📌 Glenmore, Highland
★★★★★
The Scottish Highlands are home to the UK’s only free-ranging reindeer herd. Around 150 of them roam the northern Cairngorms, split between the hills around Glenmore Forest Park and the Glenlivet Estate further east (they cover a wide area – we once saw one on the summit of Bynack More). A roadside visitor centre near Loch Morlich contains a small exhibition about the deer, with an adjacent paddock allowing you to see a few of the animals for a small fee. However, the magic really happens a few miles south on the slopes below Cairn Gorm and Cairn Lochan. Here, on guided hill trips, you can spend an hour or more hanging out with a larger part of the herd, hand-feeding them and learning more about their lives from the herders – a wonderful and memorable experience, particularly if the weather is good. Hill trips involve a 20-40 minute walk (each way) from the nearest car park, with a further 45-minute hike required to reach the start point from the visitor centre if you don’t have your own transport.
🌍 Location
📌 By minor road at Glenmore, just to east of Loch Morlich. Visitor centre / paddock is at:
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NH 978097
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.166956,-3.691023
🚌 Bus to Glenmore Visitor Centre (for visitor centre / paddock only); it’s a 45-min walk from here to the hill trip meeting location
🚗 Car park at the visitor centre / paddock; it’s a 5-min drive from here to the hill trip meeting location
📝 Key info
⌚ Open most days except late January / early February, but see official website – pre-booking hill trips recommended
🎫 Hill trip: Paddock: £5.50 adult / £4.50 child
