On March 29, 2016
By Rebecca Field
The Cairngorms National Park is home to some of Scotland’s most prominent and famous peaks, the Cairngorms. For those visiting Scotland, the national park is a must see destination to experience the essence of Scotland. Below we’ve picked out some highlights which present the Cairngorms in a nutshell.
The Cairngorms in a nutshell
The Cairngorms are home to four of the five highest mountains in the UK. Their namesake Cairn Gorm stands as the fourth highest peak in the national park.
Ben Macui – 1309 metres
Braeriach – 1296 metres
Cairn Toul – 1291 metres
Cairn Gorm – 1244 metres
Along with the four most notable mountains, the Cairngorms also boast 52 summits over just 900 metres on land. Breaking it down even further, 10% of the park in over 800 metres. A whopping 68% is over 400 metres above sea level. Finally, the area above 600 metres is known as the montane zone. This zone, is the largest area of artic mountain landscape in Britain. Located in the montane zone, the high plateua is likened to the artic, and snow can be found there all year long.
These mountains and hills are what make the Cairngorms so fantastic. The walking/hiking options are so different in terms of difficulty and all levels of fitness can participate. But, for those wishing to explore the main peaks, Scot Mountain Holidays have a range of walking/hiking tours to choose from.
The Cairngorms National Park in a nutshell
The park that the Cairngorms belong to is 4528 square kilometres in area. Surrounding the mountain with beautiful lochs, countryside walks, and ancient forest it adds an unmeasurable amount of beauty to the package. In addition, The Cairngorms National Park is considered Wild Land and 49% of the park is marked as international importance for nature. This means European law protects the woods and their surroundings. And for good reason, the park has the largest area of native woodland in Britain, including Caledonian Pine, Juniper, Birch, Rowan plus many more. But, it wouldn’t be Scotland without the Lochs. There are many lochs, large and small throughout the Cairngorms, and all incredibly beautiful. There are also three monumental rivers, the Dee, the Don and the Spey flowing through the park.
The Cairngorms National Park is the base of Scot Mountain Holidays, Fraoch Lodge. Located with easy access to the all that the park has to offer it’s the perfect location to see Scotland’s best.
