Scotland’s Ayrshire Coastal Path Erects Panels

In December 2010 the Ayrshire Coastal Path was delighted and honoured to be selected and branded by Scottish Natural Heritage as one of twenty of Scotland’s Great Trails (www.scotlandsgreattrails.org). From being just the new kid on the block, they are now playing with the big boys of the West Highland Way, the Great Glen Way, and the Southern Upland Way – and look forward to learning from their experiences.

Recently the ACP has had experiences of its own, with a few “arrogant, ignorant idiots” walking dogs through fields of livestock with lambs and calves, and mouthing off to farmers about their ‘right to roam’ – instead of acknowledging that it is in fact a ‘right of responsible access‘.

As a result, 14 Farming & Outdoor Access information panels were created and erected at strategic points in sensitive farming areas along the length of the Coastal Path. It is hoped that these will prove very useful for overseas walkers unfamiliar with Scottish farming practices. Whether the “local idiots” will read them is a matter of conjecture, but at least they can no longer claim that they “didn’t know”!