Charity launches virtual walk along historic route for 175th anniversary
The Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society has virtually recreated the first signposting expedition through the Cairngorms to mark its anniversary.
Scots are being asked to measure their walks and plot them against a historic route to mark the 175th anniversary of the ScotWays charity.
The Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society has organised a virtual journey from Forfar to Blair Atholl, with people able to record their own walks and see their equivalent progress along the 203-kilometre route.
The virtual journey will follow the route taken by early members of the organisation as they installed the first signposts on public rights of way through the Cairngorms in 1885.
Saturday marked the 175th year since the formation of the charity, set up to uphold and promote public access rights in Scotland.
To celebrate the anniversary, ScotWays is releasing accounts of the original signposting trip, written by one of the participants on the 1885 expedition.
The accounts have been narrated by broadcaster James “Jim” Naughtie, with new chapters being released over the next seven days on the ScotWays website.
The charity’s chief operating officer, Richard Barron, said: “We are the oldest outdoor recreation body in the world, this is our 175th anniversary and despite everything that has happened this year, we still wanted to celebrate this amazing achievement.
“This is everyone’s chance to connect with our history, heritage and wonderful countryside and walk in the footsteps of our pioneers.”
