Posts for August, 2025

Across mainland Europe, the Eurasian lynx is staging a comeback. Freed from the pressures of unsustainable hunting and benefiting from a softening of public attitudes, this enigmatic feline has been successfully reintroduced into several countries and is now growing in numbers and expanding its range.

This special Learning Day will explore what a reintroduction in Scotland might look like, what challenges we might face and how we might manage coexistence.

We will also explore what it would be like to walk in the lynx’s footsteps once again, as we sharpen our senses to forgotten cues and learn how to identify and track pine martens, wildcats, badgers and foxes, comparing their behaviours and signs to those of a lynx. We will learn to think both like a lynx and like the lynx’s prey, experiencing the landscape through their eyes, ears and noses, as we seek to re-imagine how our woodlands would feel in the presence of this apex predator.

The Learning Day will cover:
– An introduction to lynx ecology and behaviour
– What a Scottish reintroduction might look like
– How a lynx reintroduction could benefit Scotland
– Remaining barriers to a lynx reintroduction and how they might be overcome
– Thinking like a lynx – tracking skills and the art of silent stalking
– Living with lynx – a fresh look at life (and death) through the eyes of a roe deer

Music by Purcell, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Vaughan Williams and others, sung by ten-year-old Jerome Collins who sings with the boys’ choir Libera. His accompanist will be Professor Martin Ashley, teacher, researcher and author on boys’ singing voices, who will also tell us more about the music Jerome will be singing. A lovely event not to be missed. Admission free (donations welcome). Drinks in the church hall from 7 onwards, concert starts at 7.30.

Cairngorm Community Cinema’s next event brings you the new film by Andrew DeYoung, starring Paul Rudd and Tim Robinson, “Friendship”.

A bizarre comedy tackling why it is so hard to make friends. Suburban dad Craig falls hard for his charismatic new neighbour, as Craig’s attempts to make an adult male friend threaten to ruin both of their lives.

Doors 6.30pm.
Special guest TBC.

See you there!

Join Lynn Cassells, co-owner of Lynbreck Croft, for an immersive learning day focused on planting, growing and working with trees, surrounded by the inspiring landscapes of the Cairngorms National Park.

As climate changes accelerates and weather extremes become more frequent, the need to create diverse, resilient landscapes grows ever more important. Trees play a critical role in the landscape, providing essential shade, shelter and forage, as well as slowing the flow of water off the hills, maintaining soil health and enabling food production.

This immersive learning day provides a unique opportunity to find out everything you want to know about tree planting, tree protection and woodland management at the multi-award-winning Lynbreck Croft, owned by Lynn Cassells and Sandra Baer. With 28 years of combined practical experience, Lynn and Sandra are creating a landscape at Lynbreck where trees and food production go hand in hand.

With practical hands-on learning opportunities and Lynn’s expert guidance, this course will help you to observe and understand the varied ways that trees are nurtured, managed and utilised on a working croft, emphasising their central place within a landscape that benefits nature, climate and people.

Please come and join the Clan Macpherson Association’s talk in the Ballroom at the Duke of Gordon hotel at 13.30 on Friday 1 August by Dr Jim and Mairi Macpherson about James Macpherson (1736-96) – The Historian
Hear how James Macpherson, world-famous for translating and editing the tales of Ossian, was also an historian and a key figure of the Enlightenment

The Big Bike Film Night is back in Boat of Garten on its mission – bringing the best short cycling films from around the world together for you.

Showcasing 2.5 hours of riveting bike films that have everything a cycle-centric audience could want – action, drama, humour, and plenty of inspiration. The evening is unashamedly and utterly, utterly, utterly designed and devised to delight the two-wheel devotee!

The 2025 treasure chest of films includes:
• an exhilarating film that redefines what’s possible on a gravel bike on technically challenging terrains
• a celebration of grit, camaraderie, and the beauty of “Type 2 Fun”, this film is an ode to the ride, not the finish line
• a captivating film that promises to take you on a journey of compassion, community, and the joy of cycling
• an uplifting film that follows a group of adventurers who gather to cycle from town out to the local Ski Field and back, carrying all their gear, with the purpose to raise awareness about the climate impact that comes with travelling and adventuring
• an inspiring mountain bike ride through back country Queenstown, New Zealand that is both poetic and meaningful
• a life-changing experience for a group of friends who undertake a trip to a bothie in the Scottish Highlands to show what can be achieved by people with disabilities in relation to having adventures
• a film, set in Pakistan, that celebrates the art of “winging it” and how travelling by bicycle and the power of exploration can obliterate preconceptions and contribute to understanding others
• and a classic Kiwi story of a young trail blazer participating in a gruelling six-day mountain bike rally, exploring his boundaries with his own signature entirely unsupported style – fueled by a penchant for chocolate milk and a single-minded approach to making it happen ALL in the mix!

These short films are a great reminder of why we love to ride our bike; with stories that captivate us, stories that move us, and most importantly of all – inspiring us to get out and ride. All celebrate the fun, adventure, and joy that cycling enables.
So…listen to the voice inside you; it’s telling you to go. Grab your mates, GO ON… grab your bike and come along for the ride!!

PREVIOUS ATTENDEE’S COMMENTS:
“One of the most inspiring events of the year”
“The Big Bike Film Night is always a wonderful, eclectic, wacky mix of films and I love it!”
“If you haven’t experienced the cinematic excellence of The Big Bike Film Night – then YOU MUST!!!”

Doors and Bar open from 6.15pm, Film starts at 7pm.
Licenced bar | cash/card sales

A One Act play about the haunting memories of John Roy Stuart – memories of Love, war and the Battle of Culloden. His story and poetry told by Michael Nevin. With musical accompaniment from Sheena Farquhar singing, Bill Tayler on the harp and Jason Faulkner on the pipes.

Step back in time and uncover the mystery of the Picts with the Glenlivet & Inveravon Heritage and Dark Sky Ranger. This engaging talk and tour will introduce you to the Pictish people, their unique art, and the symbol stones that continue to inspire centuries after they were carved.

Set within the ancient and atmospheric site of Inveravon Church—an important place of worship and pilgrimage for generations—we’ll closely examine the intricate carvings on the four remarkable Pictish stones discovered here. You’ll learn how these enigmatic symbols fit into a wider cultural story and how the Picts helped lay the foundations of modern Scotland.

This is an opportunity to connect with Scotland’s ancient past, surrounded by the stunning scenery of Speyside.

Practical Information:

Meeting point: Access to Inveravon Church and burial ground is via a single-track road off the A95, about half a mile north of the entrance to Ballindalloch Castle. Follow the brown tourist sign for the Inveravon Pictish Stones.

Parking: Available at the bottom of the drive and in front of the church building.

Family-friendly: Young visitors are often fascinated by the Picts and are warmly encouraged to attend. All children and youth under 16 attend free.

Inveravon Church is currently under threat of closure and sale by the Church of Scotland. The local community is working hard to preserve it as a heritage centre and community hub. Your support helps keep this unique site alive and accessible for future generations.

Please note that toilet facilities are not available on site. Public toilets are available in Cragganmore at Ballindalloch Station on the Speyside Way or in Aberlour.

Well behaved dogs may attend but must be leashed.

This event is generously funded by Foundation Scotland from the Dorenell Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund.

Our regular stallholders will be there to tell us about what they are doing to push the transition to a sustainable future, and to inspire us to join them in taking action. They are too many to name individually, but include representatives from the building industry, home energy advisors, wind farm developers, wildlife champions, experts in waste management and the circular economy, active travel and local farmers and food experts. It will again be a great family day out, and there will be something of interest whatever your stage of life – wooden toys and creative child’s play, help with keeping your home energy costs down, right through to willow coffins and natural burial. As well as our range of stalls, we will again have a programme of ‘Tent Talks’ running throughout the Show. This year we are asking our stallholders to feature the number 5: five sustainability achievements, pledges, priorities or future goals, or their 5-year sustainability plan. Maybe you too will be inspired to think of 5 things that you can do!

The Braemar Folk Festival returns for it’s fifth year with an absolutely stellar line up of artists performing evening concerts in the stunning atmosphere of St Margaret’s Braemar as well as fringe events in various cosy venues around the village from foot stomping sessions to instrumental workshops.

Further details and the line up will be posted in due course. Keep an eye on the website!