2025 ISU United Kingdom Heritage Breeds Study Abroad

Day 17:

We departed Edinburgh earlier this morning and have officially made it back to the US! ✈️

During our layover in Chicago, you can find us playing cards, resting, reading and getting some American food that we’ve all been craving!

Thanks for following along during the 2025 UK Livestock Heritage Study Abroad!

Saturday, June 2nd:

📍Loch Ness
We started our morning off by enjoying a river cruise on Loch Ness, where we got to see beautiful views. We learned about its formation, the rich cultural history, and the legend of the Loch Ness Monster. Unfortunately Nessie was feeling shy today and nobody spotted her, maybe next time! The experience offered a deeper appreciation for one of Scotland’s most iconic landmarks.

📍Rothiemurchus
Our next stop was a visit to the Rothiemurchus estate. We met Shona, a park ranger who gave us a great insight into her and the estate’s work. It was fascinating to learn about their Highland and Continental cattle operation, how they manage a small herd of red deer, and how they supply their farm store with home-grown meat products. We enjoyed seeing the balance between farming, conservation, and tourism.

Sunday, June 1st:

📍Grace Noble Farms
We started the morning off with a tour of Grace Noble Farms. We had the privilege of learning how Grace’s operation works. She has a 320 acre farm where they raise and sell pure Highland cattle! She has 326 head of cattle that are silage and grass fed. Last year they introduced their first Holstein to the herd, named Buttercup! They take pride in sourcing and providing The Royal Family with beef, as well as having the late Queen Elizabeth’s cattle/bloodline in her herd. Grace has a purebred Highland cow named Dutchess that is 8 years old, and she is quite famous. Dutchess has been featured in advertisements for calendars, Scottish Whisky blends, an Australian cruise company, the military, and more!

📍Ballindalloch Castle & Gardens
Next. We started this visit with a self-guided tour of the castle and garden. The castle was built in 1546. We were able to observe many of the rooms within the castle and appreciate the beautiful architecture and historical significance of The Royal Family’s presence there.
After our self guided tour, we were then given a tour of the oldest pedigree Aberdeen Angus herd that was registered in 1860. This is a 20,000 acre estate and 1,000 acres are farming ground. There are 35 cows and 2 bulls with calving occurring in March/April. The herdsman, David, explained to us how each calf is named with the same initial of the dam, so the family’s all stay with the same letter. At 1 year of age the bulls are picked either for sale or to keep. This herd practices continuous grazing with silage for the cows and concentrates for the calves.

Saturday, May 31:

📍 Drymen Agricultural Show
We got to watch a variety of shows including Clydesdale Horses, Light Horses, Cattle, and Sheep. We also got to enjoy fair food, crafts, the learning center, and even a live interview!

📍 Dunnottar Castle
On our way through, we stopped for a photo shoot and quick hike down to the castle before finally arriving to Aberdeen.

We had a great day and ready for our last few stops!

📆Friday, May 30th

📍Blair Castle and Estate Farm
We started the morning at Blair Castle and had a self guided tour of inside the Castle. The preserved history throughout the tour was amazing to see and appreciate. Following the tour we then got to see the estate which dates back to the 13th century and is one of the best known Highland estates in Scotland. We were taken around the farm, covering around 150,000 acres, by a tractor and wagon. Our guide discussed all of the ins and outs of their operation. He reminded us that everyone needs to have an open mind about change because the world is always changing including the agriculture industry.

📍Blair Atholl Distillery
Then we experienced the process of whisky making here in Scotland. Blair Atholl Distillery is one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland that was founded in 1798. Selling around 3 millions liters of whisky each year they are considered a small-medium distillery. We learned that 80% of the flavor comes from the barrels that they age in for a minimum of 3 years. Following the tour we had the opportunity to taste some of their whisky. Some of the group liked it and others definitely did not.

📍Pilochry
We had a short time to explore the town of Pitlochry. Some went shopping and others relaxed and enjoyed some ice cream.

📍Stirling
Returned to the Stirling for the night to have dinner and have some free time.

Thursday, May 29th:

📍Started the day with a visit to Caledonian Marts in Stirling — a major hub for Scotland’s livestock industry, moving thousands of sheep and cattle each year. Nick gave us a guided tour of the whole facility and his role within the Mart. It was great to see young auctioneers stepping up in such a competitive market, working hard to support both buyers and sellers. For lunch, it was the cafe located inside the auction barn for buyers and sellers to sit and enjoy food and conversation.

📍Then traveled to HW Angus, a 5th generation farm that’s been breeding Angus cattle for 101 years! With around 200 cows managed on grass and calving at 2 years old, they’re blending genetics from the U.S. and Australia. Their goal? To keep growing their cow herd and continue building on a century of progress. We enjoyed some drinks and snacks after our tour of the farm and discussed the future of agriculture in both Scotland and the US.

🗓️ Wednesday, May 28th

✅ Day 10

📍Edinburgh, Scotland

Today our group explored the city of Edinburgh! We began our day with a panoramic tour of the city. Next, we explored the Edinburgh Castle and made sure to pop over to the National Museum of Scotland to see Dolly the sheep! Then, as our guide Michael would say, we “went for a wander” down the Royal Mile. To end our day, we attended the Spirit of Scotland Show & Dinner at the Royal College of Surgeons.

We are extremely thankful to those who have guided and shared their culture with us.

Be sure to check in tomorrow for a recap of day 11!

Tuesday May 27th:

📍 Roxburgh Maines/Rawburn Angus - Kelso,Scotland: Herdsmen John Elliot gave us a look at his impressive 2,000 acre farming enterprise made up of about two-thirds grass that makes it up. He highlighted their pedigree Aberdeen Angus cattle as well as their Suffolk and Texel sheep herds. Very invested in improving their stock, they produce and sell embryos, semen, breeding bulls, and breeding rams. They have also heavily imported New Zealand genetics to improve their Suffolk flock. We got to see how they utilize GrowSafe bunks to maximize feed efficiency, resources, and collect data on their bulls - branded with their traditional heart symbol of the Elliot family.

📍 Gaindykehead Farms -
After lunch, we visited Gaindykehead Farm in Glenmavis, Scotland, where John Brown shared his journey from growing up on a Holstein dairy farm to raising about 600 head of Wagyu cattle for beef. He showed us the farm and explained why he’s added tatties (potatoes) to their feed. John also spoke of his daughter’s entrance and success in the Texel sheep industry. Then we enjoyed tea and biscuits while discussing the future of agriculture in the UK and USA before heading to Edinburgh.

📍Welcome to Edinburgh! -
To end our evening, we went on a brisk ghost tour as a mysterious welcome into Edinburgh. Remember, sleeping with one eye open is encouraged…..

Monday, May 26th

We left North Whales in the morning and ventured to Seatoller Farm, a National Trust managed farm near the Borrowdale Valley. We saw Herdwick and Swaledale sheep and a demonstration of sheep dogs gathering them down from the “fells” or hill pastures. We ate a delicious stone fired pizza buffet at the farm for lunch. We then ventured on to Scotland stopping at the Gretna Green, a historic elopement site. Don’t worry parents, no one got married. We then got to Kelso for the night to enjoy dinner at the hotel!

📍Hafod y LLan: This morning we all got to sleep in a little with a later departure time. We traveled to Snowdonia National Park to the National Trust farm property with hill sheep which had gorgeous views of waterfalls and mountains. We even got to see the sheep dogs herd the flock!

📍Rhug Estate: We ate lunch at a farm store restaurant that we all loved! Then we got to tour the Rhug Estate farm. They own about 12,500 acres of which 6,700 are organic. They also raise all organic meat. We got to see their chickens, sheep, bison, and sika(deer). We unfortunately didn’t get to see the cattle due to the drought and having to move them up the mountain.

It was a great day in Wales!

Saturday, May 24th - What a great day!!

📍Boycefield Farm - Herefordshire, England We started the morning off with a fantastic visit to Boycefield Farm, one of the oldest Hereford producers in the world! James, Lucinda, Billy, and Megan focus on maintaining their pedigree Hereford cattle and Cheviot ewes while supplementing regenerative grazing practices. We learned about their work to support local nature, improve soil health, and decrease carbon through herbal leys and cereal crops.

📍Shropshire County Agricultural Show Students were able to explore the grounds for the 150th Shropshire County Agricultural Show! We watched exhibitions of cattle and sheep, spent some time shopping locally, got a taste of Shropshire, looked at the rich history in the museum, and embraced the fair spirit!