In October I went for a walk over Brown Cow Hill on the Delnadamph Estate, which was bought by the Queen in 1978 and gifted to Prince Charles on his marriage to Diana. I had not been for many years but was keen to see how the estate was being managed given Prince Charles’ role…
Category: Cairngorms
It is hard to know whether to be inspired or depressed by the battle over vehicular use of “green lanes” which I touched on a year ago in post comparing what was going on in the Lake District National Park and the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park (see here) The latest newsletter of…
After blogging about how this sign breached access rights ten days ago (see here), I was delighted to be informed by the Cairngorms National Park Authority yesterday that it has now been removed by the Balmoral Estate. The CNPA Access Team have said that they now going to talk further with the estate about a…
On 21 Oct the Herald newspaper published a letter from myself about the need for the Scottish Government to revise the plans for dualling the A9 trunk road, currently under construction, so that new rest and parking areas can be provided. Such areas are the norm in many other European countries. To bring Scotland up…
I had not been up Glen Callater for a number of years but last week, after a wet morning, went for a run over Creag nan Gabhar returning down the northern half of the glen. Credit should be given to Invercauld Estate for provision of the car park at Auchallater which is very well used…
On Saturday, I walked with friends up Lochnagar from the old Invercauld Bridge, through the Ballochbuie forest and then across the moor to scramble up the Stuic. Shortly after the start, at a junction, we came across this sign at the start of a road leading off to our right . While apparently intended to…
Last year Parkswatch posted a number of articles opposing the planning application to smooth and re-grade ground by the Day Lodge at Cairn Gorm to create a new beginner’s ski area (see here– includes links to all posts). Ten months after the Cairngorms National Park Authority approved the planning application from Jim Cornfoot, a member…
I have been staying in Braemar for the week and so far have seen almost no litter (and no fly tipping) in the Cairngorms National Park, quite a contrast to the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park in the summer (see here). Even accepting that it is now quieter than August, the differences are quite…
Photo courtesy of the Save the Ciste campaign showing the Funicular Viaduct from the washing line tow. Is this what the mountain will look like when work commences? The development of the Business Case to repair of the funicular (see here) was shrouded in secrecy. This post takes a look at what Highland and Islands…
There is, of course, a case for repairing the funicular railway. Our consumer society fails to repair far too many things before abandoning them. A terrible waste. And the funicular has attracted some visitors, even if significantly fewer than predicted, who have enjoyed the experience and brought some benefit to the economy on Speyside. In…
A tourist travelling north through the Drumochter for the first time, on looking up to their right and seeing this scar, might be forgiven for wondering if someone had tried build a new railway through the pass. I doubt they, or many of the thousands of people who cross the Drumochter each year, realise they…
This post takes a further look at the Artworks/landscaping structures that are adjacent to the Coire Cas Carpark on Cairn Gorm. Following my blog post (see here) that showed the dilapidated condition of the walls, I was contacted by two members of the public, both of whom expressed concerns about the safety aspects of the…
On Thursday the Scottish Parliament’s Public Audit and Post-Legislative Scrutiny Committee – a mouthful of a name! – questioned Audit Scotland about their report (see here) on “Highland and Islands Enterprise: management of Cairn Gorm Mountain and funicular railway” which they published in June. The session, which lasted just over an hour, can be viewed…
On Saturday I walked up the Strone road as part of a round of the Monadliath. It is almost three years since I first blogged about the “improvements” that were being carried out on this road and considered the implications for the planning system (see here). The Cairngorms National Park Authority, to their credit, then…
Yesterday, on my way up to Speyside I pulled into a layby and parked behind a trailer loaded with crates. I did not realise immediately but half were packed with adult red legged partridge (you can just see them in the lower four crates on the left). Breeding of red-legged partridge is now a sizeable…
In response to recent written Parliamentary questions, Fergus Ewing (Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy) has stated that: – A decision on the repair of the funicular is expected shortly. – The business case will be published shortly. This suggests that there will be no period between publication of the business case and a decision by…
“Trespass” is a particularly loaded word. It comes from the Old French “trespasser” meaning “pass beyond or across, cross, traverse; infringe, violate”. In English it came to mean “transgress in some active manner, commit an aggressive offense, to sin” – as in “forgive us our trespasses” used in the Lord’s Prayer – but is also…
On Monday I was pleased to speak at the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Board Meeting on the need for improved visitor infrastructure in the National Park. While I will come back to the case I presented (see here) in a further post, I was only about to do because the LLTNPA has…
Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s consultation on its draft vision for a masterplan at Cairn Gorm (see here) closed on Monday. The next day, at 8.45 a.m on a wet Tuesday morning in mid-September, how many campervans could be seen in the Coire Cas car park? The numbers were probably higher than normal as the more…
The Dirty Camping debate in the Scottish Parliament On Wednesday, almost an hour after it was scheduled and after a very long day, MSPs started to debate Murdo Fraser’s motion on Dirty Camping (see here) at 6pm. Although the chamber appeared mostly empty, a number of MSPs contributed online and the debate went on until…
The Scottish Parliament this afternoon debates a motion (see here) by Murdo Fraser on Dirty Camping, just the second members’ debate since the start of the corona crisis. While the Scottish Parliament increasingly appears to have little real power, what is said today could still be very important for framing any debate on camping and campervanning…
The Folly A folly is defined as:- (1) the quality of being foolish. (2) a foolish action, idea, etc., and, (3) an imitation castle, temple etc. built as a decoration in a large garden or park (National Park?)! And that is exactly what the Cairngorm ski resort has become because of the failed aspirations of…
School Wood, Nethy Bridge On Friday (see here), after a long campaign by local conservationists, the Cairngorms National Park Authority Board decided by a vote of 14-2 to reject the recommendations of their planning staff and refuse the application for housing at School Wood. They are to be congratulated. This was a major test for…
Highland and Island Enterprise’s Cairngorm Mountain business is not on the public water supply. Water comes either from the Marquis Well or the Fiacaill Pump House intake and, while weather on Speyside has been better than much of the rest of Scotland recently, there has not been a drought. In the past there was quite…
The village of Nethy Bridge prides itself as being the Forest Village, being almost fully surrounded by woodland and forest, much of which is classified as ancient woodland. Yet tomorrow (see here for papers) Cairngorms National Park Authority planners are recommending approval of a planning application submitted by developer Castle Glen Properties of Aberdeen for…