Throughout the year The Reindeer Centre has its core staff with a mix of full time and part time Reindeer Herders. Many of you will know us well, so we’ve got – Fiona, Hen, Andi, Lotti, Ben B, Ruth, Olly, Sheena and Lisette. We also have our hill farm contingent consisting of Alan, Tilly, Derek and Colin. We are here all year round seeing the reindeer (and other animals on the farm) through the different seasons, however we cannot manage all the work ourselves… that would be impossible!
Editor’s note (Ruth): not every herder features in the photos, please do not be offended if I’ve missed any of you lovely herders out! Check out this page on the website for more info and photos about who we all are: Who’s who – The Cairngorm Reindeer Herd
A gathering or reindeer herders for the annual calf naming night – September 2021.Fiona and two of her favourite things – reindeer and skiing!Andi and Hen (with Witch stealing the limelight!) in January 2022.Sheena and Lisette after a particularly wonderful Hill Trip, by the size of their smiles!The multi-talented Olly with Juniper and Scully – December 2021. Seasonal herder Harry and Ben B doing a spot of harness training – summer 2021. Lotti, with the famous Holy Moley – January 2021.
So we call upon seasonal staff who dot in and out throughout the year to help out. The parts of the year that can be busy are: February half term, Easter holidays then of course right through the summer with schools breaking up in Scotland first and English schools going back at the beginning of September. Although we aren’t so busy with tourists through September it is the start of our rutting season so we are busy with reindeer management. At this time of year we are carrying a lot of feed up the hill so it’s a reindeer herders work out! We usually have around 4 different groups of reindeer in various enclosures either running with a bull or the herd of Christmas reindeer and females we aren’t breeding from so plenty to keep us on our toes. Its busy through October half term just before we gear up in preparation for Christmas and our own Christmas tour which runs through November and December. We can all breath a big sigh of relief in January when we take a month off and close the doors to the public. We do however keep the office and reindeer management ticking over amongst the core staff.
Seasonal staff that worked throughout these busy periods in 2021 consisted of – Joe, Nell, Harry, Kate, Mel, Izzy, Colin D, Ben H, Dave, Manouk and Leonie. We even roped in ex reindeer herders Jack and Eve for a busy weekend in December… Once a reindeer herder, always a reindeer herder!
Seasonal herder Nell with her favourite reindeer Ryvita – August 2021.Ben H was new to the team in November 2021 and is helping out this winter. I’m sure we’ll be seeing him again!
If you’ve been up to visit us in 2021 you’ll have no doubt bumped into a few of these herders both core and seasonal along the way. We are very lucky with our team here at the Reindeer Centre. Everyone works well together, is great with the public and of course fab with the reindeer. Every day we are learning more when it comes to reindeer management but we all take it in our stride and everyone mucks in which is the important thing
For this blog I have decided to cast my mind back to a very wonderful day at the beginning of January, in the depths of winter when the entire landscape was white with snow.
I will start off by saying that I am not a skier, unlike quite a few of the reindeer herders, I didn’t grow up in a snowy place with planks attached to my feet. Fiona had always promised me that when I worked at Reindeer House through a winter then she would teach me to ski. Sure enough in the winter of 2020 we had a couple of snowy weeks and she helped me ski up and down the pisted ski runs early in the morning or late at night when there were no people around for me to crash into. I had a wonderful time, but spent most of it in the snow plough position which was quite tiring. When the snow arrived this winter, the ski slopes were all shut so my skiing journey had to continue off-piste. I had lots of wonderful tips from all the other reindeer herders as well as Fi, from very technical advice from Dave who had worked as a ski instructor for years. And equally wonderful advice from Sheena ‘you look very tense Lotti, I think you need to sing and dance while you are skiing, it will help you relax’.
Herders from L to R: Ruth, Joe, Fiona, Lotti and Sheena (plus dogs Sookie, Tiree and Elsie!)
About a week into the snowy weather this year Ruth and I were tasked with the job of fetching all 70 or so of the free-ranging reindeer into the enclosure so that one of the reindeer could have a visit from the vet. The snow was so deep that the only way to get to them was on our skis. Ruth is a very wonderful skier and I think it had been a dream of hers since starting to work with the reindeer in 2017 to do some reindeer herding on skis, so this was the perfect opportunity. We headed up, with our skins on the bottom of our skis which allow you to ski up hill without sliding backwards, out of the enclosure, onto the top ridge. We called and called hoping that the reindeer would hear us and come running. But the cloud was low, and I suspect dampened the sound of our calls. We continued in the direction of where we thought the reindeer were, stopping, and calling every few minutes. Eventually after an hour or so of skiing we found the herd near the top of Castle Hill.
Ruth and the herd, in the cloud!The reindeer were pleased to see our bag of feed!Scrabble checking out Ruth’s planks!
As soon as we found the reindeer, they were delighted to see us, or delighted to see our bags of food at least. They followed us all the way back to the enclosure, walking in the tracks left by our skis in a single file line. The reindeer always walk through the snow in a single file line as it’s more efficient to walk in the tracks of another reindeer (or in this case skier) than it is to make your own tracks. I was particularly delighted as for most of the way back I was followed so closely by two of my favourite reindeer, Gloriana and her calf Butter, that they kept stepping on my skis! That was the beginning of a winter where almost all the reindeer herding was done on skis or snowshoes as the snow was so deep, but that very first experience of moving over the snow on skis with all the reindeer behind us is something that will stick with both me and Ruth for a long time.
Lotti leading the herd back towards the enclosure.Lotti with two of her favourite reindeer, Gloriana and her son Butter.Feeling pretty pleased with ourselves after a successful mission!
As well as being highly qualified reindeer herders… (a qualification that takes years of course 😉 ) quite a few of us herders have our own wee side-lines which we either do as a hobby or to get an extra bit of pocket money each month selling our goods online or through our reindeer shop.
Olly has been part of the reindeer herding family for over 5½ years now, since he was 17. Although he is one of the youngest herders he is by far the most practical when it comes to handyman, maintenance and craftmanship work and the list goes on! He has fixed many a thing at Reindeer House and constantly gets roped in to help with projects including woodwork and building. As well as being a reindeer herder he has worked for a bushcraft company, teaching groups of kids the skill set and more ‘simple’ life when it comes to living and embracing the outdoors… away from the hustle and bustle of normal life!
Olly with a handmade stool
Throughout 2020 Olly has established his own company, Corvus, doing everything from putting up shelving to building sheds, whittling spoons and his latest venture of hand carving beautiful wooden cups. Each one turns out different due to the nature of the wood and working with the grain. He now has his own social media following and Etsy shop which is proving to be extremely popular. During winter/spring last year when the whole country went into lockdown, Olly lost work with the bushcraft company due to restrictions not allowing it to go ahead and has really made the most of what could have been a very long year – instead he has broadened his skill set and kept Reindeer House up to scratch in maintenance… Thanks Olly!
A carved Sami-style cup
See links below for keeping in the loop and what’s for sale through Corvus.
I’ve (Fiona) been crafting with reindeer antler for over ten years now. I guess I’ve been inspired by the beautiful handicrafts made by the Sami people throughout Scandinavia having visited there in the past – their craft is a whole new level but having been self taught through trial and error I’ve worked out what sells and along the way got to work with a really great product. The best sellers are of course the necklaces, bracelets, keyrings and earrings I sell through our reindeer shop. These are affordable and don’t take too long to make. Pairing reindeer antler with colourful wooden beads it makes for a unique present or souvenir. I then took it a step further and now I do antler/wood handles for knives, bottle openers, cheese knives etc. This has been fun working out and having Sami friends to quiz along the way means I’m getting the best of the best advice!
One of my knives with an antler and curly birch handle
I’ve made cake knives for friends weddings and even reindeer antler rings. I don’t have a company as such but call myself Antler Crafts. It’s a great way to switch off, especially if it’s a bad weather day, I can tinker around in the workshop and my bedroom making bits and bobs from the reindeer antler.
Andi has been in the reindeer herding scene now for well over ten years and full time since 2011, but has a very different hobby to Olly and I who work with wood and reindeer antler. Andi has self taught herself the art of taxidermy.
Not sure Andi would have her hand under those talons if this Buzzard was still alive!
Whenever she, or someone else (usually other reindeer herders) finds an animal or bird which has recently died through natural causes, we pop them in the freezer ready for Andi to work on. She is self taught in building manikins and tanning skins to restore these beautiful animals. Although we appreciate it is not everybody’s cup of tea there is certainly enough interest for her to keep up this unusual hobby. Seeing some of these animals up close through taxidermy may sometimes be the only way you can really appreciate their colouring or structure as in the wild they are often they are seen in a split second and you may never know it’s true beauty.
A brace of beautiful brown hares.
You can follow her on social media and she also has an online Etsy shop you can check out.
Manouk worked with us for a couple of years from 2018-2020 and still lives locally. I was always very jealous of her artistic skills and beautiful drawings.
Some of Manouk’s beautiful cards
Over the last couple of years she has been sketching landscape and mountain scenes as well as her day to day subjects such as the friendly local sheep in nearby fields. She has turned her art into gift cards and sells them online. Check out her Etsy shop and get yourself some lovely cards.
Sheena is definitely the most artistic of us all… even though she would try and say otherwise!
Sheena busy at work!
She has a real eye for colour and shape and you can be midway through a conversation and she’ll whip out her sketch book and pencil and start sketching the surroundings. We’ve been to many music festivals over the years and while everyone is taking photos there is Sheena with pencil and paper capturing the moment in a very different way. She is so encouraging to anyone who wants to give it a go, giving them sound advice but at the same time making sure they create something from their own mind, not hers.
Art pieces on recycled wooden boards, plus a couple of prints
Sheena’s ptarmigan and mountain hares in our shop window
She paints on wooden plaques and canvas as well as making clay animals and selling them through our reindeer shop. Mind you it only makes it to the shop if another reindeer herder doesn’t buy it first! Sheena doesn’t have any social media pages or online shop, but some of her items are always available in our shop here at the Centre, and can occasionally be found in our online shop too.
Small canvases
Joe has been a seasonal herder now for over 3 years and when he’s not working here he’s usually a mountain guide so knows the hills throughout Britain very well. More recently he’s got into photography, buying himself a fancy pants camera! He’s got a great eye when it comes to capturing a moment or scene – this was always very apparent on the photos he took on his phone so now he has the high tech equipment the photos are even more mind blowing. So with his love for being in the mountains coupled with his knowledge and fitness to take him to some incredible places in the outdoors I suspect there are going to be some pretty amazing photos to come out of it. We will definitely rope him in to get some good reindeer shots, so watch this space – particularly for our upcoming 2022 calendar perhaps!
Well chuffed with his new toy!
Loch Ness Leather is a company ran by a reindeer herder from back in the day, HeatherHanshaw. I don’t want to call her an ex reindeer herder cos you never really know when these ex herders dip their toe back into the odd bit of herding… Both Heather’s parents have always worked with leather and created businesses from it and Heather has now taken on that role and has built the most amazing company and products to go with it.
Heather hard at work (well mostly!) and some of her beautiful products
Some of you already have a keyring she has made as these have been going out in adoptions packs since last May for all adoption renewals (about which she wrote a blogfor us about last summer). She knows the rule for our shop – if it’s got a reindeer on it then we’ll sell it – so now we also have whisky hip flasks and dram sets available online. Living locally to us, we can easily catch up on her latest products; usually done during a dog walk or once the chaos of COVID is over lots of lovely social times, dinner and drinks! While checking out her website see if you can recognise those fancy models she got to advertise her products. 😉 Lol!
Fancy models! Well, reindeer herders in disguise… Hats and bags all made by Loch Ness Leather. Photo copyright: Catriona Parmenter
As you probably know, many of the reindeer herders are furloughed just now as the Centre is obviously closed to the public. So while Fiona and Lotti are working away trying to keep everything ticking over at Reindeer House and Andi and Derek are doing the same at the farm, what are the rest of the staff up to?
Sheena: What have I been up to… well I’m very lucky, I moved in with my 87 year old mum just along the road – she’s great fun and we’ve both kept very busy and well; 3 dogs and a cat and a big garden!
Sheena at work in her art studio
Some of you might know that when I’m not a reindeer herder I am an artist… so all this time I must have been busy painting yeah?… Well yes – my mum’s garden fence!! And a wee bit of crafting, the odd cycle and swim in my Loch with the dogs as its been so nice at times.
One of Sheena’s recent artworks
New coat hooks!
I signed up to be a Kindness Volunteer for Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland so I’ve gone through a online training with them, helped out delivering the odd parcel in the community and done a lot of weeding at my mum’s… can’t wait to tackle the jungle at my own house when this is all over!! Mostly really I can’t wait to run up a hill to see the new additions to the herd. Missing all the reindeer herders too and missing meeting all our wonderful visitors.
Taking time of from herding for a spot of sketching of Fern instead a few years back
Dave: So what have I been up to ? Well it’s a fairly long list. I feel lucky to be healthy and secure when so many are really struggling. I look after a small Croft. So between that and my 2.5 year old son I have been very busy. My four ewes have all lambed successfully so that’s cool.
New lamb on a frosty morning! Though Dave appears to still be wearing shorts…
I have also built a new mobile chicken coop. Heaps of new fencing and gates. Been planting things and painting things. But the coolest thing is the new river side den I’m building for my son! Ciao!
Dave contemplating reindeer…
Hen: I’m luckier than the others perhaps, in that I live closer to Reindeer House so have been able to get up the hill to see the cows and calves on occasion within my daily exercise allowance. Has kept the withdrawal symptoms under control!
Hen in happier times with old favourite Puddock. Favouritism possibly always not returned…
Other than that I’ve been in my garden as much as possible, and have finally started work on a rockery and a pond that’s been in the pipeline for years. Rather a few years ago, at age 30, I woke up one morning and the family genetics had suddenly kicked in – must grow plants NOW! I think Fiona was very relieved when I moved out of Reindeer House in 2015, having filled every spare inch of space (and there’s not much space spare to start with in RH…) with plants.
Overenthusiastic tomato growing in Reindeer House a few years back. This wasn’t even Hen’s room…who needs curtains?
I even grew strawberries on the feed shed roof for a couple of years, prompting some strange looks from visitors in the Paddocks on a regular basis, looking over to see me climbing up the side of the building carrying a watering can!
By the end of lockdown this will look like a rockery rather than a building site (apparently)!
Chris: It turned out I had a million and one things that needed doing so I don’t think I’ve ever had the time go by faster ever! I’ve been selling loads of stuff on eBay to try and boost my bank balance. I was cleaning and sorting out some old cycling/running shoes to sell and wondered what/how many shoes does it take to herd a reindeer?!
Part of Chris’s extensive selection of reindeer herding shoes!
Walking boots x1: for when it’s too cold for wellies
Ski touring boots x1: For when there’s so much snow it’s easier to ski out to find the reindeer!
Cycling shoes x4: for when the reindeer have gone too far and its quicker too cycle out half way to where they are. No, we don’t have helicopters/drones/quad bikes which I’ve been asked several times on Hill Trips!
Hill running shoes x50: the joint most important shoe of a reindeer herder!
Light, comfy, grippy and worn almost every day outside of winter for running around the hills chasing reindeer and fixing fences/boardwalking.
Wellies x1: it is Scotland, it rains a lot, the ground is wet, muddy and boggy. Wear wellies.
But what sort of shoes is Chris wearing for *this* type of reindeer work?
Nicky: A different side of the Reindeer Centre Business is selling meat from our Glenlivet hill farm, where we have free-range cattle, soay sheep and wild boar. As lockdown kicked in and with meat scarce in the local shops, I received a message on our Reindeer Herders Whatsapp group asking if any of us would like any meat dropped off from our farm and I came up with the idea of offering an ordering and delivery service out to my neighbours and friends. We set up a safe payment and delivery method and, as I’m sure everyone has found, I never knew I could become so well acquainted with my wee bottle of hand sanitising gel that I now carry everywhere with me!
Nicky with meat orders ready for collection and/or delivery!
This was just the start. The word spread, other neighbours wanted to join the ‘meat delivery group’, and friends, family and colleagues I mentioned it to also wanted to join our gang. Many customers have expressed they are finding it so superior and delicious compared to other meat they have tasted. It’s lovely to receive such praise and appreciation and pass it on to my colleagues at the Reindeer Centre and Farm.
It feels good to be doing this on so many levels. For people to be able to get ethical, locally sourced meat; to get to know more of my neighbours; to help some of my elderly neighbours who aren’t able to go to the shops and are having supplies delivered to them; to deliver to friends who work for the NHS; it brings a wonderful sense of community when everyone pulls together in times like these.
Nicky in the winter with Crowdie and Kipling
So there you have it – lots of reindeer herders using their energy in different manners than normal! While some of us are quite enjoying our time off, others are itching to be back working with the reindeer. So the sooner the world can get back to some semblance of ‘normal’ the better!
Up here on the Cairngorms (as well as many other places in Scotland), the first proper snow has arrived. As much of our blogging and online posts recently have been about our Christmas tours, I thought I would share with you all some photos, to remind you all where our reindeer live for most of the year.
This wild landscape can be cold, cruel and hard, but the reindeer thrive, and love their habitat in the snow. We also love it!
A chilly but beautiful walk through the woods up to the enclosure.
The brave souls choosing to come on our hill trip.
The Alt Mor in the snow.
Sheena entertaining her visitors with tales of past days.
Its one of the most beautiful times of year to visit the herd, with their wicked antlers still on their heads, long soft winter coats,and furry noses to keep them warm. Reindeer truly love the snow, and if you’re lucky you get to see them dancing about and chasing each other round.
As we call the reindeer, they appear in the distance, coming down off Silvermount.
The first of the greedy bunch!
The reindeers’ view – looking down across the Reindeer Centre, Meall a’ Bhuachaille, and the cold Loch Morlich.
The beautiful Aral, face blending in with the snow.
Mmmm.. brunch.
Dixie and Kara, mother and daughter, sharing their food.
Bovril’s big antlers carrying snow, looking ready for a snowball fight?
Our Hill Trips are still running each day, at 11am, so if this inspires you to get up and visit the herd, make sure you come properly dressed for a cold encounter and get here in plenty of time. And to sign off, I’m leaving you with a picture of our beautiful Svalbard!
Times are a-changing and we thought we’d keep all you lovely readers informed with who is working here at Reindeer House. People have left, people have arrived, but the reindeer herding goes on…
So here goes:
Imogen and Abby (aka The Fierce and The Fluff) who both worked here for a few years have left in the last couple of months, moving on to new places and new adventures. We miss them both greatly (and their banter!), and for all of you out there who knew them as herders, we know you’ll miss their characters too..
Abby on a beautiful day with Lace.
A sunny winter’s day surrounded by reindeer is enough to make anyone, Imogen included, smile!
Ruth is our newest member of staff, who joined us during May. As a redhead she has gone through so much sun-cream since arriving that we’ve decided there should be a redhead grant from the government to cover the cost of this, so you can wish us luck on this venture. Ruth has a fantastic knowledge of the plants and animals of Scotland, and makes tours out to see the reindeer a whole new learning experience for both visitors and others herders!
Ruth with one of our calves from this year.
Olly is back! Olly has worked at the reindeer centre on and off seasonally over the last few years, but is finally here to stay (we just can’t keep him away). Known for his flamboyant shirts and braces and excellent (and probably early-morning-sleep-related) comments, Olly is just great. Full of enthusiasm, knowledge, practical skills and creativity, Olly keeps us amused and is an excellent man to have about.
Olly amongst a hungry herd of reindeer.
After having been here only four months Morna has proved she can handle the most difficult of situations. She wears many hats – equally skilled with hammer or pen, paint brush or calculator. Her calmness is appreciated by the reindeer who are at ease in her presence and us herders appreciate her love for life. Growing up on the Orkney Isles she is at home in wild places (but whatever you do don’t start a snow ball fight with her as she is likely to hurt herself).
Morna enjoying her first calving season.
Dave has been here now for just over a year, so is a well-known bearded face at Reindeer House. Our only resident New-Zealander, Dave has worked on his Scottish reindeer call to make sure the reindeer can understand him, which makes us all chuckle here at the Centre. Dave never seems to get fazed or frazzled, and is one of those genuinely lovely people who calms the rest of us down simply by being around, and visitors seem to come away from the hill trip in a much more relaxed mood than they began in. And although he has been here for over a year, the secret finally slipped out that Dave has never mixed a bag of hand feed…
Dave finds time for a moment of quiet contemplation on the hill.
Hen and Andi have both been here for a good number of years, and make sure everything runs smoothly here at the Centre. They are in charge of everything from our whole reindeer adoption database, to creating new road signs, to making sure the reindeer get the right amount of food, and to keeping us newbies in line. As Hen has been confined to crutches for the next few months, she is currently being our office-extraordinaire and we are all on orders to take photos of the reindeer down so she can keep up with how they are doing. Andi has taken up the slack of the missing Hen’s ID knowledge on the hill, and is providing a fountain of knowledge and tips for who is who. Andi is the herder to go to for all our stupid questions, and keeps us in line with her patience and loveliness.
Hen on Christmas tour, with a sleepy Topi on her shoulder.
Andi leading the herd of calves and other females out onto the hill.
Catriona is the oracle: our accountant, organiser, keeper of records, and all other hosts of jobs that need an experienced hand. She has been keeping the reindeer centre in line for longer than a few of us have been alive, and I’m not sure how the centre would work without her.
Sheena is a friend of the Reindeer Centre and has been around for over 25 years. She works on and off, filling in days here and there. She is the master of badge-making and incredibly full of energy at all times.
Stella and Ann are our long-term regular volunteers. They have helped out in many a sticky situation, have known the Reindeer Centre and all the staff over the years, and never fail to cheer us up with an odd packet of jaffa-cakes or biscuits turning up on the table.
And last, but of course by no means least, come the rest of the Smith family. Tilly and Alan, the owners of the company, are kept busy both here at the Reindeer Centre and over on their farm, working with not only reindeer but a whole host of animals, including Soay sheep, Wild Boar and Belted Galloway Cows. Over on the farm there is also Derek and Colin (brothers of Alan), and Alex (son of Tilly and Alan). Emily is Alex’s wife and, showing the reindeer centre to be a true family business, also works here for the odd day here and there.
Fiona, as many of you will know, is the backbone of the Reindeer Centre. Along with her brother Alex, they make the first native Scottish reindeer herders and her knowledge of the reindeer and how to work with them is long-ingrained. Fiona ensures that the whole of the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre organisation runs smoothly and the reindeer are happy and healthy all year round. Fiona also takes on much of the behind-the-scenes work, along with the hectic job of organising the whole of the Christmas period…
An inquisitive girl!
We have too many volunteers and occasional staff to mention by name who turn up and massively help us out on a weekly basis, but who without, many jobs would go undone. So a big shout out to them all, for their fantastic help over the years. And of course, there are a whole host of others, family and friends of the Reindeer Centre, who work on and off or just help out, and are there to cheer us up if the occasion arises!
