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FREE adventuring events – Saturday 22 and Saturday 29 November 2025
Join Malcolm Handoll of Five Senses Rewilding for two adventuring events this November and experience John Rae’s spirit of adventure.
Essential survival skills: preparing for Scottish Winter Wilds
Saturday 22 November, 9.30am–4.30pm
Hall of Clestrain
Rewilding walk and coastal forage with Malcolm Handoll: West Mainland coastal walk
Saturday 29 November, 9am–4.30pm
Meet at Brough of Birsay Car Park
Booking essential. Numbers limited.
For further details and how to book see here
Road to the Arctic Fund
Our fundraising drive to raise £150k to construct a crucial access road to Hall of Clestrain that will allow access for the heavy machinery needed to restore the building is well under way. Through kind donations from members and local businesses and fundraising efforts of many we have now raised £74,915. Find our more about this plan and how you can help us.
Help us Save Hall of Clestrain
John Rae’s childhood home Hall of Clestrain is in dire need of rescue. The Society is working hard to raise funds to save this Grade A-listed villa of architectural significance. Find out how you can help us.
The John Rae Society is proud to share that our President, Andrew Appleby, was recently interviewed by Cerys Matthews on BBC Radio 6 Music, one of the UK’s most listened-to digital radio programmes. The feature sparked an outpouring of interest in John Rae’s story and his pioneering contributions to Arctic exploration. You can relisten on BBC Sounds on the link below.
We were thrilled to welcome both Dr. Rosalind Rawnsley and Prof. Wendell McConnaha to Orkney recently. Wendell and Rosalind each gave wonderful talks to our members and visitors in person and online, which can now be viewed retrospectively on our Youtube channel below. We pass our enormous thanks to them both and hope to welcome them back to Orkney soon.