West Highland Way home to stage Olympics?

Atlanta, Sydney, Athens, Beijing... Milngavie: the small Glasgow suburb known to so many hopefuls setting foot on the West Highland Way hopes to join ...

Night bikers 'terrifying sheep' in Wales

Welsh sheep are being terrified by night-time mountain bikers, claim farmers in Flintshire.Shepherds and graziers in the Halkyn Mountain area say the cyclists, who take to the hollows and bumps of the mountain wearing headtorches, are causing pregnant ewes to lose their lambs.A sheep Local walkers are being asked to keep dogs on a lead as police step up patrols to catch errant bikers.

Munro path plan 'may put walkers in danger'

A council plan for a path on one of the Highlands’ most prominent mountains could lead walkers into danger, its owners fear.The John Muir Trust, which owns Schiehallion, is objecting to Perth & Kinross Council’s proposal to add the route to the munro’s summit to its list of core paths.

National park offers chance to try high-tech treasure hunt

Walkers can now borrow GPS units to join in high-tech treasure hunts in the Yorkshire Dales.The national park authority has set up geocaching routes to help families learn about the area by finding hidden ‘treasure boxes’ tracked down using co-ordinates and the satellite units.A Yorkshire Dales geocache Two national park centres, at Grassington and Hawes, have hand-held Global Positioning System receivers which the public can hire to join in a geocaching hunt.

Body found in Cairn Gorm plane wreckage

The wreckage of a missing light aircraft was found today on Cairn Gorm.Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team discovered the wreckage about 1km (½ mile) from the mountain’s funicular railway.

Go back to school to learn about the Dales

Lovers of the Yorkshire Dales have the chance to go back to school to enrich their knowledge of the countryside.Ancient Roman bones, sheep creeps and hennery piggeries are some of the subjects under the microscope for visitors to Grassington town hall this month, at an event organised by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority.The Yorkshire Dales: find out about its history There will also be a chance to hear at first hand how recent discoveries and research have called into question accepted theory on how limestone pavements were formed.

Relief as Nepal starts issuing Everest permits

Mountaineers are breathing a sigh of relief after Nepalese authorities started issuing permits to climb Everest.It had been feared that, following a clampdown by the Beijing authorities on climbing on the Tibetan side, the Nepalese government would put a freeze on attempts from the south side of the mountain, which straddles the Tibet-Nepal border.

Grand response as wild-camp petition gets thousandth name

The petition to legalise wild camping in England and Wales now has more than a thousand signatures.The plea to the Prime Minister to give campers south of the border the same rights to pitch their tents in open countryside as enjoyed by outdoor lovers in Scotland passed the thousand mark on Thursday.

Highland tent body was missing climber

The mystery body found in a tent near the West Highland Way has been identified.The remains, found by workers clearing a path in Auch Forest between Bridge of Orchy and Inveroran, have been confirmed as those of Nicholas Randall, who disappeared from his Edinburgh home almost three years ago.The West Highland Way near Bridge of Orchy Mr Randall was 31 when he disappeared on 25 April, 2005.