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Cairngorm ranger guided walks (1 Viewer)

mjh73

mjh73

Well-known member
Australia
Re ranger walks on Cairngorm.

I'm visting from Australia at the end of June. I'm keen to see Dotterel and Ptarmigan, my 10 year old is keen to see everything. Seen advice elsewhere on BF to do a guided walk from the top.

There appear to be two options - four hours Coire An T-Sneachda or 2 hours Coire Cas Loop?

Has anyone done either of these walks and able to offer thoughts on whether the four hour work is worth the extra effort?

Thanks

mjh

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
 
Worth noting that the walks at the top will not be available from June 8th to July 8th due to closure of the funicular railway for maintenance. I'm not sure if the rangers do any from the bottom, but for Dotterel you would be looking at around a 5-6 hour walk, climbing up to the plateau from the car park.
 
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Please note, between the 4th June – 4th July whilst our Funicular Railway is undergoing some essential maintenance, we will only be able to offer the following guided walks:

4 HOUR WALK (COIRE AN T-SNEACHDA)

Join one of our Ranger/Walking Guides on an exploration into the Northern Corries. Explore the natural and human history of the landscape of the Cairngorms. There is a good chance of seeing Ptarmigan on this walk. This is a four hour walk, with some rough sections of path. You will need to bring a packed lunch or you can pre-order one to pick up from CairnGorm Mountain. You will also need a full waterproof jacket, waterproof trousers and stout footwear.

Available: Friday & Sunday



1-2 HOUR WALK (COIRE CAS LOOP)

Take a winding route through the lower levels of the ski area to explore the natural and human history of the Cairngorms. There is a good chance of seeing Red Grouse and Mountain Hare on the walk. Walk should last 1-2 hours. There will be some gentle slopes on good paths. You will need a waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers.

Available: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday
 
Unlikely you would get Dotterel from these, just Ptarmigan.


mjh73 said:
Please note, between the 4th June – 4th July whilst our Funicular Railway is undergoing some essential maintenance, we will only be able to offer the following guided walks:

4 HOUR WALK (COIRE AN T-SNEACHDA)

Join one of our Ranger/Walking Guides on an exploration into the Northern Corries. Explore the natural and human history of the landscape of the Cairngorms. There is a good chance of seeing Ptarmigan on this walk. This is a four hour walk, with some rough sections of path. You will need to bring a packed lunch or you can pre-order one to pick up from CairnGorm Mountain. You will also need a full waterproof jacket, waterproof trousers and stout footwear.

Available: Friday & Sunday



1-2 HOUR WALK (COIRE CAS LOOP)

Take a winding route through the lower levels of the ski area to explore the natural and human history of the Cairngorms. There is a good chance of seeing Red Grouse and Mountain Hare on the walk. Walk should last 1-2 hours. There will be some gentle slopes on good paths. You will need a waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers.

Available: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday
Click to expand...
 
Thanks. Might just go the 2 hour then and have a mooch on e-bird nearer the time for Dotterel sightings.
 
mjh73 said:
Thanks. Might just go the 2 hour then and have a mooch on e-bird nearer the time for Dotterel sightings.
Click to expand...

Note that eBird doesn’t seem to be particularly widely used in the UK, still useful but I wouldn’t rely on it too much for the latest gen
 
John_WA said:
Note that eBird doesn’t seem to be particularly widely used in the UK, still useful but I wouldn’t rely on it too much for the latest gen
Click to expand...

Most birders in the UK use the BTO BirdTrack....though I thought this data was now combined with eBird data?? Though as Dotterel are a "Schedule One" protected breeding bird, sightings/location data would not be public unfortunately on BirdTrack.
 
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*DISCLAIMER* I have plenty of mountain experience so 'wander aimlessly' was thoroughly tongue in cheek, although my last Scottish mountain experiences were about 20 years ago.
 
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