The Highlands are versatile to the seasons. Wind or rain, sun or sleet – there is always something to do. Snow in particular opens up the winding hill ranges for all the snow sports you can think of. We’re here to provide a concise list of all the winter activities at your disposal when you stay at the Highland Club, the heart of the Highlands!
All the snow sports
Skiing on Ben Nevis – Image Source
Have you tried skiing and snowboarding and want to swoosh down Ben Nevis range? We’ve got you covered. Heard of mountaineering on skis and want propel yourself both up and down the mountain on your own two feet? You can do that in the Highlands! What about some good ol’ fashioned telemark skiing? Not a problem!
The Highlands offers any kind of snow sport you can think of, and they’re all easy to access from the Highland Club. With 5 different ranges in driving distance, you can become a snow bunny hopping across resorts!
Distance from the Highland Club
Nevis Range – 40-minute
Cairngorms – 1 hour 40-minute drive
Glencoe – 1 hour 30-minute drive
The Lecht: approx. 2-hour drive
Glenshee: approx. 3-hour drive
For more details please click here.
Follow the snow coverage on the mountains.
Ice Climbing
We’ve covered the winter sports where you can carve down a mountain, but you can also go up the ice as well. The National Ice Climbing Centre in Kinochleven provides the unique experience for you to scale an ice wall. Let your imagination run free and pretend you’re climbing The Wall in Game of Thrones, or that you’re scaling an iceberg. Or simply take it for the amazing achievement it is!
Ice Climbing at Ice Factor – Image Source
Ice Climbing in Kinochleven (1 hour 20 minutes drive)
2. Dog sledging
If running with the wolves (or dog-like wolves) has been on your bucket list, you can tick that activity off whilst staying at The Highland Club. Just a 1 hour and 20-minute drive away is the Cairngorm Dog Sled Centre.Experience the rush of wind in your hair whilst you command a team of dogs to dance over the ice. With snow or mud, you can fly over the ground!
Cairngorm Dog Sledding – Image Source
For more information about Cairngorm Dog Sled Centre, please click here to go to their website.
3. Whisky Tours
The Highlands are quite literal: they are very high up in Scotland. And you’ve spent the day outside and you’re freezing now! What to do? It is definitely time to take a break inside. To warm you up from the inside, it is the perfect time to sample the amber liquor which has put Scotland on the alcohol map. Whisky!
There are 7 whisky distilleries within a 2-hour driving distance to The Highland Club. Unless you have a designated driver, we may suggest Ben Nevis Distillery. Right below the Ben Nevis Ski Range, and in the centre of Fort William, you can have a dram of whisky, made with water from two small lochans off Ben Nevis. Even better, there is fast public transport between Fort Augustus and Fort William to ensure you can get home safe and sound and thoroughly warmed through.
For more information about Ben Nevis Distillery or the other whisky distilleries surrounding The Highland, please go to this blog post.
4. Animal watching
If you are an aspiring nature photographer, we cannot suggest a better area to get astounding shots. Year round, watching out for the animals in and around The Highland Club and the Highlands proves to be a highlight. From hares in Cairngorms National Park, to red squirrels occupying the forests, osprey and eagles spreading their wings over Loch Ness, even otters nestling in the river banks and dolphins jumping around Moray Firth Bay (try Chanonry Point, approx. an 80-minute drive away). You don’t need to go on a safari to find some of the most beautiful and wild animals in the world! Grab your cameras and wait for a glimpse of these beauties, or enjoy the scenic views from the hills!
For a more unique experience, try our stag feeding trips! Email markdallas@thehighlandclub.co.uk for more details.
A post shared by The Highland Club (@highlandclubofficial) on Mar 25, 2018 at 9:22am PDT
5. A worst case scenario:
If the weather proves a little too much, you can have an amazing day indoors at the Highland Club. On our beautiful grounds, we have a swimming pool, sauna, pool tables, and a giant chess board for starters for all our guests to enjoy. Within your own apartments, you have fully catered to kitchens to cook up a feast, as well as cosy lounges to vegetate on whilst its storms outside.
AC03 (The Ratisbon)’s sitting room
We hope you keep wrapped up and warm and you enjoy yourself on any of these fantastic winter activities! At the end of the day, when you return to the Highland Club, we hope you feel like you’ve got everything out of the Highlands in the Winter that you could.
For more inspiration, watch this gorgeous video!
Post first published 19th February 2019