/r/OutdoorScotland guide to planning a trip away.

/r/OutdoorScotland Guide to getting out of town.

• Choosing where to go:

Here is a map of the National Scenic Areas of Scotland. Other places are nice too.

Here is a link to Geograph.org. This site has photos of nearly every inch of the land laid over the OS map. You have to zoom in twice on the red map and then click "Draggable OS". Perfect for finding hidden, remote camping spots and seeing what the access and area is like.

Here is WheresThePath which features a split screen with Googlemaps on one side and OS on the other, as well as 1930s maps and others. Zoomable and draggable. The license on the OS maps has a daily limit. Very handy for advance navigation and printing your own maps and altitude graphs.

• How to get there:

Buses travel between Scotlands main towns (Esp. Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness, Perth, Oban and Skye) They are generally frequent and relatively cheap. You cannot take bikes.

Trains allow access to a large part of the country. Bikes need to be booked on when you purchase. Prices can be cheaper when bought in advance. With 4 people for a weekend it could be cheaper to hire a car.

Ferries do exist, and provide for pedestrians, cars and bikes to all the main Islands. Island hopping 8 or 15 day passes can bring the price down.

Royal Mail Postbuses have a limited number of routes (8 in Scotland) but can be hailed anywhere on the road, of note are the Western Isles services.

StageCoachBuses have many routes around the highlands.

• What to do:

Multiday walks

Short walks and hills

Mountaineering

Climbing

Sea Kayaking

Mountain Biking

Trip Advisor - 1,845 Activities

• Forecasts:

BBC Weather

Metcheck

Mountain Forecast

Traffic Webcams

Surf Forecast

Ski Forecast

Avalanche Risk

Midge Forecast

Glenshee Ski Webcam

Buachaille Webcam

• Useful Websites:

Summit Panoramas, digitally rendered views of all the hills that can be seen from the peaks. In theory.

2 night wild camping gear list

Your Access Rights and Responsibilities, know before you go.

• Survival

Most streams and rivers in Scotland are clean and delicious off the beaten track but do check for dead things or houses or other campers upstream.

It is most common to use a gas burner to heat your meals as much of Scotland lacks trees and fires in wooded areas are not allowed per the SOAC. This does not apply on beaches.

Please feel free to add any tips and hints in the comments below or as a post on r/OutdoorScotland and I will add the best into this post.