Cairngorms 4 species summer workshop – Osprey, Pine Marten, Dolphin, Badger

Cairngorms 4 species summer workshop – Osprey, Pine Marten, Dolphin, Badger

Location: Aviemore
Duration: 2 days
Time of Year: June to August
Price: £750

Within the Scottish Highlands, the Cairngorms National Park forms a huge area and is the UK’s largest National Park, covering 4,528 sq km (1748 sq miles). It is twice the size of the Lake District National Park and bigger than the whole of Luxemburg, to give you some scale of the landmass covered.

The park covers parts of Aberdeenshire, Moray, Highland, Angus and Perth and Kinross, with Inverness being the nearest large city to the boundary of the park.

Over this 2 day tour we will focus on 4 species that are local to this region, we will spend a combination of time in 3 different hides and out doing short walks to look for the key species.

Highlights of this tour are photographing the incredible Ospreys diving for fish just outside the hide at eye level to the water, it is a truly incredible experience. We will also have hide sessions looking for Pine Marten and Badger and finally we will take a trip to a local hot spot for dolphins where they can be seen chasing salmon in the shallows.

Day 1:
Early Morning – Osprey:
We will get up very early and do a morning of Osprey photography. These hides are the best in the UK for photographing the Ospreys swooping down to catch fish from the lochan. The hides are sunk in to the ground and the hide owner Gordon has been working with these ospreys for years and his hide rightly has the deserved status as the best in the UK. You will have the chance to capture unique images of the ospreys catching fish and exiting the water only meters away from the hide. It is a truly magical experience.

Lens from 100mm to 300mm, you can use a tripod or shoot handheld.

Afternoon/Evening Hide – Pine Marten
Exclusive use (just our group) of a fantastic private Pine Marten photography hide for Pine Martens in daylight. It probably is the best place in the UK to get daytime Pine Marten Images. There are a male and female that visit the hide regularly and they are also often joined dependent on the time of year by kits. The hide is located on private property on the edge of a woodland. Light is usually good throughout the day and the Pine Martens can generally be seen in the open in a variety of different settings.

Lens from 300mm to 500mm, no tripod required as the hide has a bench along the front and has plated gimbal heads and bean bags in the hide.

The hide is a short walk from the parking place up a gentle flat sloping field so a pair of boots and a lightweight jacket is all that’s required.

There is always something to photograph from the hide while waiting for the Pine Martens. Sparrowhawks have appeared regularly, a Goshawk has even visited on occasions and has been photographed from this hide, there are always Red Squirrels jumping around and lots of woodland birds making it constantly busy.

There is also the possibility of Roe Deer and Red Fox, making this hide an outstanding choice to spend some time capturing images of some of Scotland’s most iconic species.

Day 2:
Daytime – Dolphins

We will spend the day at Chanonry Point. Departure time will depend on the tides. If time permits, we will look for Golden Eagle, White Tailed Eagle, Red Kite, Merlin and Peregrine in a local hotspot and will look for Slavonian grebes in another local hotspot (we will aim to do this either on the way to the dolphins or on the way back). Once we arrive at Chanonry Point we will walk down to the beach and wait to see if we can see the dolphins. This is the best location in the UK to see dolphins from the mainland. They often swim past the point in large pods and sometimes come into the shallows hunting fish. If we are very lucky, we will get them breaching and playing just meters from the beach. This is also a brilliant place to photograph Arctic Terns and Common Terns.

Lens from 100mm to 500mm, Tripod can be used or camera can be handheld.

Evening – Badgers
We will spend an evening at one of the local community run badger hides, the hides are well established very close to ancient badger sets and we will have the opportunity to spend the evening watching them as they forage for food. It is possible to get images of them in daylight and the evening light here can be amazing.

Lens from 100mm to 300mm, handheld only.

As with all my workshops I will be on hand to give advice on settings and various different shots that can be achieved. The group will be a maximum of 4 people so there will be plenty of opportunities to work with everyone one on one if required.

The price is £750pp for the 2 days min/max 4pax per day (If there are less than 4 people then a £200pp additional charge will be applicable).

The price includes the hide booking exclusively for our group. (These hides are amongst the best in the UK but also amongst the most expensive).

The price does not include accommodation. It also excludes all meals.

If this workshop is of interest then please check for dates and availability using the button below. If there are no available or suitable dates then contact me to be added to the interested list and I will come back to you with possible dates and more information.

If you would like a tailor-made private trip, then please get in touch.
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