Repair work is on the right path
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Years of walking in the Scottish hills leaves its mark, not only in terms of wonderful memories of days well spent but also on the landscape.
Thousands of pairs of feet trample up and down well-known routes throughout the Highlands, with the most popular areas prone to more than their fair share of erosion.
Feeling somewhat responsible for my own part in that – especially as someone who hopes to inspire and encourage others to enjoy the great outdoors – I felt it only right that I do my bit to help maintain some of the routes.
So I put my name down for a path repair day on Skye, helping Highland Council’s local countryside rangers and fellow volunteers in the magnificent Cuillin hills.
What a location this is to work in!
With views across to Rum and Canna and ahead of us on the Coire Làgan path at the end of Glen Brittle to the mighty Black Cuillin peaks above, it was difficult to keep focused on the job in hand.
That job was helping to maintain the steep path that rises from the end of the glen high up into the corrie below Sgurr Alasdair and Sgurr Dearg – the peak which holds the most impenetrable of all 283 Munros, the aptly named Inaccessible Pinnacle.
Today the tops of the Cuillin were covered in a blanket of ice and snow and, as we climbed up towards the corrie, we realised our job could be a tough one.
Donald Kennedy, the council’s access officer for Skye and here as a volunteer, explained what we would be doing. In pairs we would use a mattock, a spade and a bucket to clear cross drains and water bars on the path.
His demonstration showed how tough this would be as the frozen earth had bonded the loose path material together rather well! He explained how the working party usually starts at the bottom of the path and makes its way up – never reaching as far up as the corrie itself.
So today we had enjoyed a brisk walk up this fantastic path to start work as high up as possible. We would each tackle a drain or bar then move down to the next one. There were nine people here, led by temporary ranger Tom Hall, so there would be three pairs and one threesome.
After a quick break to admire the view we were hard at work, whacking the hard rocks and frozen surface with the mattock where years of harsh weather and stomping feet had compacted it against water bars and deep into cross drains.
It was back-breaking work but I got a certain satisfaction from making that breakthrough and seeing the drains cleared after shovelling the material away and making sure there was a good route for the water to follow.
So many upland paths are left with no maintenance these days. Many of the old stalkers’ paths are no longer needed due to motorised ways of getting about on the hills, so estates don’t bother to keep them in good condition.
The only real maintenance comes from volunteer days like these, organised by many of the landowning charities like the John Muir Trust and the National Trust for Scotland as well as Highland Council.
If you are able to cope with the physical demands, it’s definitely worth getting involved and helping keep our paths in good condition for future users. There are a lot worse places to put in a hard day’s graft.
