5 of the Best Spring Activities in Perthshire
Spring is a great time for getting out and about in Perthshire, and there are a few activities that are at their best at this time of year. There’s some school holidays to take into account too so we’ve come up with 5 of our favourite things to do in spring. The first two are ready to visit now, with the following three perfect for planning in May.
Loch of the Lowes
The Loch of the Lowes visitor centre is great to visit all year round, but particularly in spring as the ospreys return. Last year was an especially dramatic one, with various different osprey laying claim to the nest and new mating couples potentially forming. It was an extraordinary thing to follow, sometimes heart wrenching, always fascinating.
From the hides outside the visitor’s centre you can watch the osprey nest through telescopes/binoculars, and you can also see these magnificent birds soar over the loch with the naked eye. There’s lots of other wildlife to spot too, with a large window within the centre building a perfect spot for watching what comes to the feeders positioned on the other side of the glass.
The visitors centre also includes a children’s play area, an informative display, and a selection of gifts and equipment. Admission is £6.50 for adults, £6.00 for concessions, and free for children and members of the Scottish Wildlife Trust.
https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/reserve/loch-of-the-lowes/
Auchingarrich Wildlife Park
We enjoy Auchingarrich at any time of year, but spring is a great time to go for baby animals, including goats, lambs and chicks. There’s a hatchery and petting barn with a handling area, and you can pay extra for a lamb feeding session if you want. There are also events and activities coming up for the Easter Holidays.
We particularly enjoy the ‘open’ enclosures where you can actually go in with the animals, including wallabies and emus, and other personal favourites are seeing the marmosets, wild cats and lemurs. There’s also a go cart area and soft play for the children and the Dizzy Duck cafe is a great way to re-energise for the drive home.
Tickets usually cost £14 per adult, with £12 for concessions and children 3 years or older. Some activities are extra.
https://www.auchingarrichwildlifepark.co.uk
Stewart Tower Dairy
Spring is the return of ice cream weather, and one of the best places we’ve been for this in Perthshire has to be Stewart Tower Dairy. They have a fantastic selection of flavours, but more than that it’s just a lovely location.
Being on the dairy farm makes it feel like a real farm to fork (or spoon) experience, and from late April the cows can be seen freely grazing in the fields. There’s other animals to see while you enjoy your ice cream as well, like goats, pigs and ponies. There’s also a farm shop, and the cafe serves breakfasts, lunches and home baking as well as ice cream.
Branklyn Garden
A relatively new discovery of ours, this garden reopens for the season in April and is well worth visiting for late spring to see the Himalayan blue poppies or meconopsis, for which the garden hosts the National Collection. Poppies are beautiful flowers anyway of course, with their big papery petals and delicately drooping heads, but when they’re also bright blue? Stunning.
The garden is laid out in one main loop, with lots of charming narrow paths threading back and forth between them. There’s something to see down each one of these, and so you end up spending sometime exploring and making sure you’ve got them all. There’s benches dotted throughout so you can sit and really take in the different areas.
On sunny days, I can also recommend tea and scones on the terrace. Tickets are advertised as £11.00 per adult, with £9.00 concessions, £6.50 child, and family tickets available. Members of the National Trust for Scotland go free.
Kinclaven Bluebell Woods
From May and into June, the bluebells are undoubtedly one of the most beautiful sights in Scotland, and one of the best places to see them is Kinclaven Woods. We try to go every year if we can and are always left astounded and at the same time unusually peaceful.
This is quite an accessible circular walk, with some elevation in parts but no steep sections. If mobility is limited it can still be worth a visit, as you don’t have to go very far from the carpark to find yourself amidst a sea of blue blossoms.
Even if you go at a busy weekend, there’s plenty of room for everyone who visits, and also a very nice, friendly atmosphere. The one rule is to keep to the paths so as not to damage the bluebells. The actual walk probably takes about an hour if you don’t stop, but you should factor in plenty of extra time for taking photos and just pausing to look and gasp.
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/woods/kinclaven-bluebell-wood/
