Travel: Dazzling winter lights on a Cairngorms staycation

The term “staycation” gets thrown around a lot, especially in the post-Covid years. Last weekend, we headed on one of our own.

Being close to the Cairngorms National Park is one of the things that drew my boyfriend, Aidan, and me to Inverness, where we now live. We have the city buzz but in under an hour we can be in the hills with no-one else in sight.

When we first moved, we spent almost every weekend on walks and hikes, but we got busier and the novelty wore off. This winter, we are determined to get a little bit of that excitement back.

What better time to do it, too, as it is arguably one of the most spectacular times of year to spend time in the area, with snow on the hills and crisp blue-sky days making your breath dance in the breeze.

© Supplied by The Boat Country Inn

We arrived at The Boat Country Inn in Boat of Garten, our home for the weekend, on Friday night. The warmth of the fire hit us as soon as we entered in from the chill. The decor is everything you want from a Highland hotel – it has the tartan carpets, leather sofas and rich colours, but it still feels modern and fresh.

Our double room was cosy, with views out over the Strathspey Railway line and on to the mountains beyond. We had dinner in the hotel on both Friday and Saturday night, which was a relief as there were so many things we wanted to try. They had everything from classic pub grub such as steak pie and fish and chips to more refined dishes such as pork belly and lamb rump.

Boat of Garten is a great base for exploring the area because it’s easy to head in various directions from there. For the first stop on our action-packed trip, we headed south to Bothy Bikes in Kingussie. We had e-bikes booked for the day and owner David was incredibly helpful in suggesting a route for us and making sure we got to grips with the bikes.

Our route took us to Tromie Bridge, Drumguish, Glen Feshie, Feshie Bridge and Loch Insh, taking in Ruthven Barracks, bothies, glorious mountain views and a fair few friendly ponies along the way. We stopped in at the Old Post Office Cafe in Kincraig for a steaming bowl of soup and hot chocolates – which were overflowing with so much cream they looked like they were alive.

I don’t know how I will get back on a regular bike now my eyes have been opened to the joys of an electric one. It felt so good approaching a hill with ease rather than dread. It’s worth noting you should wrap up warmer than you think you need to if you are heading out on e-bikes as you don’t work as hard as you would on a regular one.

After another cosy evening in the hotel, which included a blissful wine by the fire before dinner, we were thrilled to wake to the first snowfall of the season. It added a whole new level of magic to our wintery weekend in the Cairngorms.

First up for the day was archery at Cairngorms Activities. I didn’t have high hopes for how well I’d do with my shocking aim, but I needn’t have worried as manager Craig was great at offering helpful tweaks when our arrows soared into the grass behind the targets. They offer a wide range of activities at the centre near Grantown-on-Spey, including laser tag, frisbee golf and things like gorge walking in the warmer months.

© Landmark Forest Adventure Park

I will admit I was nervous about our next activity. Aidan had been clay-pigeon shooting at Rothiemurchus before, but it was never something I considered doing myself. Our instructor, Adam, made me feel entirely at ease though. We worked our way around four different target presentations, learning new techniques and growing more confident as we went. We had really interesting conversations about the negative stigma surrounding shooting as a recreational sport, too.

A little more within my comfort zone was the new Ancient Forest Twi-Lights experience at Landmark Forest Adventure Park in Carrbridge. If you have been to the Enchanted Forest near Pitlochry before, this is like the Highland version. The team has transformed its woodland trail into a festive fantasy, illuminated by more than 50,000 lights and effects.

We headed up into the trees, in awe of the lights and music that accompanied them perfectly. The hot chocolate spot halfway around is genius – you can even toast marshmallows over an open fire. We both felt 10 times more festive after this evening, and again the snow was magical.

After all the excitement of the weekend, it was refreshing to know we didn’t have far to travel home. We were back, unpacked and cosied up on the sofa in enough time to unwind before starting a new week of work.

There is more than enough fun to be had close to home. You just have to stop and give places you usually take for granted a second look.

P.S. If you have time on your visit, make sure to pop into the farm shop at Rothiemurchus. They have a lovely selection of products and produce from local makers, and lovely decorations at this time of year. The Barn next door is great for a spot of lunch or a coffee and cake after a chilly walk. Make sure to get a table by the huge stove.

Factfile

• To plan your visit to The Cairngorms National Park this winter, go to visitcairngorms.com/winter
• The Boat Country Inn is currently running a one-night winter stay deal from £109 for dinner, bed and breakfast, boathotel.co.uk
• Archery at Cairngorms Activities is £25 per adult, £19 per child, cairngormsactivities.co.uk
• Full day e-bike hire from Bothy Bikes (including helmets and route map) is £60, bothybikes.co.uk
• Clay shooting experience at Rothiemurchus is £58 per person, rothiemurchus.net
• Landmark Twi-Lights event is £15 per adult, £10 per child or senior, £5 for toddlers, landmarkpark.co.uk