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Lantern walkers will light Malham night
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Public body to take over Cairn Gorm railway company
The financially troubled Cairn Gorm funicular railway will be in public hands after development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise agreed to take on ownership of the operating company.The Cairngorm funicularZoe GriceThe controversial railway, the construction of which was opposed by the Cairngorm Campaign, was opened in 2001.
Cavers 'died trying to escape' flooded system
An experienced caver and his novice colleague probably died because they tried to escape from a flooded cave, rather than staying put, an inquest heard today.The entrance to Long Churn CaveEngineer Caroline Fletcher, 28, perished on her first trip underground in the Yorkshire Dales.
Walkers urged to take care to avoid wildfires
Fire risks in England’s national parks are expected to lessen as cooler, wetter weather moves across the country, but many areas remain on a ‘high’ level and prone to wildfires.Moorland fires: devastating to the environmentBritain’s Met Office now produces a Fire Severity Index, and rights to roam are automatically suspended when this reaches its highest mark: level five – exceptional.
Dales cave-death inquest to open
The inquest into the deaths of two cavers will take place tomorrow.The entrance to Long Churn CaveCaroline Jane Fletcher and Stuart John Goodwill perished in Long Churn Cave, Selside, in the Yorkshire Dales on the night of 27-28 December 2007.
Hinkes backs outdoor centres which started his climb to top
One of Britain’s top mountaineers has become patron of the service he says helped launch his climbing career.Alan Hinkes with young climbersAlan Hinkes, the first Briton to top all the world’s 8,000m peaks, agreed to the post in recognition of the part played by North Yorkshire County Council’s outdoor education service in fostering his interest in climbing.
Hartell conquers Dales heat for record Fellsman win
Mark Hartell put the heat on his rivals to win the gruelling Fellsman event for an unprecedented eleventh time.Mark Hartell en route to his eleventh Fellsman victoryThe Team Vasque long-distance expert ran himself into the record books on a day when conditions were more suited to a desert marathon than the traditional Yorkshire Dales trog through mist and rain.
Two charged over girl's waterfall adventure death
A second man has been charged following the death of a girl on an outdoor activities course in Galloway.Gareth Alcorn, 24, of Coleraine, County Londonderry, appeared at Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
'Frisky' Hartell ready for Fellsman challenge
More than 350 runners and walkers will take to the high ground of the Yorkshire Dales this weekend to tackle one of the most challenging long-distance events in the country.Ten-times Fellsman winner Mark HartellThe Fellsman (it’s dropped its ‘Hike’ sobriquet) involves 100km (62 miles) of running or walking across almost every sizeable hill in the Dales national park.
Peak District launches 'MySpace' for park fans
Britain’s first national park is claiming another first – its own version of MySpace for lovers of the Peak District.Peak District visitors can upload pictures and videos to the site by mobile phoneMyPeakExperience offers the chance to upload pictures, video and text to share users’ views and thoughts of the national park.
Munros and corbetts will challenge LAMMers this year
This year’s Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon will not be a boggy trudge, but a mountain journey, with munros and corbetts to conquer.Competitors on last year's LAMMFelicity MartinThat’s the promise of the organisers of the event, dubbed the connoisseur’s mountain marathon.
Police name tent-death woman
Police have named a woman whose body was found in a tent near a castle at Edzell, in Angus.Gemma Louise Clark, 22, of Perth Road, Dundee, was discovered by a walker on land known as Pirn Brigg, on the bank of West Water burn about 3.10pm on Tuesday.Tayside Police say there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the woman’s death.
Rescuers guided to walker by satellite emergency system
A stricken walker summoned aid via an international rescue system that was used for the first time in Europe this week.The SPOT unit, with its '911' buttonHelp came in the shape not of Thunderbird Four, but a Royal Navy Sea King helicopter dispatched thanks to a £150 hand-held machine and an emergency system spanning the globe.
Flash floods catch out Dales cavers
Quirky flash floods caught out cavers in a system where two people died last year.Long Churn Cave, RibblesdaleExtremely localised heavy thunderstorms on Ingleborough, in the Yorkshire Dales, led to a sudden rise in water levels in Long Churn Cave, near Selside, on Sunday. While most of the Dales basked in warm sunshine, 40 minutes’ worth of torrential rain and hail on the fell caused becks to turn from a trickle to a torrent and a party of potholers was trapped in the underground system.Nine people, including a caving instructor with a group of adults and children, made their way to a higher, drier area of the cave as water levels rose.
Act now on coastal access, say experts
Professionals are urging action on the setting up of the coastal-access corridor – otherwise the process may get bogged down in legal challenges.Coastal access: Government 'must act' The Institute of Public Rights of Way Management, which represents rights-of-way officers, said many thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money earmarked to improve access to Britain’s coastline and boost tourism trade could be drained by costly legal disputes, unless the Government acts now.
Snowdonia airport opponents consider legal review
National park campaigners are considering legal action to stop the development of a commercial airport in the Snowdonia National Park.The former military airfield at Llanbedr, near Harlech, has been leased by Kemble Air Services, which said it intends to use it for small, private aircraft and microlights, along with unmanned air vehicles.
Cave rescuers free trapped crag woman
Cave rescue experts were flown to a Lake District crag to free a woman who was trapped for eight hours.A Cave Rescue Organisation vehicle The 33-year-old climber got her kneed jammed in a fissure on Gimmer Crag in Great Langdale about 12.30pm on Tuesday.
Axe falls as Natural England announces budget
English National Nature Reserves and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty will receive £17m over the next three years.Natural England chief Sir Martin DoughtyNatural England, the Government body charged with protecting the countryside, today also announced a massive £68m boost for green farming schemes.