Wild Lochaber Festival kicks off

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Helen Webster

A festival showcasing the wild places and wildlife of Lochaber starts on Friday 1 June. Based around Fort William the Wild Lochaber Festival includes a varied programme of walks, boat trips, wildlife safaris, kayak adventures and rock safaris. There will also be a schools photography contest and a fair to be held on 2nd and 3rd June at the West Highland College in Fort William. Some of the events, including a Hairy Cow and Wee Beastie Hunt on Cow Hill above Fort William, are free, while others such as a wildlife cruise around the Small Isles, or a landrover safari…

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Memorial for Ben More war grave

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Helen Webster

A memorial is to be placed near the graves of the aircrew of a plane which crashed on the slopes of Ben More in Assynt in April 1941. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is hoping to trace the relatives of the six crew members before a granite memorial slab is put in place. At the moment a small cairn marks the crash site and some wreckage can still be seen on the remote Munro. The crew were flying the twin-engined aircraft on a night navigation exercise from RAF Kinloss in Moray on 13 April. The plane crashed at 701 metres…

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Midge forecasts back for 2012

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Helen Webster

This year has seen predictions of either a bumper or a lean year for that scourge of walkers, the Scottish midge. Once again the Scottish Midge Forecast will be providing forecasts of the level of midges in each area to help you plan your outdoor trips. Now in its seventh year, the Midge Forecast uses actual midge catch data recorded from special traps combined with weather forecast data from the MeteoGroup. The Midge Forecast says, “Since it was first trialled in 2004, the midge forecasting system has proven to be as accurate as other established forecasts such sun and pollen…

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Night of Adventure planned for Edinburgh

Posted on May 27, 2012 by Helen Webster

Adventurer Alastair Humphreys will be hosting a Night of Adventure in Edinburgh on 18 June in aid of charity, Hope and Homes for Children. The organisers promise this will be an exciting, adventure filled evening where an eclectic collection of ordinary people come together to share their extraordinary achievements with a live audience. Each speaker is limited to just 20 slides to accompany their tales, displayed on a huge cinema screen. The challenge is that each slide will automatically scroll forward after just 20 seconds. With this unusual and challenging presentation format, once the talks begin there is no stopping…

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Scottish Nature Photo Comp open for entries

Posted on May 26, 2012 by Helen Webster

To celebrate Scotland's amazing biodiversity, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is launching a free photo contest today. As part of Scottish Biodiversity Week festivities, SNH is encouraging Scots to enjoy nature by capturing their favourite natural places and wildlife. The sixth annual Nature Photography Competition is open to both amateur and professional photographers. Keen photographers have plenty of time to get snapping, with a deadline of July 31 to get their photos to SNH. First prize is a one-to-one tutorial with one of Scotland’s leading professional nature photographers, Lorne Gill; second prize is a Nikon D5100 Digital SLR camera with a…

Posted in Nature

Rare parasitic flower alive and well in the Dollar Glen

Posted on May 25, 2012 by Helen Webster

Ecologists have discovered new colonies of an extremely rare flowering plant in Scotland whilst checking the condition of woodland at Dollar Glen. The extremely rare parasitic flower Toothwort was thought to have disappeared from the glen, having last been spotted 10 years ago. Completely lacking in chlorophyll, and with leaves reduced to scales, these pale plants survive by living off Elm and Hazel roots. Lindsay Mackinlay, National Trust for Scotland Nature Conservation Adviser, said: “This is a really exciting find. For years, we have kept an eye out for this species but with no joy, then when we were wandering…

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First live broadcast from Everest summit planned

Posted on May 24, 2012 by Helen Webster

BBC Breakfast is planning to show the first live broadcast from the summit of Everest on Friday 25 May. Kenton Cool, accompanied by cameraman, Keith Partridge, hopes to be on the summit as part of his quest to complete the Olympic Games Pledge. The original pledge was made 88 years ago by mountaineer Lt Col Strutt. He and his fellow team received 21 gold medals in 1924 for famously attempting to climb Mount Everest, and he pledged that he would take one of the gold medals back to the summit. The pledge was never fulfilled and this year Kenton Cool,…

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Mullardoch round for John Muir Trust

Posted on May 23, 2012 by Helen Webster

Walkhighlands is pleased to announce that it has become an official Bronze Corporate Member of the conservation charity, the John Muir Trust (JMT). As well as providing financial support, Walkhighlands will be supporting the activities of the Trust and helping with a membership drive later in the year. Before then, four Walkhighlands members and regular forum users will be attempting an epic Munro challenge this Saturday, trying to complete all 12 of the Mullardoch Munros in one day and raising money for the JMT as they go. Organiser Andrew Doggett said, “The mountains of Scotland I now regard as my…

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Women’s Lightweight Waterproofs

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Helen Webster

Phil’s introductory comments on men’s lightweight waterproofs apply equally to womens’ jackets and some may prefer the fit of the male version anyway. In general these jackets are aimed at reasonably mild conditions so are cut fairly short, so anyone on the tall side should check the length. Similarly apart from the Craghopper Travelite II, all the jackets were cut on the slim side, fine if you of small build but if not and you plan to wear several layers underneath a larger size may be better. Surprisingly only the Craghoppers’ jacket is available in a size larger than 16.…

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Mountain Rescue talk in Stirling 30 May

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Helen Webster

Mountain Aid have organised a talk on Mountaineering Incidents by Bob Sharp, former Lomond Mountain Rescue Team leader and co-author of Mountain Rescue, a history of Mountain Rescue, to coincide with their AGM on 30 May. Bob was involved in Mountain Rescue for around 30 years and took part in more than 250 call-outs and hopes his talk will be entertaining as well as informative presentation. The talk will start at 8pm, 30 May at Stirling Rugby Clib and is free and open to all, the Rugby Club bar will be also open. Mountain Aid will be holding their AGM…

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