Scottish rewilding lodge joins European rewilding network

Pioneering Asset

Nestled in the heart of Glen Feshie, one of the Scottish Highlands’ most attractive valleys, Ballintean Mountain Lodge has joined Rewilding Europe’s European Rewilding Network, strengthening the UK initiative’s presence within the growing community of rewilding practitioners. For the past 30 years, a family-run estate in the Cairngorms National Park has quietly demonstrated the power of rewilding, patiently driving the process. Allowing nature to recover and reshape the land with minimal intervention.

The lodge is owned and managed by Peter Cairns and his wife Amanda Flanagan, renowned conservation photographer, communicator and founder of Scotland’s leading rewilding charity, SCOTLAND: The Big Picture. Set in a landscape emblematic of Scotland’s journey of rewilding, the lodge is set in a valley that has seen significant natural restoration in recent years. But Ballintean’s commitment to nature-led restoration began decades ago. At the time, rewilding was still far from becoming a mainstream conservation movement.

As nature leads

Formerly an equestrian centre, the 52 hectares of land surrounding Ballintean Mountain Lodge contain a rich mosaic of regenerating habitats typical of the Scottish Highlands: native woodland, shrubland and species-rich floodplain grassland. The lodge’s rewilding-focused management approach focuses on restoring and enhancing natural processes, particularly natural grazing and free-flowing river dynamics.

Over the next 10 years, the Ballintean team will continue this approach, working to further revitalize local habitats, support the return of water voles and beavers, reintroduce semi-wild ponies and increase Atlantic salmon populations. Osprey, Scotland’s iconic fish-eating bird of prey, serves as the property’s flagship species, symbolizing healthy rivers and thriving fish stocks.

Strengthening the growing European movement

The fast-growing European Rewilding Network now connects more than 100 rewilding initiatives across nearly 30 countries, fostering peer-to-peer learning and amplifying the impact of practical, results-oriented rewilding across the continent. By joining the network, Ballintean Mountain Lodge brings invaluable expertise and long-standing experience in the Scottish Highlands to the network’s burgeoning membership.

“One of the main motivations for joining is to keep up to date with the latest developments in rewilding across Europe and to exchange insights on communication and wildlife coexistence,” says Peter Cairns. “As rewilding efforts mature, effective engagement with communities, land managers and policy makers becomes increasingly important.”

A living example of Scottish rewilding

Ballintean’s story is intertwined with the development of widespread rewilding in Scotland. The landscape of the Scottish Highlands, once intensively managed for timber and sporting activities, has been degraded for centuries. But in recent decades, there has been a growing movement to reverse this trend by restoring native forests, breathing new life into rivers, supporting the return of wildlife, and ensuring local communities benefit from this recovery. The Affric Highlands, located northwest of Ballintean, become the ninth landscape in Rewilding Europe’s portfolio for 2021.

Glen Feshie itself has become one of the most famous examples of landscape-scale rewilding in Britain. Regenerating natural forests, reducing deer grazing pressure and restoring natural processes are transforming the valley into a wilder and more resilient landscape. Ballintean complements and contributes to this broader recovery by showing how private land and nature-based tourism can be consistent with rewilding principles.

Ballintean Mountain Lodge, along with Wild Swedish, is one of the first European Rewilding Network members located outside of Rewilding Europe’s operating environment and is represented on Rewilding Europe’s dedicated rewilding tourism booking platform, Wilder Places. The Ballintean experience is included on the platform through a collaboration with SCOTLAND: The Big Picture, a member of the network. This marks an important step in expanding wildlife tourism across Europe and strengthening communities across the continent who provide positive experiences with nature.

Grow, Learn and Exchange

In addition to its own cultivation, Ballintean Mountain Lodge plays an important role in communication and knowledge exchange. SCOTLAND: A frequent partner with The Big Picture, the facility regularly invites land managers, NGOs, policy makers and other stakeholders to offer immersive experiences, from informal “walk and talk” visits to structured residential training courses and curated rewilding trips. By combining practical demonstrations, engaging conversations and powerful storytelling, the lodge inspires support for wilderness restoration among a wide range of people.

Peter Cairns said: “As Executive Director of SCOTLAND: The Big Picture, I have been involved in building partnerships and developing networks across Scotland and beyond.” “With my passion for rewilding stronger than ever, I am now keen to build new partnerships through Ballintean.”

A hopeful vision for the Highlands

Ballintean’s approach reflects a broader shift in conservation thinking away from controlling and managing nature towards activating natural processes and trusting ecosystems to heal and manage themselves. In the face of biodiversity loss and climate change, this approach offers new hope. It shows that landscapes can regain functionality, resilience and beauty when given space, freedom and time.

From the return of woodland and wetland mosaics to the prospect of reshaping and strengthening rivers with the revival of beaver and salmon populations, Ballintean’s vision is one of restoration and coexistence. At the same time, the lodge’s nature-based tourism and educational activities demonstrate how rewilding can support rural life and evoke new, more profound connections with the natural world.

By joining the European Rewilding Network, Ballintean Mountain Lodge is not only celebrating 30 years of natural restoration, but also looking to the future. Initiatives like Ballintean are helping to shape a wilder, more resilient future for the landscapes of the Scottish Highlands and beyond through collaboration, shared learning and collective ambition.

Let’s reenact together

Rewilding Europe warmly welcomes all European rewilding initiatives focused on practical, result-oriented rewilding initiatives and encourages them to apply for membership in the European Rewilding Network.

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