It was remarkably quiet considering it was the middle of a theme park. In fact, you could hear a pin drop as the squirrels mixed with the splashers.
But that’s the beauty of the fantastic Landmark Forest Adventure Park in the heart of the Scottish Highlands. It’s a true natural playground for children and adults alike.
Perched on the edge of the picturesque village of Carrbridge, which is the home to the World Porridge Championships, this year on 5th October, and it’s a wonderful spot. So enclosed in an ancient pine forest, passers-by don’t know it’s there and that’s one of the main attractions, everyone can play freely.
Beautifully created from local timber, there is fun for all, from treetop challenges to The Lost Labyrinth, twisting paths full of hair-raising dangers on the way round.
First opened in the Cairngorms National Park in 1970 as the brainchild of David Hayes, who saw the potential of visitor centres after working in USA, the Landmark has grown and grown and this summer launched a special new attraction, The Ancient Forest Adventure, after an investment of £1m over the last three years.
The open area has seven discovery hubs with immersive displays telling the fascinating story of how over the last 200 years, many of the animals from the ancient forest were wiped out but have now made a sensational comeback.
Much of this is down to the tenacity of Forres based conservationist Roy Dennis who has played a key role in the return of the osprey, white-tailed eagle and red kite and for helping to spread the red squirrel across The Highlands.
What makes the new attraction so good though is the 150-metre red squirrel aerial trail suspended high above the ground and which twists and turns through the trees.
It’s a fun way to explore and is so peaceful, with crystal clean air and full of natural wonder. The all-weather trails have also been adapted for the winter, when there is a spectacular light show.
Roy comments:
“I was seriously impressed by what has been achieved there and the light and entertaining approach that has been taken. The cartoons are particularly engaging and will appeal to all ages. The displays are exceptionally interesting. They give a harrowing account of two centuries of carnage when bounties were paid on white-tailed eagles talons, ospreys were shot to be stuffed, and egg collectors hastened the demise of the rarest birds.”
The forest is a great breather after all the hurly burly of the main action, which includes the Outdoor Playground allowing young explorers to climb, jump and slide to their heart’s content in Ant’s City. With hop on Safari Cars and Teeny Farm Ride Animals to try out, there’s also a brilliant Haggis Farm Shooting Gallery and remote-controlled trucks and mini diggers.
Climbing enthusiasts can try out the RopeworX aerial challenge course or the simple, yet terrifying climb, then step off Skydive and for smaller explorers, the Pinnacle wall with eight routes and the Wee Monkey and Tarzan Trails.
The NetworX is Scotland’s first ever aerial net challenge bouncing around the forest and takes you to the nearby Forest Tower, which affords get views of the woodland from the top tier.
Back to the action and time for some wet fun on the water slides, The Otter, Wildcat and Falcon guaranteed to get the heart pounding, and the clothes drenched.
Education is the name of the game too and the Dinosaur Kingdom features 22 moving and roaring creatures including a 20ft tall T-Rex and two 90 feet long Diplodocuses. There is even a Dino-dig sandpit for fossil hunters.
Wonderwood is three crazy cabins to test out the laws of physics with a spinning vortex tunnel and topsy turvy and a growing-shrinking rooms.
The Bamboozeleum is a wonderful gallery of perplexing illusions, fun interactive exhibits and bewildering special effects guaranteed to leave you scratching your head.
To make the visit all the more special, a great calm down can be found in The Butterfly House, a lush sanctuary filled with hundreds of exotic flutterers and tropical flowers, plus tiny Asian quails in the undergrowth with their bumble-bee sized chicks.
A fabulous day out where nature and thrills and spills bond beautifully together in a very special place.
Fact Box:
The Landmark Forest Adventure Park is open all year round with differing opening hours and ticket prices to reflect the season, with an annual pass also an option. For more information, please visit: www.landmarkpark.co.uk, and for general tourist information you can visit: www.visitscotland.com.
Author Bio:
Rebecca Hay is an experienced travel writer and member of The British Guild of Travel Writers. Follow her adventures with her family on Twitter and Instagram @emojiadventurer and on Facebook via EmojiAdventurers2.
Photographs courtesy of The Landmark, Carrbridge
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