Bennachie Visitor Centre trails re-open
Forestry and Land Scotland has cleared the Bennachie Visitor Centre car park in Aberdeenshire a week earlier than had been expected and made most of the trails accessible.
Two long-distance trails remain closed from Bennachie Centre. The latest updates for other Bennachie sites are on FLS website.
Fiona Robertson, FLS Area Visitor Services Manager, said;
“The trails around the Bennachie Centre were badly damaged by Storm Arwen but after a full week of hard work with as many as 11 chainsaw operators onsite at any one time, we have managed to open up the car park and majority of the trails that begin there.
“The Centre’s Car Park is open, as is the Colony trail, The Discovery Trail and the Mither Tap Timeline Trail.
“However, for the moment the longer Turnpike Trail and The Gordon Way remain closed as does the Back O Bennachie, where we need to get some heavy machinery in to clear the windblown trees.
“We know how popular Bennachie is with so many people and we look forward to visitors returning.
“We would remind anyone coming along to avoid areas of windblow and observe any safety signage that they might see. Windblow is dangerous, so please stick to the cleared trails and let us get on with opening up the rest of the site safely.
”Additional closures will be needed at Bennachie Centre to enable us to clear further wind blow in and around the Car Park so it’s important that visitors check the our website for the latest updates before they come along.”
Felled trees, hanging trees and even trees that are still standing can all be unstable after a major storm. Trees can roll, pivot, slide or fall at the slightest disturbance.
Unstable trees, parts of trees, root plates and stones can suddenly topple, tip over, fall or roll away without any visible reason even days, weeks or months after a storm.
Up-to-date information on FLS forests and access can be found online.
Notes to editors
- Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) manages forests and land owned by Scottish Ministers in a way that supports and enables economically sustainable forestry; conserves and enhances the environment; delivers benefits for people and nature; and supports Scottish Ministers in their stewardship of Scotland's national forests and land.
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Media enquiries to Paul Munro, Media Manager, Forestry and Land Scotland Media Office 07785 527590 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.