A Scottish environmental agency has slammed vandals who have destroyed a sign and cairns aimed at reducing erosion on the popular Munro, Ben Wyvis. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) had erected the sign at the An Cabar cairn to point walkers in the direction of the preferred route up the mountain which is aimed at protecting the fragile habitat from erosion caused by the 8000 walkers who tackle the peak every year. To try and reduce the impact on a wide area of woolly fringe moss, which provides a rare habitat for the dotterel, SNH had erected two temporary cairns at…

The Mountain Bothy Association (MBA) has opened a new bothy at Greensykes in Eskdalemuir Forest in Dumfries and Galloway. The building will provide shelter for walkers tackling the hills and through routes around Langholm and Eskdalemuir. An MBA spokesman said, “The building has been used as an open shelter for a number of years and its owner was keen that it should continue to be available for use by walkers and cyclists. Its adoption by the MBA will ensure that this continues to be the case. We are grateful to the owner for agreeing that the MBA should assume responsibility…

The Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS) has once again teamed up with ScotRail to offer members a fantastic deal on rail travel in the Highlands this coming winter. From January 2nd to March 31st MCofS members will be entitled to a 50% discount on rail travel on the Fort William to Mallaig, Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh, and Inverness to Wick and Thurso lines. MCofS Membership Development Officer, Mike Dales, said: “We are grateful to ScotRail for providing this great offer to our members. We’re still in November, but hill walkers, climbers and ski tourers can already start planning a…

The Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS) has sent a letter to the Chief Executive of Cairngorm Mountain Limited (CML), highlighting concerns relating to parking charges at Coire Cas. The MCofS has three concerns which relate to the current voluntary parking scheme, the use of voluntary donations, and the potential imposition of mandatory charging. The MCofS believes that the current voluntary donation scheme trial is inadequately signposted and that, as a result, visitors may be unaware that the scheme is in operation. The MCofS is therefore urging CML to improve signage to avoid the possibility that the voluntary donation scheme system…

The metal post at the top of Number 4 Gully on Ben Nevis has pulled out of the ground and thrown down the gully. The navigation post, which has been in place for several years, is currently the subject of a consultation. A spokesperson for the Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS) said, “The future of this essential navigation aid and that of the abseil posts in Coire Leis have recently been under discussion. The MCofS supports the view that the No 4 Gully marker provides an essential aid to navigation; particularly during bad visibility in the the winter months and…