COMMENT
ACCESS LEGISLATION :
NAVIGATING THE WAY AHEAD
by Nick Kempe
The Mountaineering Council has
always been a little wary of access legislation because we are
only too aware that the freedoms we presently enjoy could easily
be reduced or diluted if legislation was badly framed or
introduced by people unsympathetic to walkers and climbers.
However, with the Government now publicly committed to improving
the right of the public to enjoy countryside access and also to
this being a matter for the Scottish Parliament, we have an
excellent opportunity to ensure that any legislation strengthens
rather than weakens the freedom to roam. Hence, we are committed
to raising awareness of the issues around access legislation and
encouraging debate: this is too important an issue to be left to
civil servants.
As a first step, we are
publishing with this newsletter a draft Access Charter for
consultation. The Charter is deliberately brief and is intended
as a benchmark by which all access proposals should be judged. It
brings together the most important points from our existing
policies in an easily comprehensible form. It is also consistent
with the B.M.C's Access Charter for England and Wales. Once
it is finalised we intend to circulate it widely (e.g. to all
Scottish MPs and Members of the Scottish Parliament) so as to
influence decision-makers and public opinion. Do let us have your
views.
Our other public initiative
this year is the seminar on Access Legislation in November ( see
under Access and Conservation for details). The aim of this is to
encourage debate and prepare the way for MCofS to take a more
specific stance on access legislation.
Meantime, we have been doing a
lot of other work on issues relating to access legislation. We
have been considering research into the history of the law of
access. This has indicated that statements such as "walkers
are trespassers" and "trespassers may be removed from
land by use of minimum force" are of relatively recent
origin and may have little justification in law. This is
important because it is hard to explain the survival of the
traditional freedom to roam if every visit to the hill was indeed
an act of trespass. However, the legal terms "licensee"
and "invitee" which can also be used to describe
visitors are far less off-putting, would appear to be more
accurate and are far more compatible with the freedom to roam. It
is in our interests to get clarification on these matters and for
this reason we are asking for the Scottish Law Commission to say
if there have in fact been any substantive legal changes in
recent years.
We have also been commenting on
the legislative proposals of other organisations, telling them
what we think the pitfalls are and trying to enter into
constructive debate. We intend to make available certain papers
on this in due course.
Access legislation matters are
likely to be a regular feature in future newsletters.
EXECUTIVE
NEWS
INTERNATIONAL WINTER
EXCHANGE MEET -
SLOVENIA 1998/1999 A reminder about the proposed
International Exchange Meet starting in February next year and
including a return leg in January the year after with a group of
Slovenian climbers.
We are looking for Scottish
based climbers to act as hosts to the Slovenians, who will travel
to Scotland for one week between 7.2.98 and 13.2.98. These hosts
will be asked to contribute £50 towards the cost of transport,
food and accommodation. It is anticipated that the chosen venue
will be Glenmore Lodge.
In return the same Scottish
climbers will be able to sample the delights of winter climbing
in Slovenia the following year between 26.1.99 and 1.2.99.
You will be responsible for
your own travel costs to Slovenia (estimated at £320) although
once there, all costs will be met by the Slovenian climbers. It
is hoped that the costs for the flight may be wholly or partially
sponsored as the MCofS are looking into the possibility of
Lottery funding under the talented athletes awards.
The object of the meet will be
to enable top Scottish climbers to climb with some of the best
climbers in the world, experiencing Slovenian climbing and
sharing ideas and knowledge of the sport.
Anyone interested should
contact the National Officer, Kevin Howett as soon as possible.
MOUNTAIN ARTICLE COMPETITION 1998
The winners of this year's
competition were announced in our last newsletter No.33 and Liz Bibby's entry as runner-up in the prose category, appears in the Features section of this newsletter. Members are now invited to submit articles for the 1998 competition. The MCofS reserves
the right to publish the prize-winning entries. Past winners have
been published in the MCofS newsletter, Annual Report, Climber
magazine or Journals (e.g. SMC Journal ).
There are two categories:
PROSE - The subject
matter can be about any aspect of mountaineering, rock climbing,
walking or skiing; fiction or non-fiction, weird or wonderful. It
should be a maximum of 2,000 words long, preferably typed, but
otherwise written on double-spaced lines and single-sided. Be
bold and wax lyrical. Most people have a book inside them - We
just want an article!
1st Prize : £100; 2nd Prize
: £50.
POETRY - On the same
subject as long or as short as you like. Prize : £50
Members should quote their club
name or individual membership number.
The closing date is April
fools day 1.4.98 but don't be put off by this!
Send your entries to the MCofS
office, 4a St. Catherine's Road, Perth, PH1 5SE. Enclose an
SAE if you wish the article to be returned. Winners will be
announced at the 1998 AGM.
EXPEDITION GRANT AWARDS 1998
The MCofS administers the
Scottish Sports Council grants for expeditions ( a total of
£2,000 per annum is available). Applications for grants are
considered both direct to the MCofS as well as in association
with applications to the Mount Everest Foundation.
The MCofS will award grants to
expeditions whose objective is one of excellence and adventure
whether they be first ascents or first free ascents of routes in
the greater ranges and little or unexplored mountain areas of the
world, or similar pure rock or pure ice climbs in less remote
settings but which are nonetheless worthy of international
recognition. The minimum number of expedition members is two.
The MCofS has a wider grants
criteria than those for the Mount Everest Foundation or the BMC
and we will consider applications for adventurous climbing
objectives in other parts of the world besides the 'greater
ranges'. If you are planning a trip and you would like more
information ( an Expedition Grant Information Pack ) send
an A4 SAE(31p) to the National Officer.
The deadline for applications
is the end of December, although screening occurs in March so
this is flexible.
This year (1997) there were
four expeditions awarded grants:
Edinburgh University's Apolobamba Expedition : Leader : Jane McKay. Six team members were successful in climbing many peaks in the Cordillera Apolobamba and the Cordillera Real , including several first ascents : West face of Sorel Este ( 5471m), North West face of Katantica Oeste (5580m) and South Ridge of Sorel Oeste (5641m).
Scottish South Greenland Expedition : Leader: Malcolm Thorburn. Original plans for a South -North ice cap crossing had to be abandoned due to heavy pack-ice in the south. The ice-cap was accessed from Narsarsuag via a very serious and physically demanding route ( ski & foot) then first ascents completed around the ice cap. They then returned via the same route to Narsarsuag.
British Pumori Expedition : Leader : Richard Horsburgh. Seven team members. The objective is to
climb the South East Ridge of Pumori in the Khumbu region of Nepal; a route thought to be graded around Scottish 3. They are due back in November.
Scottish Himalaya "the
Throne" Expedition : Leader: Scott Muir. A team of five
Scots climbers successfully conquered the previously unclimbed
peak, the Throne, 19,272ft, which lies to the South East of
Everest. Poor weather hampered their attempts to climb the
difficult North East Face so the expedition concentrated on the
North Ridge. This meant having to climb through the night while
the snow was still hard to finally plant the Saltire on the
summit. The expedition received extensive coverage in the
Scottish newspapers, coinciding as it did with the referendum on
devolution.
report
That was just a brief synopsis. Fuller reports will feature in future newsletters.
SOUL OF THE GAEL 'T' SHIRTS
In conjunction with MCofS Associate members, NORTH CAPE in Stirling we are pleased to be able to offer our "Soul of the Gael " shirts in new types of garments that are perfect for the active walker and climber:
North Cape Coolmax
A lightweight base-layer, which, unlike cotton, doesn't leave you cold and clammy. Ideal garments for the climbing walls this winter and for the crags next summer!
North Cape Rhovyl
A midweight base-layer, which wicks the sweat away from the skin during all that uphill exertion. Ideal for backpacking, skiing and mountaineering in all weathers!
We hope to have them "on show" and "for sale" at the Dundee Mountain Film Festival at the end of November so look out for us, and them, at the MCofS stand.
Look out for the order form in the next newsletter.
POSSIBLE NEW CLUB HUT NEAR
NEWTONMORE
Mike Dales spoke recently to Richard Spencer who owns the Cluny Estate near Newtonmore. Richard has an old building at Dalballoch in Glen Banchor which he is willing to let out for recreational purposes. If any of our clubs are looking for a hut, and feel they might be interested in this one, then please contact us at the MCofS office, and we will put you in touch with Richard Spencer.
RATHO QUARRY NATIONAL INDOOR CLIMBING CENTRE -
UPDATE
In September this year the project to build Scotland's biggest indoor climbing centre
at Ratho Quarry on the Western outskirts of Edinburgh, was given
full planning permission by Edinburgh City Council.
The proposal will see a large indoor climbing complex with an international standard
competition wall, a range of 'boulders', and the usual
climbing surfaces expected in a wall today. The traditional and established climbing in the quarry itself will not be altered, although the excavation works for the nearby M8 extension has
loosened some climbs near the back wall and these will need to be stabilised, but the essence of the quarries routes will remain. There will be a host of associated facilities in the building including cafe and accommodation.
Work on the site will start early 1998 and the completion date has been set for early 1999. Ratho Quarry Company are to give a presentation at the local Ratho Community Council meeting on 26th November. The Ratho Quarry Liaison Group with the MCofS will be meeting soon to discuss various issues including any possible required restrictions on access to the climbs during the period of construction and how this can be minimised. We would like to hear from any climbers with a detailed knowledge of the quarry who would like to participate in these meetings. Please contact Kevin Howett at the MCofS Office.
Finally Rab Anderson is available to give presentations to MCofS Clubs or groups of individuals about the project with details of the plans and models of the proposal. Please contact Rab direct at :
1(1F1) Westhall Gardens, Bruntsfield, Edinburgh EH10 4JJ. Tel. 0131 229 8060.
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