Annual Events in the Cairngorms National Park

Held in the days of Malcolm Canmore nine hundred years ago, and revived in 1832, the Braemar Gathering always takes place in Braemar the first Saturday in September. It is famous around the world for its hospitality and, of course, for the Queens attendance at the Highland Games. On the day itself, the village invites people to 'come over the hills' and echoes to the sound of competing pipe bands. Athletes participate in either the 'heavy' (tossing the bale, sheaf, weights, caber and Scots hammer) or 'track' (sprints and middle distance) events.

The Spirit of Speyside is an annual whisky festival that celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2009. It is held over the first long weekend in May and invites visitors to sample the country's national drink so they can better understand their dram. Made with the finest barley and purest spring water, Speyside's single malts are among the best in the world.

First held in 2006, the Macdonald mile fun run and Aviemore half marathon are usually run on consecutive days over a weekend in mid-October to raise funds for the Speyside Trust. The first seven miles of the main event take the thousand runners into the Glenmore Forest around Loch Morlich before heading onto the Rothiemurchus Estate. The route then follows the cycle track through Coylumbridge and Inverdruie. The last section crosses the River Spey and leads into Aviemore main street and the finish.

World Chainsaw Carving Championships held in Carrbridge just north of Aviemore since 2003, the chainsaw carving championships  are staged each September with carvers competing for the Claymore Trophy. Surprisingly delicate sculptures can be carved while live music, craft stalls and other activities run throughout the day.

The  Aviemore Big Splash is held in August next to the Old Bridge Inn. The big splash is a mad extreme sports event for people with a screw loose! The main event consists of a large ramp on the side of the river Spey from which you can launch off in a variety of contraptions from wheelie bins and shopping trolleys to bikes skis and snowboards.

Aviemore Sled-Dog Rally, the first Arden Grange and Siberian Husky Club of GB event was held on the trails around Loch an Eilein on the Rothiemurchus Estate in 1984. A lack of snow over the following years forced the organisers to move the 4-mile course up the hillside to Glenmore and Loch Morlich, where it remains to this day. From humble beginnings and only 12 teams, the end-of-January Burns-weekend event now attracts more than 200 mushers from around the country.

First held in 1994 to raise funds for Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres, the World Porridge Making Championships take place annually on a Sunday early in October in Carrbridge, with the winners receiving the coveted Golden Spurtle Trophy (a spurtle is a traditional tapered stick used for stirring the porridge). Other events on the day include the Carrbridge Challenge Forest Run, a pipe band procession, local produce and craft stalls and live entertainment.

Newtonmore Highland Games, these are a traditional Highland Games  with dancing, piping, heavy and track events, hill running and assorted shows and stalls. Held on the first Saturday in August, it is synonymous with the Clan Macpherson Rally & March and was originally organised by the village to welcome home its servicemen at the end of the Second World War in 1945.

Thunder in the Glen, hosted by the Dunedin Chapter and first held in 1998, this annual Harley Davidson motorcycle meet takes place in Aviemore over the August bank holiday weekend. It attracts a huge following of more than a thousand bikers from all over the world and is accompanied over the whole weekend by various live entertainment acts.

Keep an eye out for the annual Vans Dawn of the Shred  event in the Cairngorms . The ski and board championships are held each winter season in one of the park's three main ski areas: CairnGorm, The Lecht or Glenshee.

The Laggan Highland Road Race is usually run in late May or early June but it's not the only major event in the Cairngorms National Park. The gruelling Caledonian 100 challenges competitors to circumnavigate the park over 36 hours, while the Cairngorms Adventure Triathlon  includes canoe and mountain bike sections along its 28km route.

The Cairngorm Extreme Soap Box challenge is still in its infancy. Night Train beat 16 rivals in the inaugural 2009 race, and driver Graeme Smith was immediately crowned 'King of the Mountains'. The next event is scheduled for the last weekend in July 2010, with many more runners expected to compete over a 2-mile course that boasts a vertical drop of more than 700 feet to the finish at Reindeer house just off Loch Morlich.

New Year in Scotland is a major event and the towns and villages in the Cairngorms National Park celebrate in their own unique way. See the torch-lit procession in Nethy Bridge or take in the Hogmanay Ceilidh Dinner & Dance with traditional Highland music. Why not head for the Masquerade Ball at the Carrbridge or Kingussie for some serious foot-stomping? On New Year's Day it's traditional to walk Newtonmore's Wildcat Trail before watching the annual Shinty match. Finish the day off by sampling the Stag's Breath at Newtonmore's torch-lit Hogmanay celebrations.