After the introduction of the UK-wide Equality Act (2010), Scottish Ministers introduced the the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012 (see here). These required Public Authorities in Scotland to report every two years “on progress to make the equality duty integral to the exercise of its functions” and, once every four years, starting…
Argyll and Bute Council have been consulting on a new Traffic Regulation Order which would introduce parking restrictions and charges of £1 an hour at Duck Bay on the west Shore of Loch Lomond. As at Arrochar, where it can now cost £9 to go for a hill walk (see here), Argyll and Bute Council…
Just over a month ago the Cairngorms National Park Authority announced (see here) that the Invercauld Estate had left the East Cairngorms Moorland Partnership “following the discovery of a poisoned golden eagle on their land.” This post takes a look at the implications for the Cairngorms National Park Authority and for land reform more generally….
In April the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service announced that they had decided not to hold a Fatal Accident Inquiry into the Cameron House fire (see here) after “a thorough investigation and criminal prosecution leading to the conviction of two parties”. In truth, the investigation had been limited to the immediate reasons for the fire…
I spent last week in the Lake District, the first part camping with friends on the east side of Lake Coniston. The small campsite where we stayed is run by a friendly farm and is only let out to groups, perfect for meeting up with friends after lockdown. The campsite was situated in a clearing…
Last week the Arrochar and Tarbet Local Community Development Trust, in partnership with the Friends of Loch Lomond and Trossachs, Luss Estates and local businesses, launched a new initiative to welcome visitors to the area (see here for news release). This involves the provision of two sets of temporary toilets, one at the head of…
There is another side to the hullabaloo that the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) raised three weeks ago about a pregnant red deer hind that had been shot out of season on Skye (see here). Last week (see here), on the edge of the Fannichs, I saw and smelled more dead red deer than I have…
Last week I went walking and camping in the north west of Scotland with friends and did something I have always wanted to do, spent the night on the summit of A’Mhaighdean. Magic! In doing so, some of our small party left Glasgow, where the coronavirus travel restrictions still applied (see here). I believe we…
It has been known for some time (see here) that significant numbers of capercaillie, black grouse and red grouse die in collisions with fences each year, with some studies suggesting up to 1/3 of capercaillie die in this way. While the focus in Scotland has generally been on deer fencing, all fencing kills, a fact that…
Yesterday, I drove down to Glen Afton from Glasgow for a run over the hills. I had a reasonable excuse for doing so. I was so frustrated by the stupidity and unfairness of the latest coronavirus regulations (see here) that if I hadn’t gone out I might have done something that risks spreading Covid-19. Like…
Having repealed the legal restrictions on travel on the 26th April, eight days ago the Scottish Government re-imposed them (see here for the Statutory Instrument) on people living in Moray and Glasgow, after deciding not to move these two local authorities to Level 2 like the rest of the country. One day it was perfectly…
It’s now three years since the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) approved the new planning application (see here) for the financial gamble that is the Cononish goldmine. After it was reported in December that the mine was fully funded until 2022 and the first gold from the mine had been poured (see…
When I wrote post (6) (see here) in the series with this title I thought I had covered the majority of the issues with the funicular. I arrived at the conclusion that yes the repairs would work but with no idea of the longevity of those repairs. Job done. Then, on 04/05/2021 it was reported in…
The closure of public toilets in Scotland, which had been going on for years, gathered pace under austerity (see here and here for example), with hardly a murmur of political dissent. The Victorians – who knew the value of public conveniences, from both a public health and a tourism perspective – would have been appalled. …
The news of a poisoned Golden Eagle being found next to a poisoned Mountain Hare on Invercauld Estate (see here) led me to reflect on the afternoon I found a trapped gull on that estate in June 2016. While this received publicity at the time, some of it excellent, (see here), I have never told my…
The idea of developing facilities for campervans at the Coire na Ciste car park is, in principle, quite sensible. Even though the Glenmore campsite has opened up this year, there are a lack of facilities in Glen More and a shortage of informal places to stop off overnight. Meantime, the Coire na Ciste car park,…
Ten days ago I was out walking the hills around Glen Tarken and parked in the first layby on the A85 heading west from St Fillans. The entire shore of Loch Earn, together with the villages of St Fillans and Lochearnhead at either end, are part of the Trossachs Camping Management zone where camping is…
News about yet another unlawful killing of a golden eagle in the Cairngorms National Park (see here for the latest list from Raptor Persecution Scotland), found poisoned on the Invercauld Estate in March, should surprise no-one. The Cairngorm National Park Authority’s stated intention to eliminate raptor persecution (see here) will never work until it tackles…
“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive” This quote from Sir Walter Scott’s epic poem, of 1808, Marmion, is a neat way of saying that when you lie or act dishonestly you initiate problems and a domino structure of complications which eventually run out of control. It could have…
It is eleven months since I raised concerns about the implications of the police charging two hillwalkers at Crianlarich with Culpable and Reckless Conduct (see here). In January, two women from Fife were charged with the same offence after they had called the mountain rescue on Ben Lomond (see here). Now the police have charged…
This post examines the need to elect politicians to the next Scottish Parliament who are committed to land reform legislation. It notes the loss of experienced land reformers and the need to replace them with others who have equal enthusiasm for land reform. It provides examples of recent difficulties including serious misunderstandings within VisitScotland of…
After being awarded an extra £3m by the Scottish Government for 2021-22, the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority decided at their meeting on 15th March to delay deciding how to spend £965,000 of this until their June meeting (see here). One Board Member did ask Pete Wightman, the Director of Corporate Services, about…
Last week, in my first visit to the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park for months, I went for a walk over the hills to the west of Lochgoilhead. The scenery above 2000ft is fantastic, wild and unspoilt and there are places where you feel you are in a landscape worthy of a National Park…
In the Cairngorm Mountain Scotland Ltd [CMSL] Business Plan that was published on 24 January 2020, the interim CEO wrote the following: Vision: ‘’To become a world class Visitor Destination – Ambitious to succeed’’ On 23 March 2021, CMSL submitted a planning application (see here) to Highland Council for a Campervan Park within the Coire na…
After visiting the Upper River Falloch hydro scheme last August, I argued that the scheme was unsustainable on the basis of the evidence that I saw then (see here). Photos sent to me this week show that in the eight months since there have been significant landscape changes and engineering works. These raise further questions…