Islanders are being invited to take part in a fundraising trek across the Scottish Cairngorms in aid of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust.
The trek will take place between 17 and 20 September, with participants being challenged to summit the three peaks in the Cairngorms before arriving in Durrell’s Dalnacardoch Estate in the national park.
The trek will cover 38km and take participants over Ben Macdui, the second-highest mountain in Britain.
The fundraiser follows Durrell’s Founders Trek in 2025 which celebrated 100 years since the birth of Gerald Durrell. This saw participants trek from Durrell’s birthplace in West Bengal to Assam, the home of the trust’s Pygmy Hog Conservation project, which raised £54,000 for the charity.
Durrell’s director of fundraising and commercial, Alexandra Shears, said: “After the phenomenal success of our Founder’s Trek last year, we are really excited to be launching another challenge for 2026.
“These treks are an amazing opportunity for Durrell supporters, members and enthusiasts to meet some of our fantastic on the ground conservationists, who are working tirelessly each day to drive meaningful and impactful change to the world that we live in.
“They also serve as an important fundraiser for Durrell, which helps support our mission of saving species from extinction. Spaces are limited and applications close on 6 February so be quick if you want to get involved!”
Durrell launched its 100-year re-wilding project in Scotland in 2023 to restore habitats and ecological processes, recover missing species and nurture a connection between people and the environment on their Dalnacardoch estate in the Scottish Highlands.
The Durrell team have since completed a baseline ecological and species survey which has allowed them to begin restoring natural processes in the area. Having started repairing peatlands and reducing grazing pressure on their estate, the team are already seeing the benefits for local wildlife.
Interested?
More information on how to take part is available here.