walkhighlands

Access issues

Planned wind farm demo called off

The planned demonstration against the Allt Duine windfarm on 8th November outside the Council Headquarters, Glenurquhart Road, Inverness, has been called off. The demonstration had been called to coincide with a Council meeting due to discuss the application. Today (3 Nov) the Save Monadhliath Mountains (SMM) campaign team was informed by council officers that the Allt Duine s.36 application will not come before the Highland Council’s Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey Planning Application Committee, as anticipated. A spokesman for the campaign said, “SMM believes that the postponement could enable the councillors to visit the site and spend valuable time fully

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Posted in Access issues, Nature, News

Tyndrum gold mine plans approved

The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority has today (25 Oct) granted planning permission to Scotgold Resources Ltd for a goldmine at Cononish near Tyndrum. The decision comes at the end of a long running planning saga dating back to early 2010. Planning officers had recommended approval after a resubmitted application addressed many of the environmental concerns relating to the production of waste and use of water on the site. Members of the Park Authority decided that the need for economic growth outweighed concerns about the environment. Conditions have been placed on Scotgold Resources to minimise the long

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Posted in Access issues, Nature

Great Glen Way diversions

Forestry Commission Scotland says that timber harvesting taking place this winter and into next year will cause two diversions on a popular section of the Great Glen Way. The long distance route, which runs between Fort William and Inverness, will have two signed diversions in place from 1 November between Altt na Criche and Invermoriston. Walkers are advised to follow the signs and to stay on the diverted route which are not suitable for horses or bikes due to steep and rough sections. The Forestry Commission expects the harvesting work to be complete by the end of March 2012. A

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Posted in Access issues, News

Beauly Denny powerline measures rejected by Council

Following last month’s public meeting at which plans to reduce the visual impact of the Beauly to Denny powerline around Stirling were voted down, the Council has formally rejected the plans and branded them “inadequate and ineffective”. The Scottish Government has approved the line of the power route but asked Scottish Power and Stirling Council to work together to come up with plans to mitigate the effect of the planned giant pylons in the area around Stirling and the Wallace Monument. Scottish Power put forward plans which involved painting the pylons to blend in with the surroundings and planting to

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Posted in Access issues, Nature

Wilderness Weekend success on Arran

An innovative new outdoors project that introduces disabled people to woodlands and green space has taken its first six participants to Arran to take part in an inaugural ‘Wilderness Weekend’. This project is to encourage more people with disabilities to access woodlands and green space. Forestry Commission Scotland and The National Trust for Scotland have worked with Scottish adventuress Julie McElroy to develop the Wilderness Weekend, which saw the group taking part in a range of outdoor activities. Participants, aged between 20-74 years old, got involved in a series of pursuits including arts and crafts and woodland walks. They also

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Posted in Access issues, News

Planners recommend Tyndrum gold mine approval

In the latest round of planning decisions for the proposed gold mine at Cononish, near Tyndrum, planning officers are recommending approval. The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority will consider Scotgold Resources Ltd’s plans on 25 October. The original planning application was refused by the Park Authority in August 2010. This latest application is an amended application which was submitted in July this year, it was given a cautious welcome by SNH and the John Muir Trust on the proviso that environmental concerns had been properly addressed. Scotgold chief executive Chris Sangster told the BBC, “We are delighted

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Posted in Access issues, Nature

Ben Lawers car park and Glen Ogle road closure

Building work has now begun for a new car park near the site of the old Ben Lawers Visitor Centre which was demolished last year. The Mountaineering Council of Scotland reports that the new car park will be located in a more discrete position and is due to completed by early 2012. In addition a dry stone enclosure will be built on the path leading from the car park to the nature trail which will provide an interpretive display about Ben Lawers. Toilets will not be provided at the new car park which is being constructed by the nature reserve

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Posted in Access issues, News

Sallochy West Highland Way campsite now bookable online

The new basic campsite set up at Sallochy can now be booked online. Following the summer camping ban which is now in place on the east side of Loch Lomond between Drymen and Rowardennan, a new campsite at Sallochy Bay was established. During its first season of operation there have been some complaints from walkers on the West Highland Way that a permit had to be bought in advance in Balmaha and that on route information about the site was hard to come by. The campsite, which is for tents only and has basic toilet facilities but no drinking water,

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Posted in Access issues, News

Report calls for new ski developments higher in mountains

A government-funded report has called for the construction of new ski resorts to be built higher in the Scottish mountains. The report – commissioned by Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, says that “Scottish resorts will have to develop, where possible, the snowsports experience at higher altitudes and improve access to higher snow fields by rationalising / replacing surface tows with chairlifts, creating accessible mini resorts higher up the mountain”. The report notes that skiing in Scotland currently has a total economic value of £30 million per year, with 194 direct full-time equivalent jobs at the resorts and a

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Posted in Access issues, Nature

Future of Ben Nevis summit posts to be decided

The John Muir Trust is consulting with the Mountaineering Council of Scotland’s Safety Committee and Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team to determine what, if anything, should be done with both the top marker post on the lip of Coire Leis and the No 4 Gully Marker on the summit plateau of Ben Nevis. As a wild land charity the Trust has a presumption against structures, way markers and poles on the summit. Currently there are numerous structures and poles which have been placed there over the years. If there isn’t a clear reason for these to remain then the Trust says

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Posted in Access issues, Nature, News


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You should always carry a backup means of navigation and not rely on a single phone, app or map. Walking can be dangerous and is done entirely at your own risk. Information is provided free of charge; it is every walker's responsibility to check it and to navigate safely.