The Scottish watershed is the drainage divide in Scotland that separates river systems that flow to the east into the North Sea from those that flow to the west and north into the Atlantic Ocean. At a point on the summit of Ben Lomond for example, looking west all water flows to the Firth of Clyde, and looking east all water flows into the Firth of Forth. Similarly Cumbernauld is a point on this line and arguably its Gaelic name has, for hundreds of years, reflected this fact. There is some dispute however about interpretation of the Gaelic phrase. The line joining all such points in Scotland is the Scottish watershed.
Although the concept of geographical watersheds is common, the first unequivocal reference to the Scottish watershed is to be found in Groome's Ordnance Gazetteer of 1884, in which the entry defines the northern terminus as being at Duncansby Head. This was followed in 1912 with the Bartholomew Atlas Survey (NLS) which shows the entire geographic feature, from the border with England to Duncansby Head. The first popular delineation of the Scottish watershed took place as recently as 1986. It was mapped out in that year by Dave Hewitt, who in 1987 then walked the line of the watershed from south to north. [1] The Royal Scottish Geographical Society (RSGS) reviewed Wright`s 'Ribbon of Wildness' in 2011, and in acknowledging the significance of the route, stated that "Ribbon of Wildness gives a vivid introduction to this hitherto largely unknown geographic feature". Eight people have now done versions of this route:
The Elk River is in southwestern Oregon in the United States. About 29 miles (47 km) long, the river drains a remote 92-square-mile (240 km2) area of the Coast Range into the Pacific Ocean.
Lochnagar or Beinn Chìochan is a mountain in the Mounth, in the Grampians of Scotland. It is about five miles south of the River Dee near Balmoral. It is a popular hill with hillwalkers, and is a noted venue for summer and winter climbing.
St Cuthbert's Way is a 100-kilometre (62 mi) long-distance trail between the Scottish Borders town of Melrose and Lindisfarne off the coast of Northumberland, England. The walk is named after Cuthbert, a 7th-century saint, a native of the Borders who spent his life in the service of the church. The route links Melrose Abbey, where Cuthbert began his religious life, with his initial burial place on Holy Island. Cuthbert achieved the status of bishop, and was called a saint eleven years after his death, when his coffin was opened and his remains found to be perfectly preserved.
Kirk Fell is a fell in the Western part of the English Lake District. It is situated between Great Gable and Pillar on the long ring of fells surrounding the valley of Ennerdale, and also stands over Wasdale to the south. However, it is separated from its two higher neighbours by the low passes of Black Sail and Beck Head, giving it a high relative height and making it a Marilyn, the thirteenth highest in the Lake District.
The Angry Corrie is a fanzine for hillwalkers in Scotland, first published in 1991. It is print-based and was also published on the web until June 2008. The fanzine is published quarterly.
The Vedder River, called the Chilliwack River above Vedder Crossing, is a river in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington.
Aisgill is the southernmost of the hamlets that form the parish of Mallerstang in the English county of Cumbria. It is on the B6259 road, at the head of Mallerstang dale, just before the boundary between Cumbria and North Yorkshire.
Chris Townsend is a passionate hillwalker and author of over 20 books. He is also currently Hillwalking Ambassador for the British Mountaineering Council.
Dave Hewitt is editor of The Angry Corrie, a hillwalking magazine. He is editor in chief of TACit Press, author of Walking the Watershed, his account of the first continuous walking of the Scottish watershed, editor of A Bit of Grit on Haystacks, a celebration of the life of Alfred Wainwright, and editor of the Sport and Outdoor sections of the online Scottish newspaper Caledonian Mercury.
Loch Ròg or Loch Roag is a large sea loch on the west coast of Lewis, Outer Hebrides. It is broadly divided into East Loch Roag and West Loch Roag with other branches which include Little Loch Roag. The loch is dominated by the only inhabited island Great Bernera and East Loch Roag is actually referred to as Loch Bernera on early maps, most notably Murdoch MacKenzie's original Admiralty Chart from 1776. The use of west and east to differentiate the sections of the loch appear from the original Ordnance Survey in the 19th century.
The Moffat Hills are a range of hills in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. They form a roughly triangular shape with a west facing side, a north facing side, and a south-east facing side. It is 17 kilometres from east to west across this triangle and some 16 kilometres north to south. The highest point is White Coomb at 821 m (2694 ft). The town of Moffat lies just south of the Moffat hills and along with Tweedsmuir, at the northern extremity, is the only centre of population around these hills. In some older maps, the northern part of the Moffat Hills is called the Tweedsmuir Hills, but can also be known by the title Manor Hills.
The Cheviot Hills, or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes The Cheviot, plus Hedgehope Hill to the east, Windy Gyle to the west, and Cushat Law and Bloodybush Edge to the south.
Kyle of Durness is a coastal inlet on the north coast of Scotland in the county of Sutherland. It extends 5+1⁄2 miles inland from Balnakeil and divides the Cape Wrath peninsula from the mainland. The nearest village is Durness.
The 2012-13 Glasgow Warriors season saw the team participate in competitions including the RaboDirect Pro12 and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
The John o' Groats Trail is a Scottish long-distance walking route from Inverness to John o' Groats, traversing back lanes, footpaths, shorelines and cliff tops of the Scottish Highlands. The trail gives access to accommodation, meals and shops at the end of each stage of the walk.
The Scottish National Trail is a 864-kilometre (537 mi) long-distance trail between Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders and Cape Wrath in the far north of the Scottish Highlands.
Slow Marathon is an annual event that takes place in the North East of Scotland with all routes ending in the Aberdeenshire town of Huntly. Originally conceived by Ethiopian artist Mihret Kebede during her art residency program between January to March in 2012 at the Deveron arts institute in Huntly, Scotland. The first successful event happened in March 2012 between Addis Ababa and Huntly. The idea of the Slow Marathon was to connect people in different worlds through art regardless of any paperwork and political discrimination that refrain people's mobility and integrity. The slow marathon participants walk at a pace that means they can take time to look at the landscape and consider a topic that is the focus of an associated discussion on the following day. The last person to finish the walk is deemed to be the winner.
The North Highland Way is a 150 miles (240 km) hiking, cycling and horse riding trail in Scotland. It starts from Duncansby Head on the North East coast to Cape Wrath in the North West of Scotland's coast. The North Highland Way connects the Cape Wrath Trail in the west with the Moray Firth trail in the east. The North Coast 500 is a driving route, which follows a similar line to the North Highland Way.