A man has died on Friday 26 June following a fall from Am Basteir on the Skye Cuillin. The 64 year old was from the Midlands and was part of a group of four tackling the mountain when he fell approximately 100ft. The weather was good on the Cuillin on Friday, however even in good conditions Am Basteir requires scrambling to reach the summit. The Skye Mountain Rescue Team and the Stornoway Coastguard helicopter took part in the rescue operation. The man was taken to Broadford Hospital but was declared dead shortly afterwards.
Military to leave St Kilda
The Ministry of Defence is closing its missile tracking base on St Kilda. The base, which has been on the main island of Hirta since the first World War, is now run by MoD spin-off company Qinitec and is used to track test missiles and flights from the neighbouring base on Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides. The MoD has just started a 30 day consultation on the closure which is likely to see the lose of 125 jobs at the two sites. St Kilda is the UK’s only Dual World Heritage Site, designated for both is natural and cultural significance.…
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Posted in Nature
Scottish Ramblers appeal launched
Leading figures in Ramblers Scotland have joined forces to raise £200,000 to save the Ramblers office and staff in Scotland from massive cutbacks. Dick Balharry, President of Ramblers Scotland, who joined with Dennis Canavan and Cameron McNeish to launch the appeal, said, “My colleagues and I are determined to secure the future for Ramblers Scotland. The Ramblers have made a massive contribution to the protection of Scotland’s natural heritage, helping to safeguard our magnificent scenery from endless threats, from superquarries and bulldozed roads to powerlines and blanket afforestation. The Ramblers are needed for today and tomorrow. When government energy policies…
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Posted in Uncategorized
Walkhighlands sponsors MWIS forecast
Walkhighlands has just sponsored the Mountain Weather Information Service’s forecast for the Southeastern Highlands. The MWIS provides the most reliable and detailed forecast for climbers and walkers, with information about conditions on the tops as well as more general weather information. The Service is funded by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland and SportScotland and topped up with donations from sponsors such as Walkhighlands. The Mountaineering Council of Scotland was instrumental in setting up the Service and continues to seek ongoing funding and make improvements. Recently the service launched forecasts available by mobile phone in addition to the website downloads. Scotland…
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Posted in Walkhighlands news
Ramblers Scotland facing massive cuts
The Ramblers organisation appeared to be on the verge of war today as news broke of a massive cut in funding for the Scottish branch. Walkhighlands is very concerned that this will mean the Ramblers will no longer be able to campaign effectively at a Scottish level. The Scottish access legislation was passed by Holyrood so local experts are needed to lobby in Edinburgh to ensure the law is enforced. Recently local expertise of Ramblers staff in Scotland has been used to present evidence on the enquiry to decide whether the proposed massive Beauly to Denny powerline will go ahead.…
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Aonach Eagach and Fife Chain Walk claim lives
A 26 year old man has died following a fall from the Aonach Eagach ridge in Glencoe on Saturday 13 June. The Mountain Rescue Team was involved in the recovery as well as a Royal Navy Helicopter. In another incident on the same day, a 79 year old man fell from a section of the Fife Chain Walk near Kincraig Point. The walk which traverses the cliff, following a line of stone carved steps, with metal chains bolted to the rock and rungs to climb on in places, has been the scene of a number of accidents in recent years.…
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Posted in News
Corbett runner reaches Great Glen
Hill runner Manny Gorman has reached a milestone in his quest to run all the Corbetts after finishing the summits south of the Great Glen today. Manny began his epic attempt to run all 219 Corbetts (Scottish mountains between 2,500 and 3,000 feet high with 500 foot of descent on all sides) in a continuous journey on foot, bicycle and sailboat on April 26th. Manny and his support team are using the Corbett Map on Walkhighlands to track his progress – the blue Corbetts are already bagged, the red ones still have to be run. This evening Manny has now…
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Posted in News
Free Explorer 1:25,000 maps for all routes
In a first for an outdoors website, Walkhighlands now features OS Explorer 1:25,000 mapping for every walk. This is the best-selling scale with field boundaries, walls and fences all marked. The maps can be viewed online or printed and they have the walk route clearly marked. In order to access this new scale you do need to be a registered Walkhighlands user. The registration process is simple and also gives you access to Walkhighlands’ popular Walk Talk forum with the ability to add your own walk reports. To register click here and press Register in top right hand corner. You…
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Posted in Walkhighlands news
Beavers released into Scotland
The reintroduction of beavers back into the wild in Scotland came a step closer yesterday (Thurs 28th May) with the release of the first beavers as part of the controlled trial at Knapdale in Argyll. Beavers have been extinct in Scotland for the last 400 years. Marking the first formal reintroduction of a native mammal species into the wild in the UK, three beaver families have now been released at carefully selected sites in Knapdale Forest, Mid-Argyll. The beavers, originally from Norway, have been chosen because they are considered to be the closest type to those once found in the…
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Posted in Nature
Avalanche expert Blyth Wright dies
Blyth Wright, co-ordinator of the Scottish Avalanche Information Service, and enthusiastic mountaineer, has passed away, UK Climbing reports today. An expert on avalanches, Blyth Wright co-authored the book, Chance in a Million? with Bob Barton, as well as working at Glenmore Lodge and the Loch Eil Centre. A keen mountaineer in Scotland, in the mid 60’s he supported Philip Tranter’s epic round of 19 Munros near Ben Nevis which became known as the Tranter Round and set the standard for faster and longer alternatives. His later work forecasting avalanches and providing a reliable information service for walkers and climbers has…
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