Scotland's Great Trails
Scotland's Great Trails are long-distance "people-powered" trails in Scotland,[1] analogous to the National Trails of England and Wales or the Grande Randonnée paths of France. The designated routes are primarily intended for walkers, but may have sections suitable for cyclists and horse-riders;[2] one of the trails, the Great Glen Canoe Trail, is designed for canoeists and kayakers.[3] The trails range in length from 40 km (25 mi) to 340 km (210 mi), and are intended to be covered over several days, either as a combination of day trips or as an end-to-end trip.[2]
In order to be classified as one of Scotland’s Great Trails, a route must fulfil certain criteria. The route must be at least 40 km (25 mi) in length, and be clearly
The route of each of the Great Trails is marked with coloured diamonds on Ordnance Survey Explorer (1:25000) and Landranger (1:50000) maps; the SGT logo of a thistle within a hexagon is also used to highlight the routes at the 1:25000 scale.[7][8]
History
The trails grew out of the Long Distance Routes (LDRs), which were proposed and financially supported by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), and administered and maintained by the local authorities. The Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967 provided the legal basis for the Long Distance Routes, but the first one was not opened officially until 1980. By 2010 there were four LDRs:[9]
- West Highland Way, opened in 1980
- Speyside Way, opened in 1981
- Southern Upland Way, opened in 1984
- Great Glen Way, opened in 2002
Following the passage of the
- safety
- attractiveness of scenery
- trail surfaces
- information
- facilities and services
- signage and waymarking
- route definition and continuity
- accessibility
- access by public and private transport
- route management
"Scotland's Great Trails" was chosen as the brand identity, and as of 2018 there were 29 officially recognised Great Trails.[6]
Routes
As of April 2024.[1]
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References
Citations
- ^ a b "Scotland's Great Trails: the official guide". www.scotlandsgreattrails.com. NatureScot. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ a b "FAQs". www.scotlandsgreattrails.com. NatureScot. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Great Glen Canoe Trail". www.scotlandsgreattrails.com. NatureScot. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Arran Coastal Way recognised as one of 'Scotland's Great Trails'". Arran Coastal Way. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- ^ Wood-Gee, V. (2014). SNH Commissioned Report 743: Mull long distance route: A socio-economic study (PDF) (Report). Scottish Natural Heritage. p. 11. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
- ^ a b c "About Scotland's Great Trails". www.scotlandsgreattrails.com. NatureScot. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Legend: 1: 25000 scale" (PDF). Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
- ^ "Legend: 1: 50000 scale" (PDF). Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
- ^ SNH Commissioned Report 380. p. 5.
- ^ SNH Commissioned Report 380. p. 6.
- ^ SNH Commissioned Report 380. p.p. 87-97.
- ^ "The Formartine and Buchan Way". www.walkhighlands.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
- ^ "The John Muir Way". walkhighlands.co.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
- ^ "Route information and maps". Kintyre Way.
- ^ "Scotland's Great Trails - The West Highland Way". www.walkhighlands.co.uk.
- ^ West Island Way
Bibliography
- "SNH Commissioned Report 380: Developing the network of longer distance routes" (PDF). Scottish Natural Heritage. 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
External links
See also
- Long-distance footpaths in Scotland
- National Trail(English and Welsh equivalent)
- Long-distance footpaths in the UK
- Scottish Coastal Way