Dalkeith Palace was finished in 1711 for Anna, 1st Duchess of Buccleuch. The Palace sits in over 1,000 acres of wild woodland and countryside. It has been in the Buccleuch family for over 300 years and they have cared for it through restoration and careful development over this period to make it one of the most stunning privately owned estates in the world.
In 2016 the park, stable yard and courtyard were redeveloped to create a world class visitor attraction. This project encompassed the development of the Fort Douglas Adventure play centre with its impressive Fort Treehouse, complete with secret stairs, hidden tunnels and a high rise lookout points.
Our brief with this project was to extend this adventure play to offer even more for visitors young and old, creating new and exciting challenges and extra play elements.
The initial phase of the development was the new Orangerie Zip Hub, modeled on the 12 sided Orangerie, complete with Doric columns and central chimney that sits alongside the stables. This is accessed via a high walkway taken from the existing Fort Treehouse if you complete a difficult maze inside the fort.
Triple zip wires then shoot out from the Orangerie styled deck in all directions, giving visitors the chance to race their friends and family out in to the paddock. After returning the zip seats there’s even more fun to be had with slides and a fireman’s pole taking visitors back down to the ground to start the adventure all over again.
We produced a video of the finished build here
It was also featured in the Air Canada magazine here.
Photos by Lindsey Mackenzie Parker at Mack Photo.
For more information about visiting Fort Douglas see Dalkeith Country Park's website.