AT THE beginning of April, a work party of Bute Conservation volunteers headed to the section of the West Island Way near Hilton and cleared back whins which had been encroaching over the path.
A gate at a footbridge was also re-hung.
Other recent improvements have involved erecting a new gate for accessing the West Island Way, opposite Croc-an- Raer cemetery, mending the bridge over the burn between Kingarth Golf Club and the airstrip.
The trust wished to thank Robert Currie for his help in erecting the gate and the Mount Stuart foresters for their help with the removal of a large fallen tree over the Moor Road – given they have been working to clear fallen timber round the island since Storm Eowyn.
Last weekend, the unusual step of closing part of the West Island Way had to be taken due to the wildfires at the north end of Bute.
The section from Glenmore Farm to Hilton was closed over the weekend but is now open again in time for Easter visitors.
Another casualty from the winter storms was closure of the West Island way between Port Bannatyne Golf Club and the Ettrick Bay road, known as the Garrison Road.
With the help of a couple of volunteers, but mostly by the Mount Stuart foresters, this is now clear and open to the public.
The only section of the West Island Way still impacted by the winter storms is from behind Gortans down to Port Bannatyne, locally know as the Bogely Road.
Several trees are still across the path but can be negotiated with care.
The Cnocnicholl path is also still effected by windblown trees, but these can be passed although care Young islanders will, from June 23, be eligible for concessionary ferry vouchers for travel between their home island and the mainland.
Forming a key pledge in the Scottish Government’s transport budget, the voucher scheme provides four single (or two return) free ferry trips each year to eligible island residents in Orkney, Shetland, the Outer Hebrides, islands in North Ayrshire, Argyll and Bute and Highland Council areas.
The scheme, which currently supports young people aged 16-18 and full- time volunteers up to 25, is to be extended to include people aged between 19 and 21.
Cabinet Secretary for Transport Fiona Hyslop said: “I welcome the extension of concessionary ferry travel vouchers which will support even more young people to sustainably access work, connect with family and friends, and experience new
opportunities which they may otherwise not have access to.
“This Government is committed to growing the economy and supporting all our young people with the very best chance to succeed in life. We know bus, ferry and rail services provide vital connectivity to employment, education and training opportunities, and the offer of concessionary and discounted journeys makes it more affordable to access these important opportunities.
“We are doing all we can to ensure young people growing up on our islands can access similar opportunities to their peers on mainland Scotland. I recognise that many will want us to offer more free ferry travel to and from the mainland and we will keep that under review, but this latest concession is additional to the free bus travel that many young island residents also benefit from.”
has to be taken here as well. Apart from the clearing of some of the big trees, for which the Bute Conservation Trust is very grateful to the Mount Stuart forester team, many of these jobs in themselves are small and seemingly unimportant but all form part of the jigsaw of keeping paths open and a pleasure to walk.
The volunteers wished to thank the local contractors and businesses who help the Conservation Trust by turning out when required and leaving visitors with good memories of their visits to Bute.
