On 10th November 2018 a large landslide took place above the eastern end of Loch Quoich. It was triggered by the collapse of a crag halfway up the steep hillside, demolished an electricity pylon and resulted in the road to Kinloch Hourn being closed for 6 months while the slope was stabilised at an estimated…
Tag: LLTNPA
Parkswatch has long campaigned that most visitor facilities in the National Park should be kept open year round (see here). There are sufficient people, including tourists from abroad, visiting the National Park every day of the year that it no longer makes sense to close facilities over the winter. There are signs from the latest…
On Friday, while travelling north up the A82, I stopped by the first roundabout at the start of the Crianlarich bypass to take a look at the landscaping. It provides a lesson in ecology and current forestry practices right next to the road. The A82 Crianlarich by-pass, was completed in December 2014, almost seven…
On Friday I travelled up the A82 to Lochaber where I am staying for a week. The transformation of the verges and laybys that followed the installation of litter bins by the Friends of Loch Lomond and Trossachs, which I had blogged on a month ago (see here), has continued. All the laybys I could…
Wherever possible I try to visit sites before blogging about how they are being managed or the likely impacts of developments but sometimes that is not possible. I had only made one fleeting visit to Glen Falloch this year – to look at the project to remove the overhead powerlines – and had not re-visited…
In March, a Planning Application (see here) was submitted to the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) to add five new intakes to the Ben Glas run of river hydro scheme, above the Eagle Falls at the head of Loch Lomond. Parkswatch has covered this scheme before, (see here) and (here) for example,…
In my posts (see here) and (here) criticising the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Board for abandoning their decision-making role and allowing senior staff to take control, I was aware of a recent exception to the rule. At the Planning Committee on 30th August (see here for papers) Board Members rejected a recommendation…
The number of people drowning in Loch Lomond has been a major issue for years, with our public authorities being far more concerned about the health and safety standards being applied to competitors in the European Swimming Championships, all by definition great swimmers, than the general public (see here). But even after the terrible events…
The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Board meeting two weeks ago was only the second I have not observed in seven years. There appeared no point. The whole agenda (see here) was based on corporate box ticking – finance reports, audit reports, corporate governance: There was no substantive item about any of the…
On Wednesday I drove to Luss, the first time I had been along the A82 since May, and was amazed by the transformation. Instead of the usual litter strewn verges and laybys, I had to look quite carefully to spot any litter. The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority has for years had a…
The Herald yesterday revealed that Argyll and Bute Council have had an offer to buy the car park at the foot of the Cobbler accepted. The sum has not yet been disclosed. Unfortunately what should have been good news, bringing a piece of private land into public ownership for the benefit of the public, is…
In January 2020 I wrote a post (see here) about the LLTNPA’s consultation on “Active Park, Healthy People”, parkspeak for what had been an Outdoor Recreation Plan, and said this about paths: “Paths are crucial for outdoor recreation and – whether you agree with the spin or not – for the delivery of the LLTNPA’s…
This post takes a look at the implications of the co-operation agreement and shared policy programme that has been agreed between the SNP Government and the Greens (see here) for National Parks in Scotland. Investment in National and Regional Parks While the SNP said absolutely nothing about National Parks or Regional Parks in their election…
Watching the torrential rain showers in Glasgow over the last ten days, I have been wondering about what impact they have been having in hills, both in our National Parks and more widely. Erosion is a natural process but the impact of increased heavy rainfall due to climate change on eroded slopes such as that…
Last week I was sent this picture of a sign spotted outwith the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Loch Chon campsite (see here) in Strathard. It is a con. The Scottish Government stated right from the start on the pandemic last year that our access rights as set out in the Land Reform…
At the June meeting of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA), Board Member Ronnie Erskine repeated the suggestion he had made in March, that they should prepare to showcase the work they are doing for the Climate Change summit that begins on 31st October. The political need to prepare for the COP…
The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority used to operate three visitor centres around the southern half of Loch Lomond. It owns two, those at Luss and Balmaha, which date back to the Lomond Park Authority and were transferred to the LLTNPA on its creation. The third, at Balloch, was constructed by Scottish Enterprise…
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…
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…
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…
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. …
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…