Deer.

Limited to 10 people.

Pre-booking essential, please ring our Reception Team on 01479 872526 to avoid disappointment.

Meet in the Reception Area by 9am.

Image credit Graham Niven

Are you ready to turn your dream home into a reality? Join us at Scottish Self-Build and Renovation (Highlands) 2024, kindly sponsored by Filpumps, on Saturday, 21 September 2024, from 10am to 4pm at Macdonald Aviemore Resort, Aviemore. Whether you’re planning to build, renovate, or embark on smaller home improvement projects, we’ve got you covered!

Why Attend:
Discover a one-stop hub for all the expertise you need to bring your project to life. From architects to building materials, energy efficiency to bespoke furniture, we’ve got it all under one roof – click here to view the floor plan.

Expertise on Hand:
Architects, Cost, Planning and Structural Advice
Building Materials
Energy Efficiency, Grants and Incentives
Ground Works
Heating and Cooling
Insulation
Kitchen, Bathrooms and Interior Design
Private Water Systems
Timber Frame
Windows and Doors … and many more!

Save the Date:
Date: Saturday, 21 September 2024
Open Times: 10 am – 4 pm
Venue: Macdonald Aviemore Resort, Aviemore

Embodying Braemar Literary Festival’s celebration of text in all its creative forms, British genre-splicing supergroup LYR take to the stage to perform an emotive and atmospheric set, featuring a powerful combination of the written and spoken word entwined with soaring original compositions.

With a talented and highly respected line-up comprising author and Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, singer-songwriter Richard Walters and multi-instrumentalist Patrick Pearson, LYR have carved out a unique place within the contemporary British music scene with two critically acclaimed albums Call in the Crash Team and The Ultraviolet Age to date.

Don’t miss this opportunity to experience LYR’s aural and lyrical talents in the intimate setting of Braemar.

Join National Trust for Scotland staff for a guided tour of the historic 19th Century lodge and buildings. This includes seeing inside the Chapel and Stag Ballroom, which are not normally open to the public.

The tour finishes in the Dining Room, where you can enjoy tea/coffee and biscuits (included in the price) in this historic setting….and where can ask us questions about Mar Lodge that we haven’t already answered.

PLEASE NOTE that this is a buildings-only tour of Mar Lodge. If you are looking for the extended tour, which includes an hour walk outside, please see the ‘Afternoon Walk & Tour’ on our Eventbrite page.

The tour starts at 2pm in the Mar Lodge courtyard, around the rear of the lodge itself, and finishes at 3:30pm.

Tickets are £7.50 per adult; children (under 16) are free; NTS members £5 per adult.

Booking is essential as places are limited. Call 01339 741276 for more information or simply book your place here on Eventbrite.

We will send you directions in your order confirmation.

Don your detective hat and join us for family-focussed Wildlife CSI sessions at the Learning Hive at Highland Wildlife Park. Follow the clues to discover what happened and who (or what!) has been sneaking around.

Our workshops can be attended for a small ‘pay what you can’ donation and due to limited capacity must be booked in advance. Tickets need to be booked for both adults and children attending. This event is appropriate for all ages and under 16s need to be accompanied by an adult.

Please note, your workshop ticket does not permit entry into Highland Wildlife Park during the daytime and tickets will need to be purchased for the date of your workshop if not a valid RZSS member.

Step 1:
Book onto a workshop here on Eventbrite

Step 2:
Book your day tickets to Highland Wildlife Park (if you’re not an RZSS member)

We’re excited to be launching our much-loved nature photography workshops at Highland Wildlife Park this year, with renowned professional photographer Laurie Campbell.

The workshops consist of tutorials as well as a tour of Highland Wildlife Park taking in a number of different settings and animals – big and small, stripes and all. Laurie will be with you for the entire day, giving personal attention to each participant as well as sharing many tricks of the trade.

Laurie was a keeper at Edinburgh Zoo before embarking on a highly successful thirty-year career as a nature photographer and has now returned as the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) nature photographer in residence. He has over thirty-five years’ experience in leading photographic workshops, has illustrated and authored several books – including the bestselling ‘RSPB Guide to Bird & Nature Photography’ – and has won twenty-three awards in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition. In 2014 he was awarded the RSPB’s Lifetime Achievement Award. A selection of his work can be viewed at lauriecampbell.com

Please read the full Nature Photography Workshop Terms and Conditions here before booking a place.

For further information please contact events@rzss.org.uk

Ever considered that your future might be here in the Cairngorms? Do you love the idea of working outdoors, dream of an office with a view, want to contribute to the community and crafts that draw nearly 2 million visitors to this part of the world every year, or simply value the perfect work life balance where adventure awaits? If so, you can find out about all the opportunities that are here for you by joining us on Thursday 12th September at Macdonald Aviemore Resort.

This informal event is open to everyone living and working in and around the Cairngorms. Whether you’re just leaving school and exploring your next steps, are actively looking for work, are in further or higher education and want to find out more about the opportunities and possibilities post-study, or are further down your career pathway and are looking to upskill or reskill – this event is for you!

Come along and find out about jobs that you might never have considered or even knew existed. With inspirational speakers, practical demonstrations, deep dive workshops, live job vacancies and more, you’ll hear from industry experts about all the possible careers on your doorstep, how to access them and current opportunities which may lead you to a fulfilling career.

We recognise that rural careers in a place like the Cairngorms are much broader than careers just within traditional industries . That’s why we’re excited to be joined by representatives from a wide range of industries including Environment and Conservation, Digital Technology, Engineering, Manufacturing, Food & Drink, Hospitality, Energy and Renewables, Forestry and Land management. A full list of exhibitors and workshop timetable will be released in early September.

Sign up today to secure your free space!

You’ll find us in the Osprey Arena at Macdonald Aviemore Resort – follow the signs for the Conference Centre. The venue is located in the centre of Aviemore with good public transport links, free onsite parking and ammenities nearby for refreshments.

Join us in Abernethy Forest for a behind the scenes masterclass with Cairngorms Connect Venison.

* Cairngorms Connect deer stalkers will talk about the methods, equipment, ethics, and sustainability of deer stalking for conservation management and will give a hands on demonstration of lardering the deer.
* A local butcher will then teach us about preparing all the different cuts of meat and what they are best used for, and you can even have a go yourself.
* We will then relocate to the tepee at the Dell of Abernethy for a live cooking demo over the fire by a local professional chef. Discover creative venison dishes and different ways to incorporate venison easily into our diet.
* And finally, we’ll share a meal of delicious dishes at a long communal table.

Please note the exact location of the event will be provided upon booking.

It is important that all people have equal access to Cairngorms Connect events.

We don’t want finance to be a barrier to people attending and so have made some tickets available for free or by donation – please take advantage of this if you need to.

Donations go towards our ongoing community engagement work, supporting more people to connect with this landscape. We’re able to offer these ticket options thanks to funding from the Endangered Landscapes and Seascapes Programme.

We are happy to provide for your requirements, wherever possible eg. BSL interpreters, off-road wheelchairs, adapted bikes etc. If have any accessibility requirements, please get in touch.

Book your tickets now

We have a stellar line up for 2024 featuring sessions from renowned novelists, historians, artists, food writers and actors.

Discover more about each event via the links below and book your ticket. Please note tickets are nonrefundable.

Saturday, 21st September
10:00 Tom Parker Bowles in conversation with Matthew Fort

11:30 Kate Mosse on 30 Years of the Women’s Prize for Fiction

12:45 Jessie Burton in conversation with Vicki Perrin, CEO of The Queen’s Reading Room

14:00 Frances Morris and Fiona Bradley: The Life and Work of Artist Phyllida Barlow

15:30 In conversation with Jon Sopel – Renowned British Journalist – SOLD OUT

17:00 Ken Follett in conversation with Vicki Perrin, CEO of The Queen’s Reading Room

18:30 LYR

Sunday, 22nd September
10:00 Alan Cumming in conversation with Fiona Kennedy – SOLD OUT

11:30 Simon Armitage in conversation with Nick Barley

13:15 Jinny Blom

14:30 Discover Award-Winning Jinny Blom’s Garden at the Fife Arms – SOLD OUT

Food & Drink

Refresh between talks, with some tasty food in the village. If you’re in the mood for tea and scones or sandwiches, Gordon’s Tearoom, The Bothy or Hazelnut Patisserie are the perfect venues. For a heartier meal, book a table at The Flying Stag, and indulge in pub classics like fish and chips whilst enjoying live music and poetry in the evening, or visit Farquharson’s Bar and Kitchen located in the village. And when the day is done, head over to the Invercauld Mews Pub to enjoy a drink and chat about the days highlights with fellow bibliophiles.