Description

Far Ralia is located near Newtonmore, in Inverness-shire. It lies wholly within the Cairngorms National Park, and occupies the lower slopes which form the fringes of the Cairngorms Massif, a vast upland landscape including high-altitude mountains which lie at the heart of the Park. The Cairngorms National Park is the largest National Park in the UK. With vast tracts of land with a unique topography and climate suited to native woodland creation and peatland restoration, it is emerging as one of the UK’s most significant natural capital assets, delivering long term carbon sequestration and biodiversity gains.

In 2022, Far Ralia’s managing agent partnered with the Natural History Museum (NHM) to measure the site’s biodiversity using the Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII). Prior to planting, Far Ralia’s BII was just below 52%. Based on tree planting and regeneration, and the subsequent improvements in local biodiversity, it is estimated that the BII will recover to a mark of 94% in the long term.

Since 2024, nearly 1.2 million trees have been planted under the terms of the Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS), with the planting scheme inspired by the globally significant native Caledonian Forests, a rare and ancient temperate woodland for which Scotland is renowned.

The carbon savings for the afforestation have been modelled using the Government’s Woodland Carbon Code (WCC) methodology and calculator. The carbon unit figures are predicted to be 328,940 PIUs. WCC validation is anticipated in October 2025. In addition, there may be scope to obtain additional peatland carbon units.

Directions

Due to the possibility of management operations including deer control, viewing is strictly by prior arrangement only. There is a padlocked gate on the access track, with a combination code. Given the potential hazards of a rural and remote asset, we would ask you to be aware of potential risks when viewing, especially entering and exiting off the A9.