Winter trekking vacation in Scotland, snowhole expedition

Planet

Although the Highland scenery is stunning, it's one of the less affluent areas of Britain. Our operation is entirely Highland based, both as a company and whilst delivering the vacations. With all our walking vacations & mountaineering courses we employ qualified local guides who live and operate in the Scottish Highlands. They're an integral part of the local community and they know the intricacies of the local mountains, about the wildlife, the local environmental issues, etc. Through employing local guides we maximise both your vacation experience and the benefit to the local economy at a time of the year when visitor numbers are low. We source as much produce as we can locally and we support a number of local business', both directly and indirectly. By taking a winter vacation you're very much helping the year round sustainability of the local economy.

During the winter months we maximise the use a wood Burning Stove to supplement the heating at our lodge - the overall efficiency of these stoves is superb, particularly when you consider the energy used in production of other fuels. Wood is a renewable fuel and doesn't introduce any further carbon into the carbon cycle as fossil fuels do. As part of our continuing commitment to environmentally responsible vacations we are currently in the process of installing a wood pellet boiler here at the lodge (our main base for our walking vacations) here in Scotland.

We are sponsors of the Cairngorm "Snow White" project and are currently working with the RSPB on a woodland scheme to sponsor.

People

All our staff are local and have extensive knowledge of the local area. If you trip includes a day off, or if you would like to extend your stay we will be very happy to advise you on alternative options in the area. We would encourage you to try the local restaurant a few doors down the road, which uses as much local produce as they can and has a very imaginative menu, along with creating their own ice cream delights. There are often local talks in the village hall which, in winter, can be all manor of subjects from travels around the world.

Day trips from our home base include: Loch Ness, Cawdor Castle, Culloden Moor battlefield (the visitor center there is really first rate); the reindeer center; the Wildlife Park (home to many Scottish Wild Cats) and many more opportunities including endless miles of off-road mountain biking and purpose built biking centers.