Highland Titles Scottish Woodland Alliance Cycle Track Farce

It is interesting that currently Sustrans are apparently in discussion with Highland Titles about routing a cycle track over their land at Keil Hill ..... hold on, that's a bit strange, there would seem to be little point as it seems a cycle track has already been built at the expense of Highland Titles.

Let us have a look at what seems to be the only piece of work that the Scottish Woodland Alliance actually claim to have done on Keil Hill.  The construction of a cycle track over Keil Hill

This is the claim from their website at http://lairdswood.org.uk

It seems that this post has prompted the removal of the entire lairdswood.org.uk website, not to worry there is an independently captured screenshot of the front page here http://www.screenshots.com/lairdswood.org.uk/2014-01-28 

"In 2007, we agreed with Sustrans that they could route the Oban to Fort William Cycleway over Keil Hill.  By 2008 we learned that Sustrans had decided to leave cyclists on the road for this dangerous part of the route. Thus in August 2009 SWA built a cycle track at our own expense that crosses Keil Hill from the Salachan Burn to Duror Cemetary. This will prove to be of value both to the people of this small community and to walkers, cyclists and equestrians."

So, over 5 years into the cycle track's existence, let us take a quick photo tour that illustrates the gulf between the marketing hype, and the woeful reality.

First cyclists have to find the track. It doesn't appear as a cycle route on any maps that I can find. This is the view as you travel South on the A828 (no, it's not the tarmac strip on the right; it's behind the farm gate on the left)

A close up view of the entrance and signage, not exactly inviting. You'd think they didn't want anyone to use it?

 This section of the access is overgrown  with dense grass. Cycles have to come through this section, so exactly how much cycle or any other traffic can there have been?

 

These stepping stones are also part of the route! This is going to take road bikes off the A828, remember?

At last we arrive at something which might be described as some kind of track, a section specially constructed in 2009. Rough doesn't begin to describe it. Wholly unsuitable for road bikes. Suitable for logging and 4x4 access to the half-acre plots, though. Does anybody still think this was constructed as a cycle track for road bikes to take them off of the A828?

The thought that this was constructed as any kind of cycle track for road bikes to take cycle traffic off the main A828 road is obviously utterly farcical.

It seems to me a much more likely reason for the construction is for the extraction of the commercially planted timber when it matures. In case you were unaware, the approximately 220 acre Keil Hill estate comprises roughly half  commercial forest (leaving only 110 or so acres for the Highland Titles Nature Reserve), planted with government grants.

Highland Titles Nature Reserve Planning Application False Statements

You would think that any reputable company when applying for planning permission for a building of any kind would tell the truth to the local council planning department about the purpose of the planned building, yes?

Not so with Highland Titles, the rules it seems do not apply to them, and false statements regarding the purpose of a building on the Highland Titles Nature Reserve were presented to the Highland Council planning department.

The planning application for what Highland Titles currently describes variously as their Rangers Hut or visitor reception, actually described the purpose of the building as "Storage for machinery for commercial forestry" in the planning application to Highland Council.

The entire planning application can be seen here .....

http://wam.highland.gov.uk/wam/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=MUTATPIH7R000

No mention of rangers huts, visitor reception, electricity supply, water supply, or toilets for visitors is there ?

The application was made by a Mr Robert Wilson, who is or was (please correct me if I'm wrong), the manager of the Bevis family holiday letting business at Tulloch Farm.

Then there is the matter of the modifications to the entrance from the main A828 road for their newly constructed car park. I can find nothing in council records which would indicate that these modifications have been authorised.

I understand that Highland Council have been made aware of these concerns, but I'm informed have chosen not to take any action.

It certainly makes me wonder if there is something distinctly smelly going on here. An unauthorised development complete with an illegal entrance to and from a main road intended to be used by members of the public, I'd expect Highland Council to be more than a little concerned, but apparently they are not .... I find that more than a little strange.

If you are involved in any type of accident at this entrance, or indeed in the "Rangers Hut", you might want to contact the Highland Council and ask them for the authorisation paperwork for these developments. If they cannot supply the relevant documents I'd think you might have a very good case for taking legal action against both Highland Council and Highland Titles.

If Highland Titles are prepared to cause false statements to be made to the planning authorities, does it not seem quite likely that an awful lot of their other claims might also be false?

Clan Donald Worldwide Are Not Highland Titles Supporters Then!

Clan Donald Worldwide on Facebook, a group with over 1000 members, have included in their membership rules, that supporting Highland Titles is not compatible with membership of the Clan Donald Worldwide group.

https://www.facebook.com/download/595308380577699/GroupPolicy-HighlandTitles-01a.pdf

Some quotations from the document:

"This group of charlatans, operating form Alderney in the Channel Islands, and with no real connection to Scotland except what they can charm out of innocent and unsuspecting people, who just want to celebrate their heritage, have to be stopped. I cant do it on my own, and others have met some unbelievable challenges in the past. Some have been vilified, others reported to Facebook. Fake Fb accounts have been setup and identity theft has been practiced to post stuff that leaves honest people looking like bad rubbish. So, when I post this, I expect to get some hassle. Hey ho. Our friends in Glencoe are extremely upset by this company trading upon their local and heritage identity.

The first thing I can do is this:

I declare that association with Highland Titles - Glencoe Estates, in any of their guises, is incompatible with membership of CDWw."

"ANYBODY WHO IS IN THE CLAN DONALD WORLDWIDE GROUP, and who is found to have an active 'like' on the Glencoe Highland Titles Fb page, or who shares their pictures, in the group or elsewhere, will be reminded of this document and asked to read it. If they have not seen fit to discontinue their support for this odious organisation, they WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE GROUP"

Update - The Press And Journal newspaper covered this story. Rather oddly the online version of the story about Highland Titles has been removed from the Press And Journal website. I can think of two reasons for this, either Highland Titles have threatened legal action and the newspaper is reluctant to get involved in a costly legal battle even if they win the case. Or Highland Titles have contacted the Press And Journal and related some cock and bull story about the character of Mr MacDonald the administrator of the Facebook page and it has been withdrawn "just in case". Such is the style and nasty nature of Highland Titles, I do hope that the Press And Journal will publish an explanation of this, though I seriously doubt that will ever happen.

Not that it really matters, I have a copy of the text of the article and will put up a scanned copy of the physical newspaper when I get a minute.

Meanwhile here are the important quotations from the article, this is not the full article.

"Press And Journal 10 September 2014

A Scottish clan has accused a company of “trading upon the misery and carnage” of an infamous massacre by selling plots of land that give the impression of being in Glencoe.

Clan Donald Worldwide (CDWw) has warned its members to have nothing to do with the company, Highland Titles. And it now states in its membership rules that anyone who fails to heed this advice will be excluded.

The clan points out that the plots being offered for sale – which range from £29.99 for 1sq ft to £499.99 for 1,000sq ft – are not even in Glencoe.

Chas Mac Donald, of CDWw, has stated to members: “Their operation is not based in Glencoe. It is a good distance away, in Duror and Appin. They are trading upon the misery and carnage that was the Massacre of Glencoe.

He says they are taking advantage of “innocent and unsuspecting people, who just want to celebrate their heritage”.

Mr Mac Donald declared that association with Highland Titles – Glencoe Estates, in any of its guises, was incompatible with membership of CDWw.

He wrote: “Anybody who is in the Clan Donald Worldwide group and who is found to have an active ‘like’ on the Glencoe Highland Titles Facebook page, or who shares their pictures, in the group or elsewhere, will be reminded of this document and asked to read it. If they have not seen fit to discontinue their support for this odious organisation, they will be removed from the group. ""