Friends of the John O’Groats Trail (JOGT), a long-distance walking route which stretches from Inverness to John O’Groats, have announced the appointment of their first ever manager, after receiving funding from the Caithness and North Sutherland Fund, the Beatrice Partnership Fund, and the Caithness Beatrice Fund. Kenneth McElroy, will join the John O’Groats Trail from mid-September, and will oversee the development of the trail. McElroy, a community development specialist, brings several years’ experience in the North Highland tourism sector, with former roles with the Wild North Festival, North Coast 500, in addition to his voluntary service as director with Caithness…

Scotland’s Nature Agency, NatureScot, is urging hillwalkers to check online for deer stalking information before setting out during the busiest part of the season. NatureScot manages the Heading for the Scottish Hills website, which provides details on deer management on estates up to late October to help walkers avoid disturbing stalking. Scotland offers fantastic hillwalking, but summer and autumn are also important for deer stalking on the open hill, with most activity taking place from August onwards. This management controls the grazing pressure on natural habitats, not only contributing to the rural economy, but helping protect woodlands and restore them…

ScotWays (The Scottish Rights of Way & Access Society) is appealing for information from people who have used the Ben Alder level crossing to access long-distance routes west of Dalwhinnie in the Highlands. This is part of continuing efforts to resolve the problems created by Network Rail’s closure of the level crossing. Previous actions have included a public petition signed by over 9000 people, meetings with Network Rail and an open letter from multiple organisations to the Transport Minister. The Ben Alder level crossing is immediately south of Dalwhinnie station in the Cairngorms National Park and is recorded as part…

Severe weather conditions over Scotland’s mountains look set to continue through the weekend and into next week, and great care will need to be taken by anyone accessing the hills. Mountain bikers have also been warned of potentially dangerous conditions in forests, for weeks to come. Experts have stressed the importance of being properly equipped for full winter conditions in the mountains and of planning routes according to the weather and avalanche forecasts before any trip. Specialist mountain weather forecasts are predicting sustained periods of gales or even hurricane-force winds on higher terrain for the next week. Snow, rain and…