Welcome to our Ranger Series – where we catch up with one of the many Rangers who work within the Cairngorms National Park.
We were delighted to be joined by Mark Johnston from Glenlivet Estate. Read on to find out how Mark became a Ranger, his top tips for looking after this special place and his favourite days.
Thank you for your time Mark!
Tell us a bit about you and where you work.
I’m Head Ranger on Glenlivet Estate. It is around 23,000 hectares, with around 30 farm tenants, a sporting tenancy, and many private businesses and residents. We also have lots of places to come and visit and to see nice things.
What is your job – what do you do?
The Ranger Service has four strands to it:
We look after visitor infrastructure including 100 miles of way-mark trails, car parks, gates, bridges and everything that goes with that. We keep this to a good standard and make sure people know they’re welcome and where they’re going.
We also do a bit on biodiversity. This is limited as we have less ‘in-hand’ land but we do monitoring and have worked on some exciting projects like the twin flower translocation project. We are also monitoring Black Grouse, doing early morning Wader surveys and facilitate the Raptor surveys.
Community engagement is also a big part of what we do. It includes working with educational settings, from Nursery Schools up to Universities. We also work with specific groups who come to the Estate. A great example is the Wilderness Foundation, who bring young people from across Scotland who are having a hard time in school, so they can experience the benefits of the outdoors. We also work with the community associations with the local development trust.
Finally, we are the front-facing bit of the Estate, if people want to come and knock on the door with an issue or a suggestion, that falls to the Ranger Service too.
How did you get into this line of work?
I have a really varied background. I started out as a credit controller, then a lorry driver, moving on to working with young people in care in Secure Centres. This was rewarding but it was really hard work – at some stage I asked myself if I could do this for another 40 years…and the honest answer was no, but I had always been interested in the outdoors, the environment and working with young people.
I went on the study for a Countryside Management Degree, when I enrolled the Head Lecturer said that I needed to volunteer or there no sense doing this degree – on its own was not worth anything! It was great advice – I volunteered in a variety of settings and my first seasonal jobs were through the contacts that I’d made.
What is the best thing about your job and the most challenging?
The best thing about my job and the most challenging it’s the same answer: people!
We have wonderful people at Glenlivet…
We work with a National Park Volunteer Ranger Service and it is really inspiring to see the time and effort they put in.
Our local community and community associations are invested: they are positive and want to help make where they live better.
Finally, young people are one of the best parts of the job, their enthusiasm, perspective, involvement in taking a bit of ownership. All if these people are inspiring.
And then the negative side of the answer – a very small percentage of people who don’t take their litter home, have open fires where and when they shouldn’t, especially when there is an extreme fire risk, and who don’t look after their dogs responsibly.
Image: The best days can include the tastiest dishes. When it’s time to refuel, cooking on a gas stove helps protect the natural environment of the National Park from the risk of wildfires.
What do you love most about living and working in Cairngorms National Park?
This is an easy answer. I love being outdoors and I love having the opportunity to do lots of different active things. I live in Tomintoul and within an hour you’ve got the coast, and all the opportunities that it offers, and mountains, open bodies of water, amazing wildlife and scenery on the doorstep.
I could probably spend my life exploring the area around Tomintoul without even getting in a car…but if I do want something different, I can jump in the car and I don’t have to go too far.
Do you have a favorite season? And if so, what makes it extra special for you?
I don’t have a favorite season. I’ve got a favorite month: May. It took me a few years to realise this, but May is when everything comes back. The summer migrants, Black Grouse, Waders, the sounds of Lapwing and the Curlews, the scrub is full of Sedge Warblers, singing away, and Cuckoos calling in the background – it feels like everything is alive and vibrant. The flowers are coming back, the trees are looking good…so definitely…May is my favorite month!
Do you have a favorite view in the National Park? And if you do, what’s the best time of year to take it in?
My favorite view in the National Park is staying loyal to Glenlivet – it is the Victor Gaffney viewpoint on the Tomintoul Circular Walk. The walk starts and finishes in the village but when you sit on the bench at Victor Gaffney and look across at Ben A’an it is just wonderful.
It’s a beautiful morning. Where would you choose to go for your favorite walk or bike ride?
We have an ebike and I can be out at the foot of Ben A’an within 45 minutes. The whole cycle from Tomintoul is just stunning, cycling along the river. You can venture up Ben A’an or even cycle all the way to Braemar…leaving the house in Tomintoul and finishing in Braemar the next day – this is going to be one of our summer adventures.
Have you got a ‘must do’ recommendation for a visitor to the Cairngorms?
Tomintoul and Glenlivet has an International Dark Sky Park and it’s an amazing place to see the sky at night. We have dedicated Dark Sky events between September and the end of April. If you can’t get to an event, we’ve got the skyhide just on the edge of Tomintoul which is a wonderful place.
It’s stunning to sit in the skyhide with the stars and sky framed – its great for people interested in astronomy, but equally brilliant for people who just want to look up…and it’s not going to solve your problems but there is something about it that makes you realize how small you are in comparison to everything. It can make everything feel better for a short time.
The Cairngorms is home to lots of special wildlife and nature. What things do you do to help to take care and protect it?
To take care of the wildlife and nature we need to know what’s there, so we monitor the biodiversity on the Estate to inform management decisions.
We have this special area which we want people to come and see – and to do so responsibly. We provide information, both online and on the ground, and infrastructure to support this. Our 19 car parks all say welcome, have a map board with information on how to look after the place and enjoy yourself.
Going back to the tiny 1% – we tidy up the mess after people who don’t tidy up after themselves. Our Ranger Services and the National Park Ranger Service do a lot of work but there are also firefighters, locals and gamekeepers who get involved when things go wrong too.
We are very much part of that team who look out for what’s going on and try to keep things special here.
We love sharing the Cairngorms with visitors and it’s a special place for people who live far beyond Scotland. Tell us two things that you that visitors can do to help take care of this beautiful spot.
I’m going to cheat and do three things.
The overarching thing for anyone is to get to know the Scottish Outdoor Access Code and think of it as a tool to help us all to be responsible and enjoy these places, rather than something that gives you the right to do whatever you want with the ‘right to roam’. It is information to help you enjoy your stay, and help you not have a negative impact when you’re there.
On Glenlivet, people’s behaviour and management of their dogs is one of our main issues and there are two elements – dogs that aren’t under control which can impact ground nesting birds, wildlife, and livestock. The second issue is dog mess that owners refuse to clean up. It’s your responsibility. You are bringing your dog to this wonderful place; a brilliant place to walk dogs, but please pick up after your dog, bag it, take it home and put it in the bin.
I say this as a dog owner. Sometimes it’s not easy, but start out with the principle that it is your responsibility to keep your dog under control, pick up and leave no trace.
The final thing that is really topical at the minute is fires. Since the end of March, we’ve been probably been on some sort of high fire risk warning for about 75% of the time. Sometimes we all set out on a trip with an idea of what that trip is going to be. You might be thinking, I’m going to go to the National Park, with lovely scenery and I’m going to cook on a barbecue or have a campfire…it’s this romantic notion, and it is something we all like to do.
But before you even leave the house, you need to think if this is the right thing to do. Particularly when there is high fire risk, it’s a blanket message that barbecues and open fires are not permitted. There’s lots of other ways to enjoy yourself!
Do you have any tips for people looking to spot wildlife whilst being respectful of the wildlife’s home and not disrupting them?
If you love wildlife you can get caught up in the moment, especially if you’ve seen something you haven’t seen before. You can harass the wildlife to get a better view. The best way to experience wildlife when you spot something is to settle down, at a good distance, and not let the wildlife know you’re there – you will experience far more. This is especially true if you have your camera – resist the urge for a better shot. Just enjoy it for what it is.
We had a TV crew out a couple of weeks ago and we were filming Black Grouse – I was very clear before they came that keeping a distance from the Lek was essential. There was obviously a little bit of disappointment. By the time they left, the filmmaker really bought into the idea, she felt the message that it was better to show this wildlife in its environment without disturbing it, or causing any damage, was the most important outcome. This was really positive.
What do you think visitors can do to have a positive impact on the landscape of the National Park?
Come with that intention of leaving no trace. Come, enjoy it, don’t cause any damage and take everything away. When you’re sharing photographs and your trip, share that message as well: how special it is and how important it is to keep it that way.
I’ve also seen things that amaze me, in a good way – people do really positive things. Visitors in camper vans can have a bad reputation but I’ve had several incidents on the Estate where I have found camper vanning visitors walking along the trails with litter pickers and bags of waste…not only taking their own rubbish home, but other peoples too! So try and be a good person – I think that’s what a lot of this comes down to!
Have you got a random fact about the Cairngorms?
Until last year, Tomintoul and Glenlivet Dark Sky Park was the most northerly dark sky park in the whole world, which blew my mind…last year Norway took the crown as as Øvre Pasvik National Park was given Dark Sky Park status! But we are still the most Northerly Dark Sky Park in the UK and that is pretty special!
Finally, describe your perfect day in the Cairngorms.
Like a lot of people who live here I would start at KJ’s Bothy Bakery for coffee, cake and wonderful sandwiches. Followed by paddling a stretch of the Spey in a canoe – its wonderful to experience the landscape from a different perspective. I would finish up back on Glenlivet Estate for an evening dog walk on the Drumin Circular Walk, wandering by Drumin Castle and then the river side.
Mark Johnston from Glenlivet Estate, which is managed by Crown Estate Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Ministers.
We spoke to Mark in Mid May – his favourite month of the year!
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