Cairngorm Mountain to be turned into year-round attraction
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Cairngorm Mountain is due to open year-round in a bid to make the resort less reliant on winter sports.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise, which owns the 3500 acre site, is examining proposals to turn it into a destination for mountain biking.
Also contained in a newly published 25-year masterplan for Cairngorm Mountain are proposals for a Scottish Centre for the Mountain Environment.
The resort has suffered in recent years from a succession of poor winters.
Ironically, while 2020/21 was the best season in the past decade for snow, the Covid pandemic meant it was unable to open
Dave MacLeod, HIE’s head of property and infrastructure, said the agency’s ultimate aim was to unlock Cairngorm’s full potential as both an environmental and economic asset for the area.
He said: "This masterplan is a really important tool to guide the development of lots of individual plans that will come forward in future.
"Its impact will be felt for at least a generation.
"It was clear from the start that some issues will always be quite polarising.
"For instance, some people hold strong views both for and against changes to visitor management at the plateau and on the potential for mountain biking within the estate.
"Any future plans that might be brought forward on these subjects would need to be thought through very carefully and, of course, be subject to the regulatory planning process.
"Other aspects are more likely to win almost universal support, such as environmental protection and a sustainable operating model that benefits the local economy throughout the year and not only in winter."
Hopes are high that the funicular railway will return to operation for the coming winter.
It has been out of action since September 2018 because of safety concerns regarding two-kilometre concrete viaduct which carries the track.
However, the Scottish Government and HIE agreed funding last year to carry out the work needed.
The full masterplan is available online here
