- Are you interested in other peoples affairs?
- Do you want to know how other people live?
- Do you want to know how, why and where?
- Do your kids ask too many questions you can't answer?
Please call 01540 651255 for details and prices
General or specific tours of the Estate can be organised lasting 2-3 hours.
- Compare Glenbogle the image with Alvie the reality.
- See how we make a living in our countryside.
- Understand the importance of primary production to our economy.
- Observe how we manage rising damp, awkward cows, difficult neighbours & potential conflicts between different interests.
- Learn about the history and our environment.
- Find out about the sex life of red deer, breeding sheep, the life cycle of our woodlands or other essential information you never thought you wanted to know.
- Debate the future and how our countryside should be managed.
- Enjoy the scenery, open air and our wildlife.
- Watch trees grow. (only for the patient)
Most tours cover the following points of interest.
Alvie House - Fully catered accommodation for shooting parties and those groups looking for that bit of luxury, also the home of the Laird.
Alvie woods - Our Caledonian Forest as it is today. Growing timber as a renewable resource. Why we import most of our timber when we can grow it at home.
Alvie Farm - A hill farm with 840 breeding sheep and 110 cows. In 1945 the farm employed 8 staff, in 1979 only 5, today 13,000 acres struggles to provide a living for one family. Understand the impact of subsidies, supermarkets and the Common market Agricultural Policies. How cuddly lambs grow into lamb chops.
Alvie Gardens - Soft fruit production in polytunnels. Strawberries, raspberries and salad potatoes. Farm diversification selling produce to visitors thereby circumventing the high cost of transporting produce elsewhere.
Standing Stones - A bit of history; an alternative place to worship; the place to have your sacrifices
Alvie Quarry - Pink granite aggregate and building stone. When the soil is too poor for farming or forestry we sell the ground. Big machines for the entertainment of little boys.
Alvie Sawmill - A small Estate sawmill value adding our timber resource.
Delfour Fish Hatchery - Trout, salmon and arctic char. Learn about the life cycle of fish.
Picnic in an Estate bothy, built to shelter shooting parties before the days of vehicles. Step out onto the high heather moors of Alvie; you may see grouse, blue hares or red deer. The women and children used to be sent here to graze the cattle in summer whilst the men sowed their oats and made hay in the valley below. How does this compare with your summer holidays?
Dalraddy Holiday Park - Learn how we farm tourists, understand their life cycle, and consider their breeding!