£330k plans for Beinn Eighe
One of my favourite areas of Scotland is the Torridon mountains. The G-Force and I have some great memories of walking here and staying at the Torridon Inn. Romance + walking + cycling = fantastic outdoors memories.
Sea eagle, Beinn Eighe. Pic credit: Eoghain Maclean, SNH
Now there is another reason to head to this wonderful location as doors of the visitor centre at Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve in Wester Ross opens next week to reveal the first stage of a two-year upgrade.
Beinn Eighe National Nature Reserve was the first such nature reserve and is owned and managed by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). The reserve area is a stunning mix of mountains and woodland, which rise from the beautiful Loch Maree to the top of the Beinn Eighe ridge. There are several fabulous Munros in the Torridon mountains, including two summits on the Beinn Eighe ridge.
Beinn Eighe NNR is one of Scotland’s top wildlife hotspots and is home to golden eagle, pine marten, red deer and otter, among many others.
Last year, SNH started bringing live images of wildlife into the centre using remote cameras, and reserve manager Eoghain Maclean is hopeful visitors will be able to follow a local pair of sea eagles as they go about their parenting.
He said: “The birds have been busy nest-building and all going well should be laying eggs soon. The actual nest site is 15 kilometres from the visitor centre so it’s a challenge to get the technology working well, but the pictures are stunning.”
Beinn Eighe is a gateway to Wester Ross and in November work started on the £330,000 two-year project to upgrade the visitor centre. This is being funded by SNH and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
So far the work has included new waymarking of the short trails around the centre and later this year there will be a complete refit of the centre.
Many events will also take place at Beinn Eighe this year, including pond dipping days, mountain trail walks and the regular open air performance from the Feis Rois Ceilidh Trail.
Being Eighe visitor centre is open seven days a week from 10am to 5pm from Monday 31 March to the end of September.