Snowy Squirrels
Ever since i started in wildlife photography, I have wanted to capture one of those iconic shots of Red Squirrels in the snow. The only trouble has been I kept missing the snow! Over the new year of 2026 I headed for the Cairngorms in Scotland hoping this would be the time!
In the build up to my trip I was constantly checking the weather apps and snow kept appearing and disappearing. Once I was in the Cairngorms it was frosty, cold and icy but no snow. I had a few areas planned for the trip including some Squirrel locations as well as up the Cairngorm mountain hoping for Mountain Hares and Ptarmigan. First up was the former, with a trip up to the top of the mountain on the funicular railway. I was even equipped with a thermal scope to try help find the Hares and Ptarmigan easier but alas, the snow was not there so the animals were not there either!
In the winter, Mountain Hares and Ptarmigan turn white to blend into the habitat. So they tend to go where the snow is to stay inconspicuous to any passing Golden Eagles! So while I was unsuccessful with those species, a nice consolation prize was a Snow Bunting. These tend to hang around near the ski resort car park but disperse in the winter. Luckily one at least was still kicking about!
Next up a visit to another photographers hide just over in Aberdeenshire which attracts Buzzards but also Squirrels. The drive over was a bit hairy due to the icy roads but even though we had the cold we didn’t have any snow once again. I’ll do a separate post about “Waterside Hide” but here are a couple of the Squirrels…
Eventually we did get a dumping of snow, on New Years Day! It was forecast quite bad so we didn’t venture out at all however. The day after though we were heading further south for a stop off at a favourite spot - Penny Hedge! Another friends hide that is amazing for photographing Squirrels and Pine Martens. The drive here was slightly nerve wracking with the snowy conditions. We later found out that if we had stayed 1 more day we would have been stranded as a further 52cm of snow fell in the area we were staying! I certainly wanted the snow for photos - but I didn’t fancy driving in it!
Penny Hedge was below the worst of the weather but still had a small covering of snow. So this was it - the last day, snow and Squirrels - I just had to make the most of it! We had around 4 hours of action from a host of woodland birds and a good few visits from the Squirrels before it started getting dark and everything went into hiding.
Once dark had set in we settled in for another few hours hoping for Pine Martens in the snow! We weren’t disappointed either with 4 visits! The Pine Marten has fast become one of my favourite animals. Before I started wildlife photography I didn’t even know what a Pine Marten was! Alas, shots in the bag I was a happy bunny. Finally I had managed to take shots of the Red Squirrel in the snow!
After a night in a Premier Inn at Dundee it was time for a long slog back to Yorkshire. However a quick stop nearby at Monifeith to spot some Waxwings that had been reported! Whilst here, just by a golf club, there was a puddle where the ice had been broken which was attracting various birds down to drink. So it was nice to see some winter visitors here including Fieldfare and Redwing.