Issue 08 is here!

It gives us great pleasure to be sharing with you the eighth edition of Hidden Scotland magazine. Welcome to our Spring/Summer 2024 issue.

All pre-orders will come with:

→ A 'Orkney' bookmark
→ A5 print of our front cover image

This will arrive wrapped in kraft tissue paper and sealed with a sticker. Available for a limited time only.

If you are a subscriber to Hidden Scotland magazine, then your order will also arrive with the bookmark and print.

We hope that you enjoy issue 08 and as always, thank you again for your continued support!

We will begin shipping on the 15th of April.

WHAT’S IN ISSUE 08

Orkney: It started like this

Jim Richardson shares his deep connection with Orkney, developed over 25 years of visits. Initially drawn by iconic landmarks, Richardson's focus shifted to the islands' everyday life and their blend of Scottish and Scandinavian influences. Through personal anecdotes, he highlights Orkney's unique culture, ancient history, and the communal spirit of its people, underscoring the profound impact of time spent in this distinct archipelago.

A roundup of Scotland’s most impressive gardens.

The article serves as a guide to ten standout gardens across Scotland, blending native and exotic flora. It highlights the cultivation effort behind these tranquil refuges, emphasising their role in offering unique scents, colours, and tranquillity amidst the rich sensory experience of the Scottish outdoors.

A weekend away to the Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire

Alice Nicol, co-owner of Ballogie Estate in Aberdeenshire, details her life managing the estate's diverse offerings, from Potarch Café to accommodations and land conservation. Emphasising the estate’s commitment to sustainability and biodiversity, she shares her passion for the local landscape and offers insights for visitors to experience Aberdeenshire’s natural beauty and culture.

A Whisky Business

Lucy Gillmore explores Scotland's whisky renaissance, emphasising Edinburgh's resurgence as a distilling hub with innovative distilleries like Holyrood, which blends traditional and modern techniques. The article delves into the boom in whisky tourism and the emergence of distilleries nationwide, from architectural marvels to community-led projects, showcasing Scotland's rich whisky heritage and its evolving future.

Nature in numbers: Meet Ploterre

Rebecca Kaye turns her love for the outdoors into art with Ploterre, blending maths, design, and nature. From statistitian to artist, her journey led to creating visually striking prints that tell stories about the environment using data. Her work not only captivates but also raises awareness about nature's beauty and its challenges.

Wildlife: Beaver, is that you?

Emily Rose Mawson explores the reintroduction of beavers to Scotland, centuries after their local extirpation. Highlighting their role as ecosystem engineers, the piece details successful releases in the Cairngorms National Park and addresses the challenges and benefits of their return, marking a hopeful step for biodiversity and habitat restoration in Scotland.

This farming life

'Rewilding' isn't just for Scotland's wild spaces; innovative farmers are adopting 'regenerative farming' to work with nature on cultivated land. Through sustainable practices like habitat restoration and natural grazing, these farmers are pioneering a movement to heal the land. This hands-on approach not only nurtures biodiversity but invites us to join the journey, showing that farming can be part of the ecological solution.

Meet Anna: A focus on Guardswell Farm

Anna Lamotte leads Guardswell Farm, a hub for regenerative farming in Scotland, offering a retreat into nature with accommodations and workshops. Here, ethical livestock rearing meets chemical-free gardening, aiming to enhance soil health and biodiversity. Guardswell represents a commitment to sustainable land management and reconnecting guests with the source of their food.

CAILLEACH and the HUNTER from GLEN NEVIS

Those who travel along the majestic Glen Nevis, through the rocky Nevis Gorge, are rewarded with breathtaking scenery. There are tumbling waterfalls, soaring mountains and maybe even a majestic stag or two. Anybody lucky enough to spot wild deer in the glen should also keep their ears open for strange noises. Glen Nevis is known to be a haunt of the Cailleach.

Kilmartin Glen

Beth Reid explores the profound historical and creative legacy of Kilmartin Glen in Argyll, a treasure trove of over 800 archaeological sites. This area, rich in Neolithic and Bronze Age history, exemplifies the deep connection between Scotland's ancient landscapes and its peoples.

The Hidden Scotland Shop - A Place to Call Home

In a stone farmhouse on the Deeside Way, where the River Dee connects Banchory and Drumoak, the Hidden Scotland Shop curates small-batch design pieces from across Scotland. It offers a fresh take on tradition, with the style familiar to readers of the magazine.

Discovering the Nooks and Crannies of Fife

History hangs like a sea mist over this green, salty-aired slab of land between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay. The so-called Kingdom of Fife – often known simply as ‘The Kingdom’ – spent around half a millennium as the home patch of the Scottish monarchy, and the peninsula still has a unique character. A place of mellow fi shing villages and rolling farmland, of age-old abbeys and booming coastal views, the region is also famed worldwide as the home of golf. Mark Twain, who memorably described the sport as a ‘good walk spoiled’, clearly never visited Fife.

Auld and new, Isle of Mull

Banjo Beale, winner of BBC1's Interior Design Masters 2022, shares his transformative journey from Australia to the Isle of Mull. Alongside his partner, they delved into cheesemaking and community building. Banjo's knack for repurposing materials into unique interiors showcases a sustainable, creative lifestyle deeply connected to the Scottish island's essence.

A Family Guide to the Isle of Arran

From beaches and ferries to cafés, castles and wildlife, nothing is far away on Arran, says Emily Rose Mawson, as she and her four-year-old tour the west coast island known as Scotland in Miniature.

This issue also includes

• Scotland’s Little Free Libraries

• The 900th anniversary of Stirling

• Food & drink: Canna Cafe, The Small Isles

• Auld and new, Isle of Mull

• Walking tour of the New Town, Edinburgh

We’ve also just launched our our very first guide book!

Within these pages, you'll find a hand-picked assortment of different diversions to delve into. The range is suitably broad. There are monuments, cafes, theatres and galleries; walking routes, gift-buying tips, guided tours and whisky tastings; restaurants, picture houses, pubs and bookshops. Some of these attractions are well known while others fly under the radar. It's our sincere hope that you enjoy discovering them.