Now let’s get ready to ramble
Mountain guide hails the end of lockdown
Even after a decade of scaling hundreds of Scotland’s famous peaks, reaching the top of Mullach Buidhe recently was a special moment for Lucy Wallace.
“It felt like I was hearing and seeing things for the first time – the rivers, mountains, the light and the clouds. It all seemed so fresh and brilliant, it was a real tonic,” said the outdoor guide and mountain leader of her first post-lockdown walk up the Isle of Arran’s “golden hill”.
In March, Lucy became the first female president of Ramblers Scotland in 35 years, just as the country went into lockdown – including a strict five-mile travel limit.
As the figurehead of a national walking charity, she found herself in the unusual position of temporarily encouraging people to avoid roaming across Scotland.
“When I started, I thought this was a great opportunity for me to encourage more people to get out walking and involved in group walks,” said the 45-year-old, who is based on Arran.
“Never in a million years did I imagine that in my first three months, I would be asking people to stay local and avoid walking in groups.”
Yet an upside to lockdown is that it has encouraged more of us to get out walking. A Yougov survey in May revealed 61% of Scots are walking more often than they had pre-lockdown.
This month, a Scottish Natural Heritage survey also found that 89% of outdoor visitors took regular local walks and 71% enjoyed the outdoors at least once a week. Two thirds of respondents said their experiences out in the open had helped them de-stress and unwind during lockdown.
“It’s one of the strange consequences of this pandemic. Outdoors is one of the safest places that we can be, especially while social distancing with others. A lot of people have discovered the joy of walking locally during lockdown and hopefully, will be able to continue.”
To keep that momentum going forward, Ramblers Scotland has joined Cycling UK Scotland and Transform Scotland in a call for increased investment in urban and rural paths and infrastructure.
Lucy added: “We need to invest in infrastructure, path signage, mapping, information and facilities to help people get out and enjoy the outdoors safely and support people to get out walking for leisure.”
Despite many women enjoying Scotland’s outdoors, Lucy says there is a distinct lack of female voices in prominent positions, which she hopes her appointment could go some way to readdressing.
“Women are the lifeblood of our organisation,” she said. “More than half of our members are women, so I don’t know why it’s taken so long for a female president but it’s a huge honour and hopefully, I won’t be the last.
“There’s no shortage of women getting out walking but it’s important to have more women comfortable and confident in outdoors leadership roles. As they say, you need to see it to be it.
“Outdoor media is becoming much more gender-balanced, with more women writers and photographers. The situation is definitely improving but we shouldn’t be complacent.”
Recent images of Scotland’s stunning landscapes strewn with litter and abandoned camping equipment horrified Lucy and many others in Scotland’s rambling community. “We are absolutely blessed here in Scotland that we have these fantastic access laws, which mean that we have a right of responsible access to the wider countryside.
“It’s awful to see our countryside and nature abused. I think part of the problem is that many people who wouldn’t necessarily be accessing the outdoors currently are.
“Our access laws in Scotland mean that we have a right of responsible access but as soon as you start lighting fires, leaving lifter and cutting down trees, you’ve lost that right.
“We need more low cost camping sites, more education at a grassroots level, support for our ranger services and stronger enforcement of existing anti-social behaviour laws.”
Having spent most of her professional and personal life outdoors, lockdown has been tough for Lucy but has reaffirmed her understanding of the boundless benefits of walking. “Being outdoors helps me in so many ways,” said Lucy. “Cooped up inside for too long, my back hurts, my mood dips and I stop sleeping well. As well as the joy of walking and spending time in nature, exercise outdoors benefits our physical and mental health.
“It keeps me physically strong and healthy and gives me space to think, breathe and relax. No matter how bad things are, you feel better after a walk.
“Sometimes I just like to hammer up a hill and get my heart rate going really hard and that feels good.”