The Deer and the Dogs

It was not a great outlook when we opened the curtains this morning, the rain was tumbling down and the mist was rising. Not to worry, just get on with it. If you wait for fine weather here, you will never do anything.

Today we are off to the Cairngorm Mountains, south of where we are, about an hour and a bit drive. We are heading for the reindeer herd which has been re-established in Scotland. They are native to Scotland but had all been wiped out, now they are back and they can free range during the winter months. Their breeding is controlled so as not to overstock.

Our car GPS navigator, “Morag”, has seemed to want to take us on the most scenic routes and today was no different. What looked like a straight forward journey south on a fairly major road in fact became a trek across country, through winding country lanes, a few single track sections and some almost flooded crossings. Great fun, and it is good to see so much of the countryside. The downside is it does take a fair about of concentration.

The trip to the deer is all on foot once you reach the road end. It is organised into limited numbers and it is a short trek to above the tree line to where the herd is. The guides are hand feeding a couple of young ones and there is some food to encourage them to come and say “hello”. They are certainly not at all wary of us, and as we have seen when visiting Sweden, they are easily domesticated.

The weather by now was awful. Heavier than just a mizzle rain, and a cold driving wind. We were well rugged up, and as the time passed with the deer, the weather actually improved. It was a wonderful experience.

Next was lunch in an industral estate, next to a funeral directors. Morag (of Ian and Morag fame, and not to be confused with our GPS) had recommended a bakery run by a New Zealander. They do commercial baking but also have an outlet where we got some focaccias and a chocolate and caramel slice. A short trip to a park on the River Spey and a picnic was had, in the car.

Our next goal was to visit Ian and Morag’s daughter, Kirsten, who lives on the far side of Speyside, near Aberdeen, with her 2 boys and eleven, yes eleven, dogs. She breeds and trains mostly Labradors but not chocolates. No surprise there!! Morag, our GPS, again found a very interesting route that took a road that skirted the lower part of the Cairngorm mountain range. It was a spectacular drive.

Morag had given us details of how to find Kirsten’s place and we put those into GPS Morag. After driving through the same town 4 times, we finally got phone reception to contact Kirsten and get talked in. She has a lovely home converted from an old steading, and a large outbuilding for the dogs. Her boys (almost 7 and 9) were full of energy. We took all 11 dogs for a walk, off lead, through the forest. When called, they all came immediately. Very impressive. Kirsten is a PE teacher by trade, but her Dad, Ian, sowed the seed for dog training and her business has taken off.

I must say, however, we were glad to see her old black labby, Laggan, stole food from the bench when we had left the kitchen. Some things are inate with labradors and can’t be trained out !! A fantastic evening, a great meal and then a long and very dark drive home as Morag elected a very “special” route to get us back.