Meet Mike Napier

As Head Forester, Mike Napier has been overseeing the management of the Estate’s wooded areas for over 20 years. Here, Mike share’s insights into what his role is in protecting and nurturing the natural environment at Glamis.

When did you join Glamis as a Forester?

“I first came here in 1989 when I was 16, so I’ve worked on the Estate for over 30 years. I took over the Head Forester role in 1999 when our previous Head Forester, Gordon Watson, retired. As one of the longest serving members of the team, I’ve seen lots of change over the years as the landscape has developed.”

What’s a typical day like for you?

“Ahead of opening for the season this year we spent a lot of time tidying up from Storm Arwen. There was approximately 8-10 hectares of sporadic tree damage across the Estate, so recently we were out with chainsaws daily clearing up and replanting trees as well. We have a sawmill in the village with a water turbine which is electric so that runs 24 hours a day and I’m responsible for that. There’s a lot of maintenance work going on as well such as fencing. We’re always busy.”

What’s your favourite part of your job?

“I suppose it’s the variety that you get. There will be times you do the same thing day in and day out, but it’s very seasonal work that we have, so there’s plenty of different work to do. I worked with a guy who left years ago to sit and look at a quarry face all day. There’s a certain mentality that you need to do that kind of thing. Whether I could do it or not I don’t know, but I definitely enjoy the variety here.”

Do you plant for every tree that is felled?

“You can’t really look at it like that, it’s very carefully planned process. You start with soft woods between 2,500 – 2,700 trees per hectare and that’s what you plant. When you go to do your first thinning, you maybe take a fifth of those trees out, then in another five to ten years later, you take another fifth out and then it progresses until you clear the fell. When you go to replant, you return to your 2,500-2,700 trees a hectare. We have a 20-year plan for the trees on the Estate and we know where we are going with everything – what’s coming down and what’s getting planted, all to conserve and develop the wooded areas.”

What’s been your proudest achievement?

“’I’ve seen a lot happen here, so I couldn’t just say one thing. There’s so many memories. When you look at the gates at the top of the drive, I had a bit to do with the development of that area. When I was marking that out for trees coming down I discovered that my predecessor had done it 20 years earlier when I found his pegs! I’m proud of my work with the water turbine as I have been involved since day one.”  To find out more about our Forestry work at Glamis click here