September 2025 was a month of ‘firsts’ for me…my first solo road trip, my first holiday in Scotland and my first time meeting a reindeer…
It was also my first time as a volunteer reindeer herder and it was Earl Grey who peered at me through the pine trees as I entered the Paddock with Lotti – my first, rather beautiful, slightly curious, white-nosed reindeer!
Lotti was showing me around and demonstrating the poo picking technique to me. Poo picking is a regular feature of the life of a volunteer and not only is an essential task to maintain the Paddocks, but also is a relaxing way to spend the first hour of the morning…the birds twittering around you, an occasional red squirrel, a few ducks clearing up stray food and the reindeer waiting patiently to be fed.
There were plenty of jobs to be done in between trips – mixing feed, sweeping floors, keeping the outside areas presentable, cleaning wellies, clearing up inside….. Each of these jobs done by a volunteer means that a herder has more time to spend on herd management or administration of the herd records and the adoption programme.
Was I fit enough for the role? Not really …I puffed up the hills on the Hill Trips…but I managed, and the team made sure I was ok. I was able to choose how active I wanted to be and felt empowered to fill my day the way that I chose. I chose the Hill Trips as often as I could. The day to day life on the hills is so different to my usual routine, and by the end of the week I noted how differently I felt about myself and my life. I was proud of my strong shoulders and legs; I appreciated the feel of wind through my hair and rain on my face; I hadn’t once worried about what I was going to wear or how I looked; and my use of social media had reduced…well, perhaps not much, but my Instagram feed just featured cute reindeer faces, passing on the joy to my family and friends, who feared they had lost me forever to the Cairngorms.
The Hill Trips are just a small part of what the herders do and while they are telling visitors about the reindeer, they are also observing the herd for signs of illness or counting the herd to see if anyone has been missing for too long.
And when the visitors have gone, the herders spring into action, coordinating their movements through a never ending stream of WhatsApp chat. One herder might have to do a long trek to locate some free rangers, another may have to harness a couple of deer to be swapped to the Paddock for a few days, and a small team may be needed to round up the herd for regular worming treatment.
One day Lotti asked if I’d like to help bring a couple of reindeer down the hill for a short stint in the Paddocks. And handed me the lead! The joy of me leading a gently plodding Jester was captured by Daisy as we crossed Utsi’s Bridge. Jester was very willing to follow me… most of the time. And in less than a week I was leading Cowboy down. He responded well to a teeny wobble of the lead and the occasional encouragement from Andi behind.
One day I sat on the hill while a couple of the herders were tending to a calf. As I looked at the incredible view, an entire rainbow emerged and I felt quite overwhelmed – I couldn’t believe where I was and what I was doing. I felt a warm breath on my neck. It was Magnum. He touched me gently with his antlers and circled me. I know that he was probably just checking to see if I had some food, or maybe he thought I was a tree to help strip his velvet…but his appearance at that moment will be a memory I treasure. If I had a favourite….
Most evenings I was too pooped to do much more than put on my pjs and watch a film, but one evening I was invited to join the team and family at Reindeer House for the calf naming ceremony. The new calves were 3 months old and were to be named on a dance theme this year…and so, over a feast of nachos, brownies and chocolate-covered satsumas (absolutely delicious) the A4 page of names was whittled down to a handful that suited the pretty little creatures. Boogie and Morris and Haka…Rumba and Foxtrot and Mosh…Each matched to their personalities or named in a pattern that fitted with their parent.
The week I spent with the team at Cairngorm Reindeer will stay with me forever. The team are amazing and I feel privileged to have seen first hand the care they give the reindeer.
On the morning that I left Aviemore, I took a coffee and croissant to the side of Loch Morlich. I listened to Radio 6 and texted Lauren Laverne to say how appropriate her choice of “Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later Than You Think)’ by Prince Buster was, as I’d just completed a week of volunteering with the reindeer herders. “Kathy…please write a book” was Lauren’s on-air response. Well, perhaps this is Chapter One…..
Kathy