Our pick – Scotland’s mountain corries

Posted on July 10, 2016 by Helen Webster

Corries are ice-gouged bowls carved into the side of mountains by glaciers during the last ice age. Often ringed by crags and sometimes cradling a lochan, corries are often known as cirques in the Alps and Pyrenees, combs in the English Lake District, and cyms in Wales; the Scots version comes from the original Gaelic word coire. There are hundreds of them all over Scotland; here’s our pick of some of the finest, including both some of the most celebrated and also some lesser known surprises. Coire Ardair, Creag Meagaidh This magnificent corrie is the great showplace of Creag Meagaidh,…

Posted in Our picks

New waterbus opens up Loch Lomond islands

Posted on July 9, 2016 by Helen Webster

A new Waterbus route on Loch Lomond will open up new possibilities for visitors wanting to join up island visits and walking and cycling trips. The new route runs between Loch Lomond Shores in Balloch to Inchmurrin and then on to Inchcailloch, giving people the opportunity to explore two of Loch Lomond’s most popular islands. The Inchmurrin service includes a morning tea/coffee and scone, or soup and a sandwich at lunchtime, depending on what time you sail. This service, which began on 6 July, is run by Clyde Cruises, who join Cruise Loch Lomond, Sweeney’s Cruises and SS Sir Walter…

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Cnoc Coinnich in Argyll becomes a new Corbett

Posted on July 1, 2016 by Helen Webster

Cnoc Coinnich – a hill on the Ardgoil Estate between Loch Goil and Loch Long in Argyll – has been promoted to Corbett status. The hill, whose previous height of 761m meant that it was one of the highest Grahams, has been resurveyed by Graham Jackson and John Barnard, with the support of the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC). They found the height to be 762.5m which means that the hill now joins the list of Corbetts – reportedly confirmed by the SMC. The new height has also been accepted by the Ordnance Survey. The hill lies across a bealach from…

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MCofS warn walkers not to become too reliant on GPS

Posted on June 7, 2016 by Helen Webster

Navigation in the Scottish Mountains can be challenging; particularly if the cloud comes down and visibility is lost. This is a time when many hill walkers will pull out their GPS, press a few buttons and confidently follow instructions from the small screen in front of them. Heather Morning, Mountain Safety Advisor with The Mountaineering Council of Scotland, discusses whether that GPS ‘safety net’ is indeed the panacea to solving all our navigation and safety concerns or whether we as a hill walking community are becoming so reliant on modern technology that we may be actually losing a part of…

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Iconic Highlands bothy reborn as eco-friendly rewilding base

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Helen Webster

An iconic but once derelict mountain bothy in Glen Affric has been transformed into an eco-friendly rewilding base by Trees for Life – creating the springboard for an ambitious 25-year programme of forest restoration which will extend Scotland’s Caledonian Forest towards the country’s west coast. Around 100 people gathered at the remote Athnamulloch Bothy – which lies west of Loch Affric, on the National Forest Estate managed by Forest Enterprise Scotland – on Sunday 29 May to celebrate the building’s £137,000 renovation, which has been funded by generous donations and grants. Broadcaster, writer and Trees for Life Patron Vanessa Collingridge…

Posted in Nature

Walkhighlands MCofS Navigation courses – book now

Posted on May 31, 2016 by Helen Webster

Following the success of the joint Walkhighlands/MCofS navigation courses over the last few years a further 4 course dates are being held this summer. These single day courses will be held at Arrochar on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 June, and at the Ochils on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th August. This is the chance to brush up on your navigation skills while meeting other Walkhighlands users on a fun and friendly day. The courses are always very popular and only a few slots are still available – there is one place on Saturday 11 June, 2 on Sunday 12th…

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Loch Lomond waterbus service extended for 2016

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Helen Webster

The popular Loch Lomond waterbus service has been extended to take in additional locations around the world-famous loch, meaning visitors now have even more choice when exploring the area. Due to popular demand, the waterbus will now operate a new service between Loch Lomond Shores in Balloch to Inchmurrin and Inchcailloch, giving people the opportunity to explore two of Loch Lomond’s most popular islands. Furthermore the Inchmurrin service includes a morning tea/coffee and scone, or soup and a sandwich at lunchtime, depending on what time you sail. Situated only 50 minutes by train from Glasgow, Balloch is the southern gateway…

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Win a year’s worth of premium whisky to taste

Posted on May 27, 2016 by Helen Webster

With Father’s Day coming soon, we’ve teamed up with the wonderful Whisky Tasting Company to bring you the chance to win a year’s supply of premium and rare whiskies to taste – worth £235! A specialist in premium whisky gift sets, the Whisky Tasting Company has unique agreements with whisky brand owners throughout Scotland & Wales, presenting premium, old and rare whiskies from almost all of the country’s distilleries in our beautiful whisky gift sets. All you need to do is to fill in the form below, including the answer to the question “From which Scottish City is the long…

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Human “Wolves” to help restore woodland

Posted on May 27, 2016 by Helen Webster

Project Wolf – a unique new conservation programme in which volunteers replicate the natural disturbance effects of Scotland’s extinct predators – has been launched in the Highlands near Loch Ness by Trees for Life. Project Wolf is being trialled at the charity’s acclaimed Dundreggan Conservation Estate in Glenmoriston, Inverness-shire, lying to the west of Loch Ness. It involves volunteers operating in teams of three ‘wolves’, regularly walking through the ancient woodlands during the night and at dusk and dawn, creating disturbance that will keep deer on the move. “Grazing pressure on young trees by too many deer, today undisturbed by…

Posted in Nature

Scottish Land Fund allows Moffat to buy local hill

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Helen Webster

A Dumfriesshire community is poised to take control of its local woodland, thanks to a £171,622 Scottish Land Fund award. The award to Moffat Community Woodlands is one of the first to be made from the newly re-launched Scottish Land Fund. Moffat Community Woodlands will use the funding to purchase 33.4 hectares of land on Gallow Hill, which overlooks the town of Moffat. The group intend to work with the Forestry Commission to replant the land with a broadleaf woodland and begin the process of returning the hill to the way it looked when Moffat was a renowned Victorian spa…

Posted in Access issues, Nature