The estate has four munros. Photo: Gordon Hatton CC-BY-SA-2.0

Mountaineers are urging a local authority to take action after more than 600 people reported problems walking on a Highland estate.

The Mountaineering Council of Scotland said North Chesthill Estate in Glen Lyon is a regular source of complaints from walkers.

It has a popular round of four munros: Càrn Mairg, Meall Garbh, Creag Mhor and Càrn Gorm but the MCofS said, despite a statutory right of access, mountaineers still experience a range of problems.

It said North Chesthill was a ‘rogue’ estate where access rights seem to be ignored.

Despite repeated efforts over a number of years, little progress has been made in reconciling the interests of the estate and those wishing to take access, it said.

It undertook a survey earlier this year to identify access problems experienced by walkers on the estate.

Of 709 responses, more than 80 per cent of respondents said they had walked the munros in question in the last 10 years. Of the remaining 19 per cent, some attempted to walk on the estate but were deterred.

In total, 611 problems were reported, including off-putting or misleading notices, locked gates, hostile responses to email or phone enquiries, or approaches by the landowner or his representatives.

The MCofS said a handful of respondents did say they had received helpful advice from the estate but, in general, there appears to be a poor attitude to access.

The council said people accessing the hills have responsibilities as well as rights and 80 per cent of those who took access during the stalking season sought information on where they could walk. This came from a variety of sources including the Heading for the Scottish Hills website, the Hillphones system and information direct from the estate.

MCofS access officer Andrea Partridge

MCofS access officer Andrea Partridge said: “Responsibility for enforcing compliance with the access legislation lies with the local authorities – and in this case Perth and Kinross Council is the relevant body.

“We will be asking them to use their statutory powers to ensure that there is open access on the North Chesthill Estate throughout the year along with appropriate signage during the stalking season that is updated on a daily basis.

“This will help not only walkers but also the estate to manage the deer population and run their business without antagonising those taking access”.

The North Chesthill Estate said: “We are committed to sustainability and conservation of all wildlife.

“The deer management programme here is very important to the livelihoods of local people and our employees and the welfare of the deer herd.

“Walking needs to be fitted into the estate business and has to be managed. The estate is subject to ever increasing access which is affecting wildlife operations and business. A sensible balance is needed if the uplands here are to remain sustainable.”

The estate managers ask walkers to follow their approved clockwise, waymarked route.

It said: “The adverse impacts are felt particularly acutely by the animals and birds during the breeding seasons April to July, especially when walkers fail to follow recognised clockwise routes and fail to control their dogs.

“When deerstalking is taking place the [Scottish Outdoor Access] Code asks that you avoid conflicting and disrupting that activity over the relatively short period it takes place and that you walk elsewhere.”