Scottish summer finally delivers for Highlander winners

Posted on October 1, 2024 by Helen Webster

Wow – summer finally arrived in Scotland and with it loads of fabulous reports for walks long and short – the judges loved reading about all the adventures by Walkhighlanders in September. Walk report of the month and winner of a £100 Highlander voucher is Gareth M for “All around Alligin“, a reminder of just how good Torridon can be in great weather. A £50 Highlander voucher is on its way to Mart987 for “Mullardoch Round of 12 inversion city” which wins last month’s runner up prize – fabulous photos and write up from an epic day in the mountains.…

Posted in Magazine, Walkhighlands news

Wild mountain camps win walk report prizes

Posted on September 4, 2024 by Helen Webster

August turned out to be a busy month with lots of walk reports – it was hard to pick the winners: However eventually it was decided and the £100 Highlander voucher goes to Ferg for Summit camp on An Teallach – a report and video that does that majestic mountain justice. The £50 Highlander voucher runner up prize is on its way to Jorjick for Stobbing out all night an account of a mountain camp from Glen Etive. Every month £150 of Highlander vouchers are up for grabs, just post a walk report on the Walkhighlands forum for a chance of winning.

Posted in Magazine, News

Common Ground: Ilona Turnbull

Posted on September 1, 2024 by Paul Webster

In our Common Ground series of short interviews, we aim to find out what makes our fellow outdoor enthusiasts tick, the experiences we all share and their hopes for the future. Our latest interviewee is Ilona Turnbull, who grew up in Australia but has already completed both the Munros and Corbetts since she moved to Scotland. Can you begin by telling us a bit about yourself and your background? I’m both a non-executive Director for HR, Governance & Equality at Mountaineering Scotland and a lawyer / Company Secretary at a large life insurance company in Edinburgh. I also have an…

Posted in Common Ground interviews, Features, Magazine

Swallows in the departure lounge

Posted on August 9, 2024 by Ben Dolphin

If you’re fortunate to share your daily life with swallows, as many of us are, you mightn’t necessarily realise just now reassuring a presence they are. They bring constant movement to the air, constant twittering to the sky. They’re a familiar but subtle backdrop to the summer months. And then, just like that, they’re gone. And everything just feels a bit….empty. We’re not quite at that point yet, but with day length shortening, it’s not far off. Swallows and martins Just so we’re clear which bird we’re talking about here, swallows are the lightning-fast ones whizzing about the place with…

Posted in Features, Magazine, Nature

A dog’s penultimate Corbett and searching for unicorns on Eriskay

Posted on August 2, 2024 by Helen Webster

July’s winning reports are all about the animals. Mountain Dog wins the £100 outdoor gear voucher from Highlander for “Alfie’s Penultimate with a high camp and Bothy first“. Congratulations – the judges loved reading about this Highland adventure. The £50 runner up Highlander voucher goes to KatTai for “Eriskay – In search of unicorns.” Ok, so no actual unicorns but plenty of beautiful ponies, seals, dogs and a cuckoo. Every month £150 of Highlander vouchers are up for grabs, just post a walk report for a chance of winning – see details here.

Posted in Magazine, News

Common Ground: Nick Gardner

Posted on July 19, 2024 by Helen Webster

In our Common Ground series of short interviews, we aim to find out what makes our fellow outdoor enthusiasts tick, the experiences they share and their hopes for the future. Our latest interviewee is Nick Gardner who after turning 80 challenged himself to climb all 282 Munros, succeeding in just over 2 years and raising thousands of pounds for dementia and osteoporosis charities after his wife Janet was diagnosed with both conditions. Can you begin by telling us a bit about yourself and your background? I come from a working class background in Leicester, England and was educated at one…

Posted in Common Ground interviews, Magazine

Walks from Edinburgh by public transport

Posted on July 11, 2024 by Helen Webster

This is the second in our series of articles on a selection of walks you can reach by public transport from Scotland’s cities – check out the previous piece for public transport walks from Glasgow. We also have many walks within the city of Edinburgh itself – including each of Edinburgh’s Seven Hills. Tips for using Walkhighlands Whether you are using the free Walkhighlands app that lets you download our detailed route descriptions and GPS mapping for use offline, or just using the website, when doing any walk search you can specify if you are looking for walks that are accessible by public transport…

Posted in Features, Magazine, Our picks

Contrasting walk reports win Highlander gear prizes

Posted on July 1, 2024 by Helen Webster

Every month, the winner of our walk report of the month competition, sponsored by Highlander Outdoor, wins £100 of vouchers to spend on their outdoor gear, with £50 of vouchers for the runner up. It’s been a real joy to read the reports from June, lots of mini and epic adventures here and abroad. Choosing winners was really hard though with quite a few just missing out. However in the end Click here for Inspiration by Claire_jane9 won through. Congratulations – a £100 voucher is on its way to you. And for giving us a proper belly laugh the runner up prize…

Posted in Magazine, News, Walkhighlands news

Gear review: Trail and walking shoes

Posted on June 28, 2024 by Helen Webster

All these trail shoes have been tested by over the last few months in a range of Scottish locations and conditions. Weight is per pair and for the size tested – note that we tested half in women’s and half in men’s. As usual on Walkhighlands, we don’t sell gear ourselves and so the prices stated are RRP – you will often find them on sale for less. Salewa Mountain Trainer 2 GTX RRP: £200Weight: 938g (Women’s UK 6)Upper: Leather/textile with Gore-Tex membraneSole: Vibram A heavier, stiffer shoe than most on test, these will be suitable for three season use as…

Posted in Features, Footwear, Gear reviews, Magazine

New shuttle bus service to launch in the Trossachs

Posted on June 27, 2024 by Helen Webster

Popular walking destinations in the Trossachs including Ben A’an and Ben Ledi will have a shuttle bus service this summer. In a bid to help reduce emissions, congestion and parking issues, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Authority is introducing the Trossachs Explorer. The bus will run between Aberfoyle and Callander during the peak summer months and will stop at several popular visitor locations on the route, including Loch Katrine, Ben A’an and Ben Venue. The seven day a week service has been planned to tie in with bus services from Stirling and Glasgow to allow visitors from those…

Posted in Access issues, Magazine, News