The National Trust for Scotland needs your help to realign a vital section of footpath at Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve. When you donate today, you’ll help us protect one of Scotland’s most important natural treasures – peatland – and pave the way for future generations to enjoy the beauty of Ben Lawers.

🥳 Celebrate with us

It’s our anniversary – two, in fact! 2025 marks 25 years of our Footpath Fund – that's a quarter of a century dedicated to protecting Scotland’s mountains – and 75 years since we became the caretakers of Ben Lawers. A donation today would help fund a Ben Lawers anniversary project, futureproofing Scotland’s paths for the next 25 years.

⚒️ The challenge

Right now, a footpath to the summit of Meall Corranaich, a popular Munro in the Ben Lawers range, forces walkers to cross a badly degraded peat bog. Every footstep they take unintentionally damages fragile vegetation, exposing the peat and releasing harmful carbon into the atmosphere. We know the people who visit our places care about them as much as we do, so we’ve come up with a solution.

Image: Peatland at Meall Corranaich

We’re realigning this footpath to a route on the side of the peat bog, where the ground is drier and more stable. This will keep walkers on track and off the delicate bog. We need to raise £15,000 for this project. Will you donate today to help us bridge the gap?

🌍 Why are peatlands so important?

Peatlands are incredibly effective carbon stores: they store over twice as much carbon as the world’s forests. Sadly, 80% of the UK’s peatlands are degraded. Restoring them is therefore one of the most effective ways we can combat climate change.

We’ve already made excellent progress at Ben Lawers. We successfully restored peat bogs below Meall nan Tarmachan on the Tarmachan Ridge between 2023-2024. Our goal now is to restore the remaining areas of accessible degraded peat bog on the reserve, including on the north-west ridge of Meall Corranaich.

⛰️ Meall Corranaich

Image: Drain and gully at Meall Corranaich

Erosion gullies have carved through the peatland on the slopes of Meall Corranaich. These gullies act like small rivers, speeding up water flow and worsening the erosion. Other bare peat occurs in the form of peat hags.

We’ve launched a major project to restore 276 hectares of degraded blanket bog on Ben Lawers. By reshaping the peatland surface to revegetate bare areas, block gullies and slow water flow, we aim to re-wet the area and bring back native vegetation. This work will help revive this vital ecosystem, boosting biodiversity, locking in carbon and protecting the landscape for future generations.

Image: Peatland restoration in action

However, to truly protect the restored area, we must divert walkers away from the delicate bog by building a new section of footpath to enable walkers to use a more sustainable route.

This current route to the summit starts from a small car park and follows an informal ‘desire line', created by people repeatedly walking over the area. This tracks an old fence line that leads directly across the damaged bog we’re trying to heal. Continued foot traffic here would undo all our restoration efforts.

💡 The solution

We’re doing things a bit differently for this project. Typically, when we re-align our footpaths, we work with existing desire lines to reduce impact and cost. However, to do so here would be too expensive and too damaging to the peatland we're working so hard to restore. We need to create a new, purpose-built section of path within the realignment. This will divert walkers away from the fragile peat and onto more robust ground.

We’ll construct approximately 300 metres of new path, including a section of raised boardwalk to protect wetter ground. We’ve secured £20,000 of funding for the work already but we need your help to raise the remaining £15,000.

Image: Stone pitching at Glencoe

As is typical for our path building, we’ll incorporate traditional construction methods to realign the path. Work will include stone pitching (stones dug into the ground with their flattest sides facing up to create irregular steps that blend into the landscape), and drainage ditching. Drainage is vital to keep flowing water from eroding the path. Aggregate will also be installed.

To get this critical work started, we’ll enlist the expertise of external contractors to undertake the initial efforts. Our Footpath Team will step in to maintain and protect the results of their efforts, ensuring the restored paths remain sustainable for years to come.

🫵 Your support matters

With over 76,000 hectares of countryside and 275 miles of mountain paths under our stewardship, our Footpath Team is committed to protecting Scotland’s most treasured landscapes like Ben Lawers. But we can’t do it alone.

The team relies solely on donations to continue their incredible work. With your help, we can secure the funds needed to protect one of Scotland’s most awe-inspiring mountains. Your contribution, no matter the size, will make a significant impact. Join us today!

▪️£5 can buy wood screws for a few meters of the boardwalk

▪️£30 can fund a tonne of imported stone

▪️£50 can help maintain 1.2m of footpath, clear ditches or restore trampled ground

▪️£75 can aid construction of the boardwalk

▪️£100 can pay for loading and transport of materials

👉 See what your donation can do 👈

Will you help us reach the summit and raise the £15,000 we need today?

💭 Did you know...

As well as boasting seven Munros, Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve has the most celebrated collection of rare arctic-alpine plants in Britain, as well as over 600 different types of lichen?

📜 Who we are

Established in 1931, the National Trust for Scotland is Scotland’s largest conservation charity. Our vision is nature, beauty and heritage for everyone and we care for, share and speak up for Scotland’s heritage. We’re the custodians of over 100 special places across Scotland, from ancient castles and battlefields to islands and mountain ranges, together with the diverse wildlife and habitats these places support. We speak up for the heritage without a voice, work to improve the lives of people across Scotland and respond to the climate and biodiversity crises.

🥾 About our Footpath Team

Image: Our Footpath Team

Led by Upland Paths Manager Bob Brown, our Footpath Team protects our natural landscapes. Facing harsh weather conditions and high foot traffic, they work tirelessly to prevent erosion, protect ecosystems and keep paths safe. Their work is only possible with the generous support of donors like you.

🤝 Join us

Your help is vital to maintaining Scotland’s wild paths. If we surpass our target, additional funds will go toward further repairs and conservation work in the area.

Donate today and join us in preserving the beauty of Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve, now and for everyone who follows in your footsteps.

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We're delighted that a generous donor has pledged £5,000 to support this project.