An Teallach path repairs will kick-start project to help Scotland’s mountains after £100k award from Scottish Mountaineering Trust
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Repairs to footpaths on a popular Highland peak in Wester Ross will kick-start a campaign to benefit restoration and conservation efforts in the Scottish mountains.
The It’s Up To Us campaign, a partnership between the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland (OATS) and Mountaineering Scotland, won a £100,000 prize towards the new scheme.
The Scottish Mountaineering Trust (SMT) Diamond Grant was awarded to the joint project on Saturday at the Dundee Mountain Film Festival, with judges describing it as “an exciting new partnership”.
It aims to develop a sustainable long-term funding model that will change the perceptions of the public, government and agencies to ensure that hill path repair and habitat restoration is recognised for its social, economic and environmental benefits.
The campaign will start with a project to address decades of path erosion on An Teallach – one of the country’s most-loved mountains in the north-west Highlands.
John Fowler, Chair of the Scottish Mountaineering Trust, said: “There were a number of worthy bids for the Diamond Grant, but the trustees were really impressed by the ground-breaking approach that OATS and Mountaineering Scotland have come up with.
“Their imaginative funding model to support our paths will have a major impact on Scotland's mountain community for many years to come. Using the repair of the path on the iconic An Teallach as the prototype is a great idea as it is such a large and important project.”
Mountaineering Scotland and OATS say that many mountain users are unaware of the cost of path building and the lack of funds for restoration projects on private land outside of Scotland's national parks and NGO estates.
They say the campaign will target outdoor enthusiasts, and those organisations who care deeply about Scotland’s hills and mountains, to raise essential funding which will ensure Scotland’s outdoor access network remains fit for the future enjoyment of everyone.
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.
“Our access may be free from charges, but it does come at a cost, and we need to recognise the cumulative impact of recreational activity on our landscape and do something positive to address it so it can continue to be enjoyed by future generations.”
CEO of the Outdoor Access Trust Scotland, Dougie Baird, added: “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.
“The It’s Up To Us project will be vital in showing that mountaineers and conservationists can come together to solve the problems at An Teallach and other mountains on private land, whilst also highlighting the desperate need for government support for this type of work in the future.
“It’s fantastic to have received the Scottish Mountaineering Trust’s Diamond Grant to kick-start the project.”
The Diamond Grant is a special 60th anniversary award from the SMT – the biggest in its history – and is one of many grants set up to help deserving mountain projects. The trust has contributed more than £1.7 million to a wide range of recipients, from a new mountain rescue base to a student training weekend and a mountain film festival, all with the goal of helping more people to experience and enjoy Scotland’s incredible mountains.
