Episode description

ScotWays (Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society) have published the sixth edition of Scottish Hill Tracks in around 100 years. The book launches on Saturday 28th September. Over the last five years hundreds of volunteers have helped to compile the book. Mark meets with ScotWays Director Tim Simons to discuss the book and its importance.

The importance of seed saving is increasingly being recognised across the world as a way of establishing resilience in the natural environment. It is also the principle behind the tree nursery at Corrary Farm near Glenelg where there is a big push to expand native woodland cover in the area using trees grown from locally collected seed. Rachel went there recently and met Manager Rowan Doff who explained their approach.

Last year, Mark visited Loch Katrine in the Trossachs to hear about an ambitious plan to build a look-out tower to give splendid views over the loch and hills beyond. The build was completed a couple of months ago and has already attracted many visitors to the site which back in the early 1800s was a regular stomping ground for Sir Walter Scott, William and Dorothy Wordsworth and John Keats. The project was co-ordinated by the Sir Walter Scott Steamship Trust and James Fraser from the Trust gave Mark a guided tour.

The turntable ferry operating on Kyle Rhea between Glenelg and Skye is the very last of its kind still in operation in Scotland, and maybe even, the world. It’s now run as a social enterprise, and Rachel stepped aboard to hear all about it from General Manager, Jo Crawford.

In the latest edition of Scotland Outdoors, Helen Needham joins Aberdeenshire based writer Ian Grosz on the walk described in his essay Sacred Mountain; a dawn walk up Bennachie at the time of the Autumn equinox.

The national Tegelwippen (tile whipping) contest is underway in Netherlands, as cities compete to remove the most paving slabs to greenify gardens and rewild urban spaces. This year marks the fourth annual contest, and Remco Moen Marcar, co-founder of the creative agency Frank Lee, who is behind the contest, joins Mark and Rachel live to tell us more.

In recent years – since their re-introduction – white tailed sea eagles have been on many people’s ‘must see’ list. One of the finest places to spot them is around Glenelg in the West Highlands. They are regularly seen near Kylerhea which is a real magnet for all sorts of wildlife. Rachel meets Cammy McMurdo, who explains why so many creatures are attracted to the place.

A listener got in touch last week about how much they enjoyed an archive piece from Mark’s trip along the West Highland Way. We hear a snippet from this special trip.