New figures show that the number of people in Scotland enjoying the outdoors is on the rise, with walking by far and away the most popular activity.
The latest results from the Scottish Recreation Survey run by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) show that in 2010 48% of Scottish adults were visiting the outdoors for leisure or recreation at least once a week. This is a 2% increase from 2009 and a 4% increase from 2006.
Walking is the most popular outdoor recreational activity among adults living in Scotland, it was the main activity on 73% of visits to the outdoors in 2010. Family outings, the main activity on 8% of visits, was next in terms of popularity. This was followed by cycling and mountain biking which was the main activity on 5% of visits. Total expenditure on visits to the outdoors in 2010 was estimated to be around £2.5 billion.
Richard Davison, responsible for SNH’s people and landscapes programme, said: “This is great news. The reasons for the increase will be many and varied but we believe our work on encouraging more people to visit the outdoors and the excellent work being done by local authorities and many others is helping to inspire people to get outdoors. Even in towns and cities, people have great opportunities to explore green places near to home and enjoy good local path networks which is why it’s important to look after them. Spending time outdoors is fun and very rewarding, and is a great way to improve your health for free.”