Programmes By Date - Aigas Field Centre

I concur with the praise from others for the standard week at Aigas. This is a special place. Every interaction with the staff at all levels was wonderful: * office staff -- Sheila and Marjorie * the rangers -- knowledgeable, cheerful, resourceful * the owners -- Sir John and Lady Lucy * even the kitchen staff (sorry I did not learn their names) We chose to extend our stay and do an extra day after the Highland House Party. They assigned ranger Jenny as our guide. She met with us a few times early in the week to understand what we were looking for. She came back with a proposal to go to the Cairngorms Mountain area. This was not on our itinerary for Highland House party, so we were pleased to see another part of Scotland. The 2 main attractions that she chose for us were: * Highland Folk Museum -- contains a 1700s village that was used for several scenes in Outlander -- really fascinating. This place also contains history and culture from other historic eras, but we did not take the time to see it all -- more for the next trip. * Cairngorms Mountain ski area -- this time of year covered with pink and purple heather in bloom. It is also a good spot for the Ring Ouzel -- a bird that we did not manage to see earlier in the trip. We found out that Jenny had spent the previous day scouting out the route -- checking timings, and toilet stops. That is emblematic for the level attention to detail to get when booking a trip at Aigas. Come and experience the joy.
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Shakespeare_Fan

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Shakespeare_Fan

I concur with the praise from others for the standard week at Aigas. This is a special place. Every interaction with the staff at all levels was wonderful: * office staff -- Sheila and Marjorie * the rangers -- knowledgeable, cheerful, resourceful * the owners -- Sir John and Lady Lucy * even the kitchen staff (sorry I did not learn their names) We chose to extend our stay and do an extra day after the Highland House Party. They assigned ranger Jenny as our guide. She met with us a few times early in the week to understand what we were looking for. She came back with a proposal to go to the Cairngorms Mountain area. This was not on our itinerary for Highland House party, so we were pleased to see another part of Scotland. The 2 main attractions that she chose for us were: * Highland Folk Museum -- contains a 1700s village that was used for several scenes in Outlander -- really fascinating. This place also contains history and culture from other historic eras, but we did not take the time to see it all -- more for the next trip. * Cairngorms Mountain ski area -- this time of year covered with pink and purple heather in bloom. It is also a good spot for the Ring Ouzel -- a bird that we did not manage to see earlier in the trip. We found out that Jenny had spent the previous day scouting out the route -- checking timings, and toilet stops. That is emblematic for the level attention to detail to get when booking a trip at Aigas. Come and experience the joy.
Aigas Field Centre is the creation of Sir John and Lady Lucy Lister-Kaye, and what a creation it is. It is a combination of love of the land and love of place, natural habitat restoration, and education. It is done with a passion that is contagious, and it is done well. The week is spent on the grounds of the Field Centre in cabins that are quite comfortable. Many cabins have two bedrooms separated by a common room and kitchen that encourages visiting. Each bedroom has two comfortable beds and a bathroom with tub and shower. Meals are taken at the main Estate House in the large common room. Lucy Lister-Kaye is the consummate hostess who makes everyone feel at home. She is also a superb cook who overseas the kitchen. She also helps to serve and makes certain that everyone's needs are met. That applies to those of us who have special dietary needs. Each day is spent in some sort of activity that took us around the grounds or the countryside, to acquaint us with the flora and fauna, the issues of reforestation and conservation, and return of wildlife species, or the history of human life on the land and in the country. My wife and I had the most amazing and wonderful week. We thoroughly enjoyed meeting the others in our group, each one accomplished in some way and each one interesting. Hikes were with experienced ranger guides and at a pace that we all could handle, and were interspersed with stops to observe and talk about what we saw. My wife and I plan to return for another Aigas program.
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Robert G

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Robert G

Aigas Field Centre is the creation of Sir John and Lady Lucy Lister-Kaye, and what a creation it is. It is a combination of love of the land and love of place, natural habitat restoration, and education. It is done with a passion that is contagious, and it is done well. The week is spent on the grounds of the Field Centre in cabins that are quite comfortable. Many cabins have two bedrooms separated by a common room and kitchen that encourages visiting. Each bedroom has two comfortable beds and a bathroom with tub and shower. Meals are taken at the main Estate House in the large common room. Lucy Lister-Kaye is the consummate hostess who makes everyone feel at home. She is also a superb cook who overseas the kitchen. She also helps to serve and makes certain that everyone's needs are met. That applies to those of us who have special dietary needs. Each day is spent in some sort of activity that took us around the grounds or the countryside, to acquaint us with the flora and fauna, the issues of reforestation and conservation, and return of wildlife species, or the history of human life on the land and in the country. My wife and I had the most amazing and wonderful week. We thoroughly enjoyed meeting the others in our group, each one accomplished in some way and each one interesting. Hikes were with experienced ranger guides and at a pace that we all could handle, and were interspersed with stops to observe and talk about what we saw. My wife and I plan to return for another Aigas program.
We were impressed by the tranquil beauty of the Aigas property, a carefully restored Victorian estate and gardens. On our arrival, we received a warm greeting by the owners, Sir John and Lady Lucinda Lister-Kaye and their professional team of highly trained, good-humoured rangers. The delicious, plentiful meals and afternoon tea in the Great Hall of their mansion were wonderful; however, what we most appreciated was their commitment to enhance our knowledge of conservation, environmental issues, and the native wildlife and flora. The day trips afforded us a marvellous opportunity to learn about the geology and history of the Highlands. These were enhanced by evening lectures by Sir John and his team; visits to the blinds to see the badgers, re-introduced European beavers, and rare Scottish wildcats. We also enjoyed Sir John's historical house tour, the traditional music, and a magical evening of story telling. Perhaps our best day was spent with Sir John's son, Warwick, who normally devotes his time to managing Aigas. His knowledge of the local wildflowers, birds, and mammals in the nearby lochs and hills was astonishing: we watched golden eagles circling above the mountain summits; we saw the silhouettes of, native red deer stags on the hilltops, and watched peregrine falcon juveniles try their wings by targeting a fleeing kestral. We particularly appreciated the Aigas team's passion and commitment to environmental education, as well as their sensitivity and concern for people and this vulnerable planet. I admire their ethics, generosity and kindness toward their guests. We intend to return to this top calibre facility, which exceeded all of our expectations.
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Laura288

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Laura288

We were impressed by the tranquil beauty of the Aigas property, a carefully restored Victorian estate and gardens. On our arrival, we received a warm greeting by the owners, Sir John and Lady Lucinda Lister-Kaye and their professional team of highly trained, good-humoured rangers. The delicious, plentiful meals and afternoon tea in the Great Hall of their mansion were wonderful; however, what we most appreciated was their commitment to enhance our knowledge of conservation, environmental issues, and the native wildlife and flora. The day trips afforded us a marvellous opportunity to learn about the geology and history of the Highlands. These were enhanced by evening lectures by Sir John and his team; visits to the blinds to see the badgers, re-introduced European beavers, and rare Scottish wildcats. We also enjoyed Sir John's historical house tour, the traditional music, and a magical evening of story telling. Perhaps our best day was spent with Sir John's son, Warwick, who normally devotes his time to managing Aigas. His knowledge of the local wildflowers, birds, and mammals in the nearby lochs and hills was astonishing: we watched golden eagles circling above the mountain summits; we saw the silhouettes of, native red deer stags on the hilltops, and watched peregrine falcon juveniles try their wings by targeting a fleeing kestral. We particularly appreciated the Aigas team's passion and commitment to environmental education, as well as their sensitivity and concern for people and this vulnerable planet. I admire their ethics, generosity and kindness toward their guests. We intend to return to this top calibre facility, which exceeded all of our expectations.