Magazine

Use of MBA bothies: latest advice

Posted on March 29, 2021 by Paul Webster

The Mountain Bothies Association has issued an update to its advice. The bothies that the charity maintains in Scotland, England and Wales through its volunteers should not be used at present except in an emergency. This is because Covid-19 precautions such as social distancing, regular sanitising and wearing of face coverings might not be practised by some visitors which would put other people at risk irrespective of reducing rates of infection. MBA Chairman Simon Birch said: “While we now have a timetable for when travel restrictions might be removed, there is as yet no firm information about when other restrictions…

Posted in Access issues, Magazine, News

Linn of Dee and Glen Muick roads to be restricted during busy periods

Posted on March 26, 2021 by Paul Webster

Aberdeenshire Council has put in place new road orders to allow for the roads to the Linn of Dee and to the Spittal of Glenmuick to be closed when car parks are full. Last year there was serious overcrowding at both locations, with vehicles parked dangerously, blocking emergency access roads and, in some cases, causing damage. The council will, when the car parks are full, be restricting entry over a 7-month period commencing from April 1st. Pete Crane, Head of Visitor Services at the Cairngorms National Park authority, said “Last year, as part of the visitor management work, Aberdeenshire Council…

Posted in Access issues, Magazine, News

Project 282 – Film

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Paul Webster

Check out this superb 10 minute film of Emily Scott’s continuous round of the Munros in 2018. Back on the 26th of May 2018, Emily set off to climb all of Scotland’s Munros (mountains over 3,000 feet), attempting to make a continuous, self-propelled and self-supported round. The continuous, self-propelled and (largely) solo expedition took her 120 days and involved 2,200km on foot and 2,600km on the bike, with over 195,000m of ascent. Her great film of the trip – Project 282 – has received some success with film festivals, although of course Covid has meant that the majority of these…

Posted in Features, Magazine

Walkers needed for Scottish Mountain Hare survey

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Helen Webster

Hillwalkers are wanted for the first on-the-ground national survey to shed light on distribution and numbers of Scottish mountain hares. The survey, which is launched this week and will carry on throughout 2021, is calling on hillwalkers, naturalists and other outdoor enthusiasts to record sightings of the charismatic animals as they are out and about. No previous experience of wildlife surveys is necessary to take part. Mountain hares are Scotland’s only native hare and an important species in the Scottish hills, and gathering more accurate information about them will help inform conservation efforts. There is concern about the state of…

Posted in Magazine

Walkhighlands plans major responsible access campaign

Posted on March 22, 2021 by Paul Webster

We’re planning to run a responsible access campaign across Walkhighlands during this summer. When mainland travel restrictions are lifted on 26th April, we’ll be replacing the Covid messaging (currently “Stay at Home”) across the website to a call of “Let’s Keep Scotland’s Outdoors Special”. The messaging will run across the top of everyone of the 2,100+ free walks on the website, which has also removed all automated advertising. Last summer, we saw more than a million walks being downloaded from Walkhighlands in a single month. All walks will now include the new messaging. The campaign aims to reinforce Scotland’s Outdoor…

Posted in Access issues, Magazine, Nature, News, Walkhighlands news

Tick bites – how to prevent and deal with them

Posted on March 22, 2021 by Helen Webster

For Tick Bite Prevention Week, a team of tick-borne virus researchers (Alexandra Wilson, Mazigh Fares and Benjamin Brennan) explain how walkers can prevent tick bites and what to do if you are bitten. With the days getting warmer and the hope of COVID-19 restrictions starting to ease, we are all looking forward to a hike in beautiful Scottish landscapes. Unfortunately, the spring weather is also ideal for an unwanted hiking companion: ticks. These arachnids are widespread in humid and warmer climates and they hide in high grass waiting for an unlucky host to pass them by. A tick’s relationship with…

Posted in Magazine

Saving Wildcats project receives boosts

Posted on March 19, 2021 by Helen Webster

Efforts to save the Scottish wildcat from extinction have taken a major step forwards after the first cat was introduced to the Saving Wildcats conservation breeding for release centre at the Highland Wildlife Park. The project has also been boosted by a £9000 donation raised by a local fundraiser who rescued a potential hybrid wildcat kitten near Grantown on Spey. Nell, a young female, arrived from Alladale Wilderness Reserve and has settled well into the off-show centre, which provides breeding space, veterinary care, remote monitoring and training to prepare cats for life in the wild. It is hoped that any…

Posted in Magazine, News

Call for government champion to capitalise on rising numbers outdoors

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Helen Webster

A dozen outdoor organisations are together calling for a new ‘Outdoor Recreation Champion’ role to be created within the Scottish Government, to ensure that everyone in society benefits from being active in nature. The new cross-departmental role is one of several innovative ideas within a joint manifesto published today by Scottish Outdoor Recreation Alliance (SORA), aimed at supporting the booming demand for the outdoors. SORA’s Manifesto for the Outdoors also calls for: A guarantee that every primary and secondary school pupil has at least one week away at an outdoor centre Long-term strategic investment in infrastructure such as facilities, ranger services, education and skills training More support for BAME communities and people in deprived areas to…

Posted in Magazine, News

Travel restrictions within mainland Scotland to end on 26th April

Posted on March 16, 2021 by Paul Webster

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced a new timetable for the lifting of Coronavirus restrictions. The instruction to ‘Stay at Home’ will end on 2nd April, subject to continued positive data, and will be replaced by an instruction to ‘Stay Local’. More significant for those interested in outdoor recreation and getting away from the cities, it is hoped that restrictions on travel within all areas of mainland Scotland will end on 26th April. It is expected that this lifting of travel restrictions will also include those from the rest of the UK coming to Scotland. Accommodation businesses are expected to…

Posted in Access issues, Magazine, News, Walkhighlands news

Regeneration: the Mar Lodge Estate

Posted on March 15, 2021 by Andrew Painting

Andrew Painting is a seasonal ecologist at Mar Lodge Estate, the UK’s largest nature reserve in the Cairngorms. His new book, Regeneration: The Rescue of a Wild Land takes a species-by-species look at this landscape through time, focusing on recent conservation efforts that are beginning to pay off. Here he describes a walk around Clais Fhearnaig to show how that story is written onto the landscape. The headlines of the unfolding environmental recovery of Mar Lodge Estate are startling. 30,000-odd hectares of land, holding 15 Munros. Over 5,000 species, with more recorded every year. Ancient tracts of Caledonian pinewood, with…

Posted in Features, Magazine, Nature