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Scotland Outdoors

Cairngorm Mountain Ski Resort

Scotland Outdoors

BBC

Nature, Society & Culture, Science

4.7756 Ratings

🗓️ 17 January 2026

⏱️ 79 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week we’re live from Cairngorm Mountain and joined by a myriad of guests connected by the adventures of the slopes.

Snowboarder, mountain biker and climate activist Lauren MacCallum joins Mark and Rachel to talk about Cairngorm 2030, the groundbreaking programme aiming to make the Cairngorms the UK’s first net-zero national park.

Rachel takes to the slopes with Cairngorm ski-patrol to hear about how they keep skiers safe on the mountain.

Mark catches up with Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team as they enter their busiest season and discovers how rescues have changed with advances in technology.

Cairngorm Mountain CEO Mike Gifford joins Mark and Rachel to talk about the challenges of running one of Scotland’s leading ski-resorts and his vision to transform Cairngorm Mountain into a thriving, year-round destination.

Retired geography teacher Helen Rennie chats to Mark and Rachel about the record she set in 2019 by skiing on Scottish snow every year for 120 consecutive months.

Rachel meets Director Robbie Synge to learn about a new film which features young people at work and play in the landscapes of the Cairngorms. ‘Tha Sinn an Seo’ (We Are Here) was made throughout 2025 and explores how the next generation participate in the habitat restoration work of Cairngorms Connect.

Montane woodland is set to return to the slopes of Cairngorm Mountain through the Coire na Ciste Montane Woodland Project, an initiative that has recently planted thousands of native trees and shrubs. Mark meets David Hetherington of the Cairngorms National Park Authority to find out more about the first high-altitude woodland restoration project of this scale on the mountain. Helen Needham takes to the slopes at Glenshee to experience a very Scottish winter’s ski.

Transcript

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0:00.0

BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts.

0:07.0

Hello, I'm Greg Jenner, and good news,

0:09.5

Your Dead to Me, is back for a new series.

0:11.6

Here we go.

0:12.1

Yes, we'll explore Emperor Nero's notorious reign with Professor Mary Beard and Patton Oswald.

0:16.9

I would not want my daughter having the remote control, not alone an empire.

0:21.0

We'll dissect the decadent life of Philippe Duke-Dolion with Tom Allen.

0:24.8

I've often tried to pretend I'm an aristocrat and being very quickly knocked down.

0:29.0

And there'll be so much more with comedians like Olga Koch, Mike Mosniak and Rihelina.

0:33.0

I'm excited.

0:33.7

You're dead to me.

0:34.5

The comedy podcast that takes history seriously.

0:37.0

Listen first on BBC Sounds.

0:39.8

This Scotland Outdoors podcast from BBC Radio Scotland.

0:48.0

Hello and thanks very much for choosing to listen to this.

0:52.9

We do a couple of Scotland Outdoors podcasts every week, one of which is carefully, lovingly crafted, some people say, from the live programme we do for BBC Radio Scotland, which is called Out of Doors. This week, now bear in mind we've just got rid of a pile of snow. we went in search of more of it.

1:17.2

Good morning, pursuant of our policy of travelling the car parks of Scotland.

1:19.1

We're in a different car park this morning.

1:23.7

We're actually up at Cairngor Mountain, where there is lots and lots and lots of snow.

1:27.7

And we thought, to be honest, that we'll be on our, basically our tods this morning,

1:46.7

but it's actually been quite busy. Sitting across the side of the fire, Rachel Stewart. Yeah, good morning. I think it would be a stretch to say we're toasty, roasty. I don't know what the temperature is, but certainly there's a big winter factor going on. And as you say, there's folk milling about, isn't there? We just met a few guys who are from the Mountaineering Club at Edinburgh University who are already heading out to the slopes. Yeah, they were heading off to Ben McDewy. We saw a couple of guys heading up the slopes earlier. The peasty bashers have been on the go for, I mean, certainly I would say, about an hour already, you know, but visibility is not great up there, it's blowing snow, so all you're seeing, you know, way, way up the slopes are the two headlights, but it must be really powerful headlights. Aye, absolutely. And I think they're gearing up for a really busy day. It was certainly busy here yesterday. I was here most of the afternoon. Loads of folk milling about from all over the place place and I managed to have a wee word with them

2:18.8

Oh my son and I just drove up today from Aberdeen we came here because we've skied in other places

...

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