Strathfarrar Winter Access Arrangements

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Helen Webster

November 1st marks the start of the winter vehicular access arrangements for Strathfarrar. Since 2014 vehicular access (anyone can walk or bike along the private road) is only permitted for Mountaineering Scotland members for the purpose of hillwalking or climbing. Everyone in the car must be a member and walkers and climbers are required to give details of their contact details and objectives for the day which will be passed onto the Glenavon and Braulen Estates who own the road in Strathfarrar. Access through the locked gate is not allowed before 8am. To get the combination for the padlocked gate…

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Heavy Whalley to deliver Mountain Aid ‘Step Up to Winter’ talks

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Helen Webster

Mountain Aid have announced Heavy Whalley as speaker for their Step up to Winter talks series which will be held this November in Dumbarton, Kilmarnock, Dumfries and Cupar. Heavy was a member of the RAF Mountain Rescue team for 36 years and has been involved in over 1000 Mountain and over 80 Aircraft incidents in mountainous areas. He will present an evening of winter walking tales and tips that will leave you ready to get out into the hills this winter. The talks are open to all, and free of charge thanks to funding from Mountain Aid. No advance booking…

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Mountain bothy book that might save a life

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Helen Webster

If you chance upon one of the 103 bothies in Great Britain that are maintained by the Mountain Bothies Association you might find a new book hidden amongst the mountain shelters – a 66-page newsprint publication that might just save a life – even if it means setting fire to it. 46 artists and writers, led by Edward Summerton, Senior Lecturer at the University’s Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, have created 200 copies of ‘Shelter Stone: The Artist and the Mountain’ and dispersed it among bothies and shelters in England, Scotland and Wales, as well as Iceland…

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Deaths of captured Beauly beavers prompt calls for protection

Posted on October 24, 2017 by Helen Webster

Reacting to news that two beavers trapped near Beauly have died in captivity, Trees for Life Chief Executive Steve Micklewright said, “We are deeply saddened that the Beauly family of beavers has now been split up and two of them have died in captivity.” Mr Micklewright added, “Beavers have been in the area for 5-8 years with no local concerns or controversy. Many people had no idea they were there.” Beavers have recently been recognised by the Scottish government as a native species. Mr Micklewright added, “Native species require protection. The government should have explored all other options before trapping…

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Environment and outdoor groups call for safeguards for mountain hares

Posted on October 13, 2017 by Helen Webster

A coalition of ten environmental and outdoor organisations have repeated their appeal to the Scottish Government to introduce urgent safeguards for mountain hare populations. The group – which includes the John Muir Trust, Mountaineering Scotland and the RSPB – is asking for a temporary ban on all mountain hare culling on grouse moors until measures are put in place to ensure their numbers can remain at acceptable, sustainable levels. The Scottish Government has a duty to maintain mountain hare populations in a state of good health, otherwise it may be in breach of its legally binding international obligations for this…

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Nan Shepherd biography to launch in Cairngorms

Posted on October 9, 2017 by Helen Webster

Best known for her masterpiece of mountain literature The Living Mountain, (first published in 1977) Nan Shepherd, who died in 1981 has been in the news recently. Her image now graces the new Scottish £5 note; The Living Mountain (about her experiences in the Cairngorms) has become a classic and sells in its thousands. Nan Shepherd lived all her life in Deeside, yet few people, even in Scotland, seem to have heard of her until recently. Now a new biography “Into the Mountain” by Charlotte Peacock unravels some of the mysteries, dispels some of the rumours and gives insight into…

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Aviemore Adventure Festival 2018

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Helen Webster

The organisers of the Aviemore Adventure Festival have announced the dates for next year’s festival as well as a crowdfunding appeal to set the Festival on a sustainable footing and expand the charitable aims of the event. The Festival has been run successfully for the past 3 years by a group of committed local volunteers who love the outdoors and are keen to share that passion. However they are looking to expand the festival and are seeking support to fund a new part-time worker who will help support the existing team to develop the festival over the coming years, attracting…

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Mountaineering Scotland Winter Safety talks announced

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Helen Webster

As the first snows are forecast for the high tops this weekend, its time to think about winter skills. Mountaineering Scotland will again be hosting a series of safety evenings this winter. Heather Morning, Mountaineering Scotland’s Safety Advisor, will share her beautiful photography, videos, personal anecdotes and adventures, while discussing essential skills for winter navigation, avalanche awareness, route choice, equipment, mountain weather and much more. With a lifetime’s experience in the mountains, Heather has been a professional mountaineer for 25 years and was a member of Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team for 16 years. These entertaining and informative evenings will be…

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The Hidden Ways

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Helen Webster

Today ‘The Hidden Ways: Scotland’s forgotten Drove Roads’ – a new book by Scottish historian Alistair Moffat – is published by Canongate Press, and we have an exclusive extract below. The Hidden Ways wanders Scotland’s forgotten paths to tell an alternative history of Scotland and our place within its landscape. The Hidden Ways will spearhead Alistair Moffat’s campaign to reopen Scotland’s forgotten roads, starting in 2017 and culminating in 2020. The project will be the largestcommunity enterprise ever undertaken in Scotland, and has the support of Creative Scotland, VisitScotland, BBC Radio Scotland and DC Thomson. Born in Kelso in 1950,…

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28 strong boost for Knapdale beavers

Posted on October 3, 2017 by Helen Webster

More beavers will soon be arriving at the Scottish Beaver Trial site in Knapdale Forest, mid-Argyll. The Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), the lead partners in the project have been granted a species licence to reinforce the population of Eurasian beavers at the Trial site. Up to 28 beavers will be released into lochans on land managed by Forest Enterprise Scotland at Knapdale over the next three years. The idea behind the project is to give the small Knapdale beaver population the best possible chance of thriving in the long-term and to increase the…

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