Scotland Outdoors

• A North East Lido, Badger Behaviour and a Coral Beach

  Lambhill, in the North of Glasgow, is home to a thriving community hub, built out of an old stable block on the edge of the Forth and Clyde canal. Mark went along to visit their community garden, and find out more about what goes on there.Rachel is on the banks of Loch Lomond to find out about the issues of litter along the busy stretch of the A82, and what the local people have been doing to tackle it.Auchindoun Castle in Moray has recently reopened after some careful masonry repairs. Mark meets with Historic Environment Scotland’s District Architect for the North region, Mike Pendery, to find out more about what it takes to look after these remote ruins.Tarlair Outdoor Swimming Pool in the North East has been undergoing restoration for a number of years, but work has now been completed on the art deco pavilion. Mark met up with Pat Wain from the Friends of Tarlair community group to see the newly finished space, and find out more about the next stage of the restoration.A new multipurpose football stadium is in the planning stages in Dundee, but local people are concerned about the loss of old, established trees, and the impact this could have on the area’s wildlife. Rachel met up with Violet Fraser, one of the campaigners against this development.Mountain rescue veteran, David ‘Heavy’ Whalley, sadly passed away recently. He featured on the programme a number of times, and we pay tribute with a clip originally from 2015, where he joined Mark and Euan on a hike up Ben Wyvis.Midlothian Snow Sports has long been a hub for people with disabilities, or learning difficulties to come together and learn to ski. However, there has been a decline in uptake over recent years, which Disability Snowsport UK are hoping to change. Rachel went along to see what it is all about.Mark takes a wet and windy stroll along Coral Beach in Plockton, so called for its sand which is made up of calcified seaweed or maerl.

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• A Fresh Focus on Adaptive Skiing in Scotland

  A shortage of volunteers means some clubs have struggled to restart following the Covid pandemic in 2020. Campaigners say more needs to be done to raise awareness of the issue.

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• Biofluorescence Walks, Reindeer in Aviemore, and Glasgow Central Mosque

  The Cairngorm Funicular Railway is back up and running after some extensive structural works. Mark took a trip up to the snow-covered peak with the Interim Chief Executive Officer of Cairngorm Mountain Scotland Limited, Tim Hurst, to find out what impact the funicular has for the mountain resort.Farmers and land managers are working together in Moray to investigate how they can tackle environmental challenges such as flooding and decline of biodiversity in the area. Rachel is with Ron Oliveira from Shempton Farms and Charlie Davis from Sylvestris Land Management at Balormie Marsh to hear how their efforts are going.Duke Christie is an artist and cabinet maker based in Moray, who has featured his work in galleries and design showcases across the world and is renowned for his unique use of fire. Mark met up with him at his workshop to learn more about his craft.Historic Environment Scotland recently granted Category A Listed Status to the Glasgow Central Mosque. The building was the first in Scotland to utilise Islamic architectural traditions, articulating these with Glasgow’s typical red sandstone. Mark met up with Omar Afzal to hear more about the mosque’s design and the important role the mosque plays in Glasgow’s Muslim community.Rachel meets up with a colleague and regular Out of Doors contributor Linda Sinclair, after she has recently received a Police Scotland bravery award for her efforts in rescuing a woman from the sea in Orkney.Students from the Sculpture and Environmental Art course at Glasgow School of Art staged a pop-up exhibition at Lang Craigs in Dumbarton, utilising the landscape and environment in their installations. Rachel met up with the students to learn more about the inspiration for their projects and the history behind this transient exhibition.There have been reindeer on the slopes of Cairngorm for over 70 years, with the first animals being established in the area in 1952. Now, the centre has undergone significant renovations, moving into a purpose built centre, complete with paddocks and exhibitions. Mark met with Co-Director of the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre Tilly Smith to hear more about this project and how it feels to move the centre out from its original location - the front room of her house!David Atthowe of outdoor exploration company Reveal Nature is an expert in revealing some of the hidden markings and patterns of the world around us using the magic of UV light. Paul English went along to a late night tour in Bute Community Forest in Argyll to see some of this biofluorescence for himself

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• Celebrating the Imperfections in Wood with Artist and Maker Duke Christie

  Mark Stephen visits Duke Christie at his studio in Moray

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• The March of the Frogs, Heavy Lifting Stones and Boat Building

  Many landowners across Scotland are engaging with large scale restoration projects. One such project, spanning 80 thousand acres, is Wildland, in the Scottish Highlands. They have a 200 year vision to help the land heal, grow and thrive, and Rachel is there to find out more about the project, and perhaps even spot some of birds of prey who are thriving in this landscape.HippFest, a silent film and live music festival based in Bo’Ness, is back this March, and one of the filmmakers, Moira Salt, has developed a silent film focusing on Scotland’s canals. Mark met up with her alongside the Forth and Clyde Canal to find out what exactly inspires her about these waterways.Bridgend Farmhouse is a community owned organisation in Edinburgh, focusing on a creating a sustainable and welcoming space for learning, eating and exercise. Helen Needham met with John Knox, who is Chair of the Board at Bridgend, to find out more about the philosophy behind the organisation.For villages on the West Coast of Scotland, boats and sailing are often part of the traditional way of life. However, in Plockton, the local high school is playing a key role in keeping this tradition alive, through teaching the heritage craft of boat building. Mark went along and spoke to some of the students about what learning this craft meant to them.Frogs and toads have begun to emerge all across Scotland, coming out of hibernation and entering the breeding season. But how can we tell which is which, and how can we get involved in their conservation? We speak to Nature.Scot Reserve Officer Danny Bean about how we can keep an eye out for our native amphibians.The Braemar Highland Games Centre is home to one of the world’s most famous lifting stones – the Inver Stone. Mark visited to hear the history behind the stone, where the traditions of lifting stones first began.In an excerpt from this week’s podcast, Rachel is joined by Julie Wilson Nimmo and Greg Hemphill, to find out about how their love of wild swimming began, and how that has grown through their BBC TV Series Jules and Greg’s Wild Swim

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