Cairngorm Mountain Resort Remains Closed as Wildfire Burns
17th July 2026
Last modified on July 24th, 2026
The Scottish resort remains closed as firefighters continue to battle the blaze that is now in its second week. UPDATED
Fire crews are continuing to tackle a large-scale wildfire in the Cairngorms.
Efforts to put out the fire – including helicopter water-bombing and ground-based activity – are expected to continue into next week.
Hotspots remain on the “challenging terrain” with Nethy Bridge community council leader Sandy McCook warning that a further fire had broken out on Thursday evening.
“The fire flared up again – back to square one,” he said.
Image c/o Cairngorm Mountain Resort
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, SFRS, deputy assistant chief officer Michael Humphreys said there were still “substantial hotspots burning across a large and complex landscape”.
“We are asking members of the public to continue staying away from the affected areas while these operations remain ongoing.”
More than 100 firefighters have been involved in the operation to control and extinguish the fire, which started near Ryvoan Bothy, south of Nethy Bridge, last Wednesday.
Six appliances and specialist resources including all-terrain vehicles are on the scene.
The SFRS said the response was still “influenced by changing weather conditions,” despite some rainfall last weekend.
Around six square kilometres of land had been affected by the fire.
A high volume pump has been used to draw water from Loch Morlich to support firefighting efforts.
Forestry Scotland allowed crews the use of drones to get an aerial view of the fire area on Sunday.
The blaze started in heathland at Ryvoan Bothy, near Nethy Bridge, on Wednesday July 15th.
By Thursday afternoon it had spread across 3.7 miles.
A helicopter joined the firefighting efforts on Thursday night.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said it was facing a “protracted incident” as it sought to prevent the flames spreading to other areas.
It added that it had “adequate resources” to deal with the incident.
Along with landowners, fire crews have been creating fire breaks to contain the spread.
There have been no reports of any casualties though there are concerns for wildlife.
A strict cordon remains in place and people have been warned not to travel to the area or attempt to access Glenmore Forest Park, Loch Morlich or the surrounding area while firefighting operations are ongoing.
“I want to thank our firefighters for their continued commitment and determination in challenging conditions,” said SFRS deputy assistant chief officer, Ian McMeekin
“The safety of our communities remains our priority, and we will continue to assess the need for any further evacuations alongside multi-agency partners as the incident progresses.”
Image c/o Cairngorm Mountain Resort
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