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Just because summer is over doesn’t mean it’s time to put your walking boots away. November and the months that follow can be a lovely time to explore the Cairngorms and surrounding countryside. The mornings might be frosty, the days are shorter and the weather can be unpredictable, but there are still plenty of opportunities to get outside and enjoy a good walk

From wool and hand-sewn clothes to the skills people passed between generations, traditional crafts offer a different way to explore Scotland’s history.

History is often associated with castles, battles and the lives of important people. But there is another way to understand the past: look at the things people made, the clothes they wore and the everyday skills they relied on.

As the days shorten and the evenings draw in, there is a different reason to visit the Cairngorms in October and November. You don’t have to wait until the middle of the night to experience a properly dark sky.

Here at Fraoch Lodge, we’ve been noticing the changing season in the garden and around Boat of Garten. There have been beautiful sunrises, mist along the river and the first frost of autumn. On clear evenings, the view above us can be just as rewarding as the landscape below.

The October holidays are approaching and, if you’re looking for somewhere to take the family for a few days, the Cairngorms make a good base. By now the days are noticeably shorter and there’s a good chance of encountering anything from warm sunshine to frost, rain or even an early dusting of snow on the mountains. The trick is not to try to predict which you’ll get.

This morning I scraped frost from the windscreen for the first time this autumn.

There has already been some snow on Cairngorm this week too, although that certainly doesn’t mean that winter has arrived. October in the Cairngorms doesn’t follow a timetable, and conditions can vary enormously from one year to the next.

utumn in the Cairngorms can be a wonderful time to visit. The landscape starts to change colour, the evenings draw in and there is a different feel to the area as the busy summer season comes to an end.

Autumn is a particularly good time for cycling in the Cairngorms. The summer crowds have eased, the colours are beginning to change and, for much of September and October, there is still plenty of daylight for a good day out on two wheels.

When people think about the Cairngorms, it’s usually the mountains that come to mind first.

And we can understand why. The mountains, forests and lochs are a huge part of what makes this area special. But there is another side to the Cairngorms that is just as interesting: the people who have lived and worked here, the industries they developed, the buildings they left behind and the traditions that are still part of everyday life.

As summer draws to a close, this becomes an especially good time to explore some of that heritage.

There is something about the beginning of autumn in the Cairngorms that always makes us look forward to the months ahead.

The days are getting shorter, the first hints of colour are appearing in the birch trees and the bracken is beginning to turn golden and brown. There is a noticeable change in the light too. Summer can feel bright and busy; autumn brings softer evenings and a different pace to life in the Highlands.

When we travel in Europe, we often choose not to hire a car, even when we are planning to spend most of our time hiking. In fact, perhaps because we are hiking, we particularly enjoy travelling without a car. It encourages us to slow down, use local transport and discover places along the way that we might otherwise simply drive past.

Most people who come to stay at Fraoch Lodge arrive in their own car or hire one when they reach Scotland. But you don’t have to.