Top tips for exploring the outdoors

Where to ‘go’ in the outdoors

If you’re heading somewhere without facilities to walk or wild camp, it’s not simply your litter we ask you to take away. The Scottish Outdoor Access Code says that if you need a wee, relieve yourself more than 30m from water sources, and if you need to ‘go’ in the outdoors, to bring a trowel, dig a shallow hole and replace the turf. However, in areas that attract lots of visitors, it’s never appropriate to leave human waste behind.

You may feel you have found a perfect secluded spot – perhaps behind a tree, rock or cairn – but the likelihood is that many others will have thought exactly the same before you. We encounter these toilet hotspots every day, often just a few metres from the edges of laybys, paths and popular camping areas, and often pock-marked with used toilet roll or wipes. In the shallow earth of mountain slopes, digging a hole to bury your poo may not be possible, or may cause long-lasting erosion of the delicate alpine soils and vegetation.

Always come prepared with dog poo bags and a sealable container to safely store pet or human waste, used tissue and wipes until you can dispose of them properly. If this doesn’t sound fun, exploring or wild camping far away from amenities might not be for you.

‘Wild’ camping

Nothing compares with a night of wild camping and getting close to nature in a remote, beautiful location. We feel every child should get the chance to experience this while growing up, and that such an experience would help foster a lifelong love and respect for the natural world in the next generation. We’re proud of Scotland’s enlightened access laws and the freedom to camp outdoors, responsibly.

Our rangers tour Glen Coe and Glen Etive every summer Saturday evening to meet and chat with campers. From this, it’s clear that some of us could do with a wee refresh of the law (and good practice) when it comes to both wild camping and lighting fires in the countryside – important advice wherever you go, but particularly somewhere as precious as the places in our care.

Choosing a spot

The right to wild camp comes with a responsibility not to negatively impact on the landscapes you’re coming to enjoy, so it only extends to small groups with lightweight equipment and is not permitted in fields with crops or farm animals, or near buildings, roads or historic structures. It doesn’t apply to motorised vehicles, so driving off-road to park up next to your tent is a definite no no!

It’s also worth being aware of the cumulative effect that camping can have in popular areas where the land rarely gets the chance for a break. We may appeal for campers to give some locations a rest so habitats have a chance to recover. Please look out for signs and follow their guidance.

Campfires or stoves?

Scotland’s outdoor access law says ‘where possible’ use a stove rather than making a campfire. We say, if you love our landscapes, always go with the stove option as it causes far less long-term damage in areas with a high volume of campers and camper vans. We don’t want to sound like your mum, but if you’re cold while camping, you can also put on a jumper, hat, scarf or blanket ...

If you still wish to light a fire, choose your fire site carefully. Lighting fires under trees can damage tree root systems. Please also avoid areas of dry vegetation or peaty soils, which will continue to burn (underground and hidden from sight) and can cause wild fires. If you’re unsure, don’t take the risk.

Never cut or damage trees (or fences/gates/signposts) to top up a fire if you run out of wood. This is vandalism. Green or living timber will kill all but the hottest fires anyway. Dead wood is a fantastic home for wildlife too, so burning it damages vital ecosystems for bugs and fungi in upland areas with limited woodland habitat.

Leave no trace

Responsible campers probably spend as long, if not longer, clearing their camp area and removing signs of their presence (no matter what the weather) than they took to set up. If you’re not prepared to do this, please don’t camp in the first place. This includes stone circles, charred logs and scorched earth as well as litter or disposable BBQs. Burning your rubbish might seem a good idea, but this just creates smaller and more damaging particles of pollution. From our chats, we’ve learned that many people feel they’re being helpful by leaving a stone circle for the next camper or using one that already exists. Unfortunately, the reality is that a patch of grass with one scorch mark usually breeds another two or three the following weekend.

Not clearing up a fire site because everything is still too hot is not a reasonable justification either. It’s essential to douse your smouldering embers as soon as the fire is done with. Be prepared with plenty of water – it’s surprising just how much you’ll need, even for a small fire. Poke holes into your fire site to enable the water to penetrate into the baked earth.

Help us to look after our footpaths, and each other, by following the simple guidelines explained in the video below.

Skill up!

Do you need to brush up your fire-making (and removing) skills? We definitely recommend practising in your own garden, checking out tutorials on YouTube or booking on a bushcraft course. Please don’t use a National Nature Reserve for a trial run.

Legal protection

If we observe illegal camping, damage to protected habitats or anti-social behaviour, we and our neighbours report it to the police. Officers are making increasingly regular patrols on summer evenings and the morning after at many busy Highland beauty spots. We are grateful for their support.

Want to know more?

The following websites have really useful information about spending time outdoors:

Read about the Scottish Outdoor Access Code

Get wild camping advice from Mountaineering Scotland

Share the love!

We love to see your photos of your amazing experiences at Trust places, and we especially enjoy the ‘leave no trace’ after-shots! Please feel free to share them on our Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages.