Glenmore Forest Park reopens after 2026 wildfire
We're welcoming visitors back to Glenmore Forest Park.
From the beginning, the response to the wildfire that broke out in Glenmore Forest Park in July 2026 has been an enormous team effort.
We're hugely grateful to our staff, partners and contractors who've been at the forefront of this incident and to the local businesses and members of the community who have offered incredible support. The work that has gone into suppressing this fire has been immense.
After a very challenging time for everyone with a connection to this special place, we're pleased that Glenmore Forest Park is now mostly open again.
Work continues at Glenmore
We're delighted to be able to welcome visitors back to the area, but there are some things to be mindful of.
The fire itself may not be fully out for some time and thermal imaging drones will be monitoring hotspots across the area for the foreseeable future. Scottish Fire and Rescue Service continue to tackle fire at Abernethy and visitors to Glenmore might be able to smell burning from that incident.
The impact of this wildfire on the forest park has been significant. Parts of it will continue to be closed for some time while we assess the damage, make it safe and begin restoration work.
There's a lot to do. We'll be carrying out chainsaw work on trees and using heavy machinery along the firebreaks.
Advice for visitors
- We'd always recommend planning ahead. Check local guidance, find destination-specific updates on our forest webpages and have a plan B if it's busy.
- When you get to your destination, be sure to pay attention to signs and keep yourself and others safe by not entering restricted areas or flying drones anywhere in the park.
- Know what to expect. Take a look at the map below to see where there are closures within Glenmore Forest Park.
The red shape shows the unsafe area on land that we look after. Please pay attention to onsite signage and marshals and avoid this zone.
The purple shape shows part of the approximate wider unsafe area. Please follow all local guidance and onsite signage here as well.
What's open?
Lots of the Glenmore area - and wider Cairngorms National Park - is open to visitors. Many local businesses are also now open again, although it's a good idea to check ahead of travelling.
Destinations that are open within the forest park include:
- Loch Morlich
- Lochside car park
- Loch Morlich Beach, including the Beach Trail, Loch Morlich Trail and the toilets
- Hayfield, including the Pine Knoll trail
- Sugarbowl
Looking to access Meall a’ Bhuachaille?
Access to the summit of Meall a’ Bhuachaille will be possible from Glenmore Visitor Centre (return the same way). Hill access will also be possible via the Sugarbowl car park and the Chalamain Gap.
What's closed?
It's essential that we now properly assess the damage and get the work done to make the area safe again. So that we can do this, the following sites will remain shut for the time being:
- Allt Ban car park
- Allt Mor, including the Lodge Trail
- the Ryvoan Trail at Glenmore Visitor Centre (including access to An Lochan Uaine/the Green Lochan)
The Right of Way between Glenmore and Nethy Bridge, including access to Ryvoan Bothy, is also closed until further notice.
For more access information, visit cairngorms.co.uk or contact us at north.vsglenmore@forestryandland.gov.scot.
Stay safe and avoid closed areas
As part of the urgent wildfire response, we widened more than 6km of firebreaks to help stop the fire’s progress. This work involved bulldozing significant sections of trails and forest road back to bare earth and knocking over large numbers of trees. Local contractors were essential in carrying out this work.
Given the need for immediate action, these trees were not felled with our usual planned care, due attention and diligence. As a result, there are unstable trees that we're now working to clear.
The fire's damage isn't always immediately obvious. Some standing trees may appear to have escaped the flames, but beneath the surface, their roots have burned leaving them unstable and dangerous.
In certain places, the ground itself has been made unstable by fire damage or by water-bombing - which might have damaged tree limbs as well. As a result, trees on these sites are also at risk of falling or dropping branches.
Keep yourself and others safe by keeping out of closed areas where hazards like these may be present.
Thank you
Finally, we'd like to everyone involved in the wildfire response at Glenmore. To our staff, partners, and contractors, the emergency services, local businesses and members of the community, thank you for pulling together and working tirelessly to suppress the fire at this special place.