Scottish Natural Heritage Survey of upland path users in Scotland 2017 Published: April 2018 People, Places and Nature Unit Scottish Natural Heritage Great Glen House Leachkin Road Inverness IV3 8NW For further information please contact [email protected] www.nature.scot Contents Page Background and research objectives 3 Research methodology 3 Profile of respondents 4 Detailed research findings 5 Frequency of visiting the outdoors and upland areas in Scotland 5 Activities undertaken in Scotland’s upland areas 6 Use of upland paths in Scotland 7 Condition of upland paths in Scotland in the last 12 months 7 The influence of paths on route selection 18 The importance of maintaining Scotland’s upland paths 21 Level of interest in helping to look after Scotland’s upland paths 22 Other comments 23 Summary and conclusions 24 Appendices 1. Profile of survey respondents 2. Activities undertaken in Scotland’s upland areas in the last 12 months 3. Percent of respondents agreeing with each statement about the importance of maintaining Scotland’s upland paths 4. Questionnaire 2 1. Background and research objectives Scotland’s People and Nature Survey (SPANS) estimates that people living in Scotland take 28.6 million visits to upland areas each year. Many of these upland visits are hill walking trips (an estimated 9.8 million), but a variety of other activities are also undertaken in upland areas, ranging from mountain biking, running and ski-ing to fishing, wildlife watching and informal family outings. The vast majority of these upland visits involve the use of a path (88%)1. In addition to visits taken by Scottish residents, around 9 million tourist trips are taken in Scotland each year by visitors from elsewhere in the UK and from overseas2. Research undertaken by VisitScotland indicates that scenery and landscape are key motivations for these visits, many of which include active outdoor activities such as walking3. Hillwalking and mountain biking both make significant contributions to the rural economy, with estimated annual expenditure in excess of £65 million4 for hillwalking and £75.7million5 for mountain biking. Aside from their economic value, these activities make important contributions to people’s quality of life, providing very significant physical and mental health benefits. Upland paths play a key role in supporting, and sometimes enabling, these activities as well as managing impacts on the sensitive landscapes and habitats in which they take place. However, there is no national co-ordination or prioritisation of the limited resources for path repair work and no funding for path maintenance, resulting in varying standards of upland paths throughout the country – and heavily eroded paths on some of our most iconic hills. This paper presents the findings of a survey of upland path users in Scotland, undertaken in 2017 by Scottish Natural Heritage, in partnership with other key stakeholders. The main objectives of the survey were to collect information from hill users about their recent experience of upland paths6; their perceptions of the importance of upland paths; and their views on upland path maintenance and repair. The research findings will be used to inform future approaches to upland path funding and management. 2. Research methodology The research was undertaken between April and July 2017 by means of a self-completion surveymonkey questionnaire (see Appendix 4). The survey was promoted by SNH and via our network of contacts and targeted at as wide an audience of hill users as possible. This included members of national conservation organisations, members of national and local clubs and bodies associated with outdoor recreation as well as a more general audience with an interest in walking, mountain biking and other outdoor activities. 1 Scotland’s People and Nature Survey 2013/14 (Scottish Natural Heritage) 2 Tourism in Scotland 2016 (VisitScotland) 3 Scotland Visitor Survey 2015 and 2016 (VisitScotland) 4 Estimate based on Scottish Recreation Survey data 2007 – 2012 5 Economic Value of Mountain Biking in Scotland (Scottish Enterprise); EKOS Ltd., Tourism Resources Company, April 2009. This research estimated £75.5 m in direct expenditure; when supplier and income multipliers are included, this rises to £119m. 6 For the purposes of the survey, upland paths were defined as ‘paths or routes in Scotland’s hills or mountains which have either been constructed or formed by regular use. Vehicle tracks, i.e. tracks constructed to allow vehicular access to the hills, are not included in this definition’. 3 A total of 2,403 survey responses were received by the survey cut-off date, indicating a high level of engagement with the subject among hill users. Figure 1, below, shows where respondents sourced the survey link. The single largest proportion of responses to the survey was received from visitors to the Walkhighlands website (35%). Among the 30% of respondents who indicated that they had come across the survey link via some ‘other’ means, social media, particularly Facebook and Twitter, was mentioned most frequently and played a key role in ensuring the survey link was shared as widely as possible. Figure 1: Where did you find the link to the survey? Walkhighlands Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland/local mountain biking club Conservation organisation (e.g. 30% NTS, JMT) 35% Mountaineering Scotland/local mountaineering club 1% Ramblers Scotland/local walking 3% club 13% 11% Professional path management 7% network Other Base: All respondents (n = 1,889) Source: Upland path survey 2017, Q18 3. Profile of respondents The respondent profile information below provides context for the survey findings; a more detailed breakdown is provided in Appendix 1. o The majority of respondents were resident in Scotland (88%) with most of the remainder resident elsewhere in the UK (10%) o Respondents were predominantly male (66%) and around half were aged between 35 and 54 (49%). o Around half of respondents were members of national or local organisations, clubs or bodies associated with conservation (e.g. JMT, NTS) or with walking, climbing and mountain biking (e.g. Ramblers, Mountaineering Scotland, local walking/mountain biking clubs) (55%). o Almost all respondents had visited the outdoors in Scotland in the last 12 months (99%) and most had done so on a regular basis: among those resident in Scotland, 66% had visited the outdoors at least once a week over the previous year (higher than the average of 48% among all adults living in Scotland7). o Among respondents who had visited the outdoors in the last 12 months, almost all had visited an upland area during that period (99%) and all except seven had used an upland path (99%). 7 Scottish Household Survey 2016 4 o Most respondents described themselves as experienced in the Scottish hills, with 36% indicating that they were ‘very experienced’ and a further 40% that they were ‘quite experienced’. 4. Detailed research findings 4.1. Frequency of visiting the outdoors and upland areas in Scotland Most of the survey respondents living in Scotland were regular outdoor visitors: 66% visited the outdoors in Scotland for recreation at least once a week compared to an average of 48% among the adult population in Scotland8. Figure 2: Frequency of visiting the outdoors in Scotland in last 12 months (%) 70 60 66 50 48 40 30 20 27 20 18 10 13 6 0 0 At least once a At least once a At least once a Not at all week month year All survey respondents living in Scotland All adults in Scotland (SHS 2016) Base: All respondents living in Scotland (n = 1,685) Source: Upland path survey 2017, Q1; Scottish Household Survey 2015 Among respondents who had visited the outdoors in Scotland in the last 12 months, almost all had visited an upland area (99%). More than a third of those living in Scotland had visited upland areas on a regular, weekly basis during this period (37%). Figure 3: Frequency of visiting upland areas in Scotland in the last 12 months (%) 50 45 40 43 35 37 30 25 20 15 19 10 5 0 0 At least once a At least once a At least once a Not at all week month year Base: All respondents living in Scotland (n = 1,682) Source: Upland path survey 2017, Q2 8 Scottish Household Survey 2016 5 4.2. Activities undertaken in Scotland’s upland areas As shown in Figure 4, below, respondents had participated in a range of activities in Scotland’s uplands in the last 12 months. Most had been hillwalking, mountaineering or climbing (89%) or lower level walking in the glens (69%); 4 in 10 respondents had mountain biked (41%) and 3 in 10 had wild camped (31%); a quarter had participated in bird, wildlife or nature watching (25%); a fifth had been running (19%); and 12% had been ski-ing. Among the activities shown in Figure 4, below, women were more likely than men to have been lower level walking in the glens (81% and 66%, respectively) and bird, wildlife or nature watching (32% and 24%, respectively); men were more likely than women to have been mountain biking (47% and 29%, respectively) and wild camping (34% and 29%, respectively). In terms of age, younger respondents aged between 16 and 34 had higher than average levels of participation in mountain biking (50%), wild camping (44%), running (29%) and ski-ing (19%). Respondents who described themselves as ‘very experienced’ in the Scottish hills were more likely than less experienced respondents to have taken part in each of the activities shown in Figure 4. A detailed breakdown of participation by gender, age, level of hill experience and residency is provided in Appendix 2. Figure 4: Activities undertaken in Scotland’s upland areas in last 12 months (%) Hill walking/mountaineering/climbing 89 Lower level walking in glens 69 Mountain biking 41 Wild camping 31 Bird/wildlife/nature watching 25 Running 19 Ski-ing 12 Other 5 0 20 40 60 80 100 % upland visitors undertaking each activity Base: All respondents visiting upland areas in Scotland in last 12 months (n = 2,288) Source: Upland path survey 2017, Q3 The research sample included 934 respondents who had been mountain biking in the Scottish uplands in the last 12 months.