Bargain winter mountain courses on offer

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Ennerdale bridge is Jack's bequest

Walkers in Ennerdale now have a new bridge to cross, thanks to a bequest from an enthusiast.Bury man Jack Farraday left £5,000 in his will to the Friends of the Lake District, to which he belonged.

Snowdon call-out takes rescue team to new high

Llanberis mountain rescue team has had a record-breaking year.Latest call-out for the team yesterday to a family crag-fast on Crib Goch took the rescuers’ tally over its 2005 total of 85, itself a record.A 20-man squad rescued a walker who broke her ankle on Monday.

Warning for mountain marathon competitors

Organisers of this weekend’s Original Mountain Marathon in Galloway have issued the following warning to competitors: get there early.Bad weather means all parking will now be on forest roads.

Blistered snout sparks foot-and-mouth fears

Lovers of the outdoors are breathing a sigh of relief after foot-and-mouth-disease tests on an Essex pig proved negative.The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) had closed an abattoir near Brentwood, run by Cheale Meats.

47,000 web items no threat to Stagecoach boss

The hearing into a Scottish millionairess’s bid to exclude her land from the country’s right-to-roam laws resumed yesterday.Ann Gloag, the Stagecoach bus company magnate, wants to exclude the public, including walkers, runners and bikers from part of the Kinfauns Castle estate in Perthshire.Yesterday, Perth Sheriff Court heard from security analyst Andrew Ashwood who said he found 47,000 articles (should be 47,001 after this – Ed) on the Internet relating to Mrs Gloag, but none contained threats against her.

Welsh police warning after wildlife shootings

Walkers in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park are being asked to be on the lookout for armed trespassers.Police and park officials say there have been instances of individuals going on to private farmland in the Newport and Moylegrove areas and shooting wildlife.An authority spokesman said: "The widespread killing of vulnerable wildlife is totally unacceptable.

Good news on the midge front?

And now, here is the midge forecast: there will be 30% fewer of the little pests to trouble walkers in Scotland next year.This year’s cold, prolonged spring stymied the breeding efforts of the scourge of the  Highland walker, leading to nearly a third fewer being recorded in the region and numbers in Fort William dropping to half the previous year’s.Midge expert Dr Ali Blackwell of Edinburgh set traps for the annoying little biters at 32 places across Scotland.

Stay away from Wicken Stones, pleads BMC

The British Mountaineering Council (BMC) is asking climbers not to exacerbate problems at a Staffordshire crag.The owner of the ERF rocks, also known as the Wicken Stones, is denying access to the site, which is on private land.