A long, lonely vigil in a mobile hide on a windswept Highland moor with nothing but the plaintive birdsong of the night for company through the darkness...if that doesn't exactly fit in with your next plans for an evening out, then indulge me for a moment and read on.

I'd been fortunate enough to book a place on the Glenlivet Wildlife 'Black Grouse Photography' experience, and as my guide David Newland drove away in the Land Rover from the top secret location after erecting the mobile hide, I wondered what was ahead. What I didn't know was that I was about to have one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life.

The action started before dark as with a great 'whoosh' a pair of male Black Grouse flew over the hide and landed no more than five feet in front of me and immediately began to lek. For half an hour I sat enraptured before the cocks disappeared into the darkness.

The next six hours saw me treated to an extraordinary audible feast of Snipe drumming, and the calls of Curlew, Lapwing, Oystercatcher and Red Grouse, before at precisely 3.55am the blackcock returned.

Over the next four hours I took over 900 photographs, with the wonderful dawn light eventually allowing me to do justice to the extraordinary plumage of this endangered but spectacular bird. Knowing that I was able to do so with the grouse blissfully unaware of my presence only added to the thrill, and at one point no less than fifteen blackcock and one greyhen graced the lekking ground. It was a sight that will live with me forever.

A huge thank you to Glenlivet Wildlife and Glenlivet Estate, who have created the conditions for a truly five star wildlife experience.

Where can you see Capercaillie, Black Grouse, Slavonian Grebes, Mountain Hare, Osprey, Ptarmigan, Ring Ouzel and Red Deer in one day?

Right here in the Cairngorms with the Bird Watching and Wildlife Club and Wild Caledonia!

"The best day out ever," (according to guest David Donald) also included a lunch in a remote estate bothy and a nocturnal encounter with a Tawny Owl, on a long but unforgettable crusade for the 'Speyside Specialities'. Everyone involved said they wanted to come again - and you can come too!

We're offering this event again in on 19-20 June and 17-18 July, 2009. For more details and to join in the fun contact Wild Caledonia on 07887 883117.

A great few days of guest sightings and guided walks to tell you about. Ospreys are well and truly back - and not just at Loch Garten. Guests have seen the fish hawk doing what it does best at the famous Rothiemurchus Fish Farm on the last two afternoons! Meanwhile, new contender Odin - believed to be a Scandanavian Osprey, is the talk of the town as he busily mates with usual Loch Garten female EJ. There's bound to be trouble if last year's male, Orange VS, turns up late and tries to gatecrash the party...

The male Capercaillie was the highlight of our guided walk on Monday, with other species being seen including Red Squirrel, Treecreeper, Grey Wagtail and Goldeneye.

There was a beautiful dawn backdrop to the Black Grouse Watch with Glenlivet Wildlife today rewarding the Hotel's early risers, with a total of four male Black Grouse seen leking, supported by a cast of Mountain Hare still in winter coat and several Roe Deer on the moorland.

And just in case you were asking, Golden Eagles are still out and about too!

A truly inspiring Illustrated Talk by Osprey expert Roy Dennis at the hotel ensured that we ended 2008 on a high (not forgetting the traditional Hogmanay dinner-dance and ceilidh, of course!).



And the first guest wildlife sightings of the New Year gave a mouthwatering taste of what is to come over the next 12 months...4 Bottlenose Dolphins at Chanonry Point...Black Grouse at Lochindorb...and skeins of Pink-footed Geese landing on the frozen lochs and comically skidding and sliding away into the distance.




Lochindorb itself was a haunting place to be at dusk as the melting ice groaned and occasionally exploded as another 'berg' broke off. Even the River Spey has frozen and looks particularly picturesque as the image left shows...I wonder how the spawning Atlantic Salmon are managing in the headwaters of the Monadliath Mountains if one of the main rivers of the Highlands can freeze up?

Still, with a warm Hotel to return to and over 100 Speyside single malts to choose from, wildlife watching in winter at the Grant Arms has its own singular charms...

A very Happy New Year to everyone!

A fabulous drive over the Cairngorms this morning on the A939 Tomintoul road from Ballater. Snow on all sides, bright blue skies, skiers on the slopes of the Lecht and Black Grouse at the side of the road!
I've now seen Black Grouse there three weeks running (on one occasion in the middle of the road) within half a mile either side of the Lecht centre itself.
Although there was significant snow on the slopes the roads themselves were perfectly clear. A beautiful drive.

Every species of bird that we see on our free Guided Walks in Anagach Wood are recorded in our sightings logbook so that our other guests may see them - but they are also sent to the BTO's Birdtrack webpage and contribute to their BirdAtlas.
We have just received the October 2008 newsletter and the main trends in Scotland are as follows:

1. The range of the Buzzard in east Scotland has expanded noticeably - a bird we see frequently on our walks.
2. Black Grouse numbers are believed to be benefitting from a range of conservation and habitat improvement measures.
3. Records of breeding Lapwing are down - yet this bird is a common breeder on the banks of the River Spey in the spring.

Notable sightings on our walks this week have included a flurry of Treecreeper sightings, Wigeon on the Spey and a wonderful, long view of a cracking male Scottish Crossbill!