Hill walkers urged to help raise £300k to repair paths on An Teallach
A pioneering funding project to repair paths and improve eroded habitats on a popular Wester Ross mountain is seeking to raise £300,000.
A three-year campaign, labelled It’s Up to Us, was launched on Thursday evening at an event hosted by Mountaineering Scotland and the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland (OATS).
The organisations want to raise the cash for what they call much-needed repairs to paths on An Teallach, while raising awareness of the need for investment in the repair and maintenance of informal mountain paths.
They want people who enjoy the outdoors as well as activity businesses in the region to contribute towards the fundraising appeal, saying "it’s up to all of us to give back to the mountain environment we benefit from".
An evening reception in Perth on Thursday was aimed at highlighting the difficulties in funding hill path repairs outside of Scotland's national parks and NGO estates.
Mountaineering Scotland and OATS are calling on government to recognise the social, health and wellbeing, economic and environmental benefits that hill paths and improved habitats can bring.
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They have earmarked the hill path from Dundonnell on An Teallach for investment from the It’s Up to Us fundraising appeal. The £300,000 restoration project will address decades of erosion caused by the cumulative impact of increased human activity and the extremes of Scottish weather, they say.
And they point out that An Teallach is a clear example of a popular mountain path on privately owned land with no government funding currently available.
Mountaineering Scotland CEO, Stuart Younie, said: “Scotland’s informal hill and mountain path network plays a vital role in helping us to enjoy the physical and mental benefits of being active outdoors, which was never more evident than during the pandemic.
“Active tourism also makes a significant contribution to the Scottish economy and to local communities across the Highlands. We need to recognise the cumulative impact of recreational activity and extreme weather due to climate change on our landscape and do something positive to address it so it can continue to be enjoyed by future generations.”
The campaign has already been the beneficiary of £100,000 from the 60th Anniversary Diamond Grant Award from the Scottish Mountaineering Trust and has gained the support of well-known outdoor adventurers and social media influencers, including Cameron McNeish who lives in Newtonmore.
He said: “It’s Up to Us is such an important project for every person who loves walking on Scotland's hills and mountains. The original tracks and trails on our hills were never built to sustain the numbers that use them now, so it's up to all of us to pull together in every way we can and keep them well maintained.”
CEO of the Outdoor Access Trust Scotland, Dougie Baird, added: “The fundraising appeal will highlight how hill walkers, mountaineers and conservationists can come together to solve path erosion problems on mountains on private land throughout Scotland.
“However, we no longer have access to European funding, which has provided significant support for path and habitat restoration projects in the past, with no funding from the government to replace it. It is vital to the success of the It’s Up to Us campaign that we engage with governments and all stakeholders to highlight the desperate need for investment in mountain paths, and a long-term sustainable model that gives all landowners access to funding for essential mountain path maintenance is developed.”
