Nethy Bridge, Scotland

In a moment of spontaneity, a friend asked if I wanted a short break away to Nethy Bridge last week. Nethy Bridge is a beautiful small village in the Cairngorms National Park and is home to the River Nethy. As the forests around Nethy are full of interesting wildlife, I wasn’t about to say no, not to mention the obvious great company of my friend. So I packed my bag with my sketchbook, pencils and a camera, hoping for some uplifting sightings. 

We started with the nearby Loch Garten, with its peaty red water, and the tall pine trees of the Abernethy Forest. No wildlife sighted here, but we found and ate wild Blaeberries which I’ve never had before. They were pretty scrummy and I could have eaten a ton.

Loch Garten

The cottage we were staying at was right on the River Nethy and its forest, so I was genuinely hopeful of seeing a red squirrel. I wasn’t disappointed when one morning, after a very lazy start and breakfast including superb poached eggs (which I think we excelled at), we saw a red squirrel nosing about in a tree outside. The visit was brief as it quickly sighted us and scurried away to a tree out of our view.

Next was a trip to Loch an Eilein (loch of the island) with its 13th century castle. Our walk in the Rothimurchas Forest around the loch was strangely quiet of wildlife, except for a coal tit or two.

Loch an Eilein

Castle (and some swimmers!)

Later in the week, we unexpectantly we came across a group of, what I think, were Common Darter dragonflies. The identification is not so clear, as of the abundance of love heart shaped dragonfly mating happening on the bridge, one of each pair was almost black with only small orange markings, confusing the issue. The British Dragonfly Society website says that a female Common Darter becomes duller/reddish with age, but I haven’t been able to find any images where they are almost black. I have put a couple of photos below if anyone is able to clear this up. 

Common Darter

Love heart shaped mating

Common Darter

Precursor to mating (my guess)

On the last morning at the cottage in Nethy Bridge, I was staring out the kitchen window while waiting for a call and lo and behold, what did I see but a sweet little Roe deer with deep black eyes and antlers. This deer totally made my day and a lovely end to the trip (asides from a visit to the Highland Chocolatier on the way home where we ate scrumptious cheese scones and truffles).

Little Roe Deer