Cairngorms National Park

The Cairngorms are a high granite plateau rather than a range of peaks, and that shape produces the closest thing Britain has to arctic conditions - snow patches that used to last all year, ptarmigan and mountain hares in white winter coats, and dotterel nesting on the tops. Five of the six highest mountains in the country stand here, including Ben Macdui at 1,309 metres. Lower down, the Caledonian pine forest at Rothiemurchus and Abernethy is the best surviving remnant of the woodland that once covered much of the Highlands, with capercaillie, crested tits and red squirrels in it. Loch an Eilein holds an island castle ruin and a level circuit through the pines. Britain's only free-ranging reindeer herd grazes the slopes above Glenmore, and the Speyside malt distilleries lie along the park's northern edge.

What you actually see

• Caledonian pine forest - Rothiemurchus and Abernethy old woodland.
• Loch an Eilein - an island castle ruin on a level forest circuit.
• The Cairngorm reindeer herd - free-ranging animals above Glenmore.
• The high plateau - arctic-alpine ground with ptarmigan and snow patches.

When to go

May to October for hillwalking, with June giving the longest daylight. Late September and October colour the birches and bring the red deer rut. Winter turns this into Scotland's main snowsports area but also into serious mountain conditions. Midges are worst from mid-June through August in still weather.

Honest expectations

The plateau is a severe environment - weather changes fast, navigation is hard in whiteout or cloud, and it has a long record of fatalities among experienced walkers. Aviemore itself is functional rather than attractive. Midges in still, damp weather can make evenings outdoors impossible. Ticks are widespread in the bracken and heather.

Nearby

Speyside's distillery country lies north, and Inverness is under an hour by train.