The Great Outdoors – August 2019

Wild

WALK THE

with the John Muir Trust

Beyond the Ben – enjoy all that the John Muir Trust’s

Glen Nevis property has to offer, and learn how

the team works to protect it...

GLEN NEVIS

The Great Outdoors magazine

has teamed up with wild land

charity the John Muir Trust to

look at how the land it owns,

leases and manages is protected

and enhanced for the benefit of

people and wildlife.

IN 2020, the John Muir Trust is celebrating

20 years of managing its property in

Glen Nevis, which includes the summit

of Ben Nevis and neighbouring Carn

Mor Dearg and Aonach Beag, as well as

the Steall Gorge.

Much of the Trust’s work in this area

revolves around visitor management.

It is great that so many people come to

enjoy the beauty of Glen Nevis (and, of

course, the Ben itself ), but the Trust

recognises that one of the challenges in

this area is its popularity. This ties in to its

emerging message about ‘slow tourism’,

ensuring people come to explore and

appreciate the beauty of our natural spaces,

not just march up for an Instagram snap

and then leave.

The Trust is working to maintain and

improve the path network – particularly

in Steall Gorge – to relieve some of the

pressure on the main path. This effort was

affected by a significant rock fall in Steall

Gorge in September 2016, which led to the

closure of the path for over a month. The

Trust was able to speedily complete the

repair works to the path and surrounding

area, estimated to cost in the region of

£30,000, thanks to the generosity of

supporters and members.

Most of the Trust’s work on Ben Nevis

itself is spent in tackling litter. The team

clear up to 120kg a year on the Ben, a lot

of which consists of fruit peel, beer cans,

wet wipes, champaign corks and wrappers.

The Trust’s team in Glen Nevis includes

Alison Austin and their ALA Green

Charitable Trust-funded conservation

officer Nathan Berrie. They monitor the

natural regeneration in the area, manage

path repair work and lead work parties.

There is also a concentration of water vole

in the area, which the team are lucky to be

joined by volunteers in monitoring.

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