Braemar Mountain Festival doubles in size

Organisers of the Braemar Mountain Festival have doubled the number of events and venues following the huge success of the inaugural event last year.

The four-day celebration of the mountains in winter will take place from Thursday 1st to Sunday 4th March 2018 at Braemar, in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park.

 New events for 2018’s expanded programme include mountain bike skill sessions, film making classes with award winning adventure film producer Chris Prescott and a special series of talks and films highlighting the feats of inspirational women in adventure sports.

 The Braemar Mountain Festival was launched last year by a local group of mountain guides and business owners from the village who shared a love of the Cairngorms. Over 850 event tickets were sold last year at the inaugural festival, with tourists from as far as Bristol making the journey.

 Organiser Alastair Hubbard, a local business owner who also volunteers with the Braemar Mountain Rescue, said: “We were blown away by the support for the inaugural Braemar Mountain festival. This year we’re aiming our sights even higher with an expanded programme aimed at everyone who has a wee bit of adventure at heart.

 “The festival aims to showcase just some of the countless ways we can enjoy the hills and make the most of the outdoors.”

 The festival line up will also include skills sessions, including two avalanche awareness courses run by the Scottish Avalanche Information Service, as well as sessions on winter skills, orienteering, mountain first aid, navigation, telemark and hill running.

 Alastair added: “The snow conditions are shaping up nicely for our snow based skills sessions. Skiers who want to escape the ski centres will enjoy an off-piste ski performance session on Friday, or can learn about the technical skills of ski touring on the Saturday, followed by a guided ski tour on the Sunday, all with BASI coach, Gillian Parker.

 “We’ll also have speakers covering a huge range of topics, from weather forecasting guru Geoff Monk – the man behind the Mountain Weather Information Service - to the impressive Four Mums in a Boat.

 “Whether you’re a seasoned Munro-bagger or simply enjoy being outside, we want to showcase the many different ways you can get out and enjoy the beauty of Scotland’s mountains.”

Visit the Braemar Mountain Festival website for full details.