Core Path Report for C044 North Beach Walk, Iona
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Core Path Report for C044
North Beach Walk, Iona
1. Proposed Core Path
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2. Summary of Representations Received
Representation Respondent Organisation/ Objection Respondents Respondent Objection
Name Group Summery proposed Ref No. withdrawn
action
Objection Carol and Privacy & Delete P006 &
Iain Dougall Security / P047
Livestock /
Farming
Operations /
Wildlife &
Conservation /
Irresponsible
Access /
Maintenance /
Core Path Not
Needed/
Health &
Safety/ Core
Path Criteria
Not Met
Objection Iona Iona Maintenance Delete P182
Community Community
Council Council
(John (John
MacLean) MacLean)
Support Tony P111
Charlesworth
Comment Janetta P084
Tindal
3. History of Access
i. Right of Way Status: None
ii. Recorded Access Issues:2 Resolved
Issue Code: MCT 006 & MCT 10
Problem: The issues included inappropriate signage at the northern end of the
route, people being told they cannot camp or take bikes into the northern section of the
route. This was resolved following a visit by members of the Access Forum and the
provision of a sign highlighting responsible behaviour at the boundary with the public road.
There was also an issue where Sea Kayakers who had camped on the beach at Ardionra
and were made to leave late in the evening at potential risk to their safety. A complaint was
made to the police following this incident.
4. Site Visit
Start of the path at the harbour Path along the front towards the Argyll Hotel
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Path past the Argyll Hotel Narrow path to the north of the hotel
Narrow Path continues Path across open area behind housing
Path continuing along the road beside the Path past the Abbey the major tourist
St Columba Hotel destination on the island
Continuing along the road past the Junction with a path to the summit of Dun
Memorial Cross I the highest point on the island
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Approaching Ardionra Cycle rack opposite the entrance to
Ardionra (Lagandorain croft and hostel
behind)
Entrance to Ardionra from public road - Sign promoting responsible access at the
path passes to the left of the picture. gate onto Ardionra Croft
View of the beaches at the north end of
Iona from which a number of islands can
be seen.
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On the day of the site visit high winds made it impossible to take pictures without camera shake
– however as can be seen from the ariel photography the path crosses open machair. The croft
Ardionra can be seen at the bottom centre of the image above.
5. Alternative Route/s
Amendment to the Path at Baile Mor – having visited the island and walked the path I think
that it would be reasonable to adjust the route of the Proposed Core Path in the area around
the village. The first couple of hundred meters of the route runs along the front past the Argyll
Hotel and along a narrow path between the houses. This seems to be a very narrow path
which will impact on the privacy of the residents in this area and it would make more sense to
designate the public road which is the route most visitors follow in any case. See the pictures
and plan below showing the proposed amendment to the Core Path.
Alternative route along the road past the Continuing along the same route
ruined priory
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Routes meet along this section of road
Proposed amendment to the route of the Core Path
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6. Consultation with Objectors & Other Interested Parties
The crofter and his wife who work the croft at the northern section of this path have complained
about the high numbers of visitors they receive over their croft land. They have had sheep and
poultry killed by dogs; fear erosion of the land as a result of the number of people; disturbance
to wildlife and increased pressure on their ability to work the land efficiently. They also have
concerns regarding the privacy and security of their house.
The Community Council’s objection is based on the future maintenance of the path and the
obligations that this may place on the landowner/tenant. There is also the feeling that access is
already managed sufficiently on the island and therefore there is no need for the Core Path
designation
7. Access Officer’s Initial Comments
This is a popular path to an iconic beach at the north of Iona which has been painted and
photographed many times over many years. The majority of the path follows the single track
public road. The northern section of the track is trod earth/sand and crosses over farm land
where stock are kept. A counter installed along the section of double fenced path, by the
National Trust for Scotland, has recorded up to 30,000 people per annum using the path.
People use this path in such high numbers because the majority of visitors only visit the island
for a few hours. They identify the Abbey as an attraction they want to visit from the ferry and
having visited this will tend to follow the road north as they explore the island. The walking is
easy and level, on reaching the gate at Ardionra it is obvious that a short walk across the close
cropped grass of the croft will give access to the beaches on the north coast and some
spectacular sea views.
The crofter has in the past had incidents involving irresponsible
public access including dog worrying which has resulted in hens
being killed and sheep being injured. The installation of the
double fenced path close to the croft and farm yard along with
the provision of signage (see right) and a cycle rack at the gate
seem to have helped to reduce these problems. The crofter
who has recently retired from a job on the island has also
installed additional internal fencing within the croft which may
also be helping to manage the public and reduced the tendency
of the livestock to move away from the areas with the most
visitors. The National Trust for Scotland now employs a Ranger
for the Ross of Mull and Iona who is available to monitor visitors
and assist if required.
If the path is designated as a Core Path it will not be improved
significantly, so there would be no intention to provide a
surfaced path across the farm land or formalise it beyond a
couple of signposts along the road. There is no need to provide
any additional facilities; however designation might help the land
manager or the community to access funding to deal with issues
such as soil erosion. The Land Reform Scotland Act 2003
required the Access Authority to designate a network of Core
Paths and to maintain the plan but not to maintain the paths.
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Sufficiency – The Council has a legal duty to designate a sufficient network of for residents
and visitors to the area. Whether an individual chooses to use it or not is a personal decision.
The Core Path Network is intended to help promote access to paths that the public can use
confident that they have a right of access. It also allows land managers to manage their land
around public access knowing that the majority of people will follow to the paths. The
designation also ensures that paths are protected when development happens, although this is
not likely to be an issue on Iona.
Human Rights - There has not been a challenge to the Land Reform Scotland Act 2003 under
article 8 Article of the European Court of Human Rights. Until such time that there is a
successful challenge it can only be assumed that the public’s right of responsible access and
the designation of Core Paths is legal.
Former Dump- During the site visit I did not identify any glass or metal in the area around the
path. If there is any continuing problem with the former dump this is the responsibility of the
land owner and should have been resolved before the site was handed back by the Council or
purchased from the NTS.
5th Path – The Council is only proposing one Core Path across this croft and is not aware of
any other paths.
Policy - The Core Path network primarily records paths that are popular with the public whether
residents or visitors.
Numbers of Visitors – the Council does not anticipate a significant increase in the numbers of
people using any Core Path. Iona already attracts c125,000 visitors per annum. The intention
of designating a Core Path Network on Iona is to spread the impact of the numbers of visitors
across the island rather than focussing so many visitors on one croft.
Privacy
Ardionra- The Proposed Core Path will not pass any
closer to the croft house at Ardionra than the public road
approximately 50 metres from the house and garden
area. (see picture to right)
Calva – This is a house offering Bed and Breakfast located alongside the single track public
road close to the Memorial Cross pictured earlier in the report. The public have a legal right of
access along this adopted road which we accept is the main access to this and several other
houses for pedestrians and motorists.
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Comments from the Community Council
The designation of Core Paths is simply that a designation, there is no intention to provide
surfaced paths throughout the network. Any improvements would simply be intended to ensure
that the network is “fit for purpose”; generally paths will not change substantially from their
current state. Any improvements will be limited in rural areas to providing a small number of
direction signs and way-marking the route across grazing land. Other than this ensuring the
surface is drained so that the path does not become wider and wider as the surface is damaged
and is free of any barrier that might be the sole reason less able users are unable to use the
path. The Council will also be in a better position to provide support to encourage the public to
act in a responsible manner – providing signs such as that displayed at Ardionra (See Page 6).
Whilst there is no desire to erect a great many signs of this type; providing this kind of
information to visitors before they visit or when they arrive will help to reduce irresponsible
behaviour amongst visitors. The Council has already recognised that cycling on the machair
should be discouraged and helped to provide a Cycle rack at Ardionra to encourage cyclists to
leave their bikes at the road end.
The publication of the Core Path network for Iona on Ordinance Survey maps and elsewhere
will help to spread the impact of visitors across the island. I do not agree that the current
management of visitors to the island has avoided “hotspots”. Ardionra has an exceptionally
high number of visitors and I think that much more needs to be done to dissipate them. I
believe that a Visitor Management Plan for the island could go some way towards this goal and
that the Community are in a better position to take the lead on this than the various outside
bodies including the Council. A good path network could encourage people to stay for more
than a few hours to truly explore the island and the neighbouring Ross of Mull. This could have
a significant impact in the economic benefits of tourism on the island.
The Core Paths Plan is not a project with a limited life span. Every Council in Scotland is
required to produce a Core Paths Plan for its area which will have to be reviewed at regular
intervals to ensure it remains current. The Core Path Network has to be sufficient for the needs
of local residents and visitors to the area. It is one of the responsibilities of the Argyll & Bute
Access Forum to advise the Council on the sufficiency of the Core Path Network.
Argyll & Bute Council is currently proposing to establish a Countryside Trust to provide
technical support to communities and assistance with accessing funding and delivering projects
which support tourism promotion and access as well as the conservation of nature and historic
buildings. If this body is established and able to raise sufficient funds through a variety of
mechanisms it would support communities across Argyll to maintain good public access
networks across the area.
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Summary
Having this path designated as a core path should help the community or the land owner to
access funding to improve the path infrastructure on the path and help to alleviate some of the
issues associated with such exceptionally high usage. If the path is not designating this is
unlikely to reduce the number of people using it and may make it difficult to access funding for
the path in the future.
The Council along with the NTS and SNH recognises that the high numbers of visitors to Iona is
causing a problem because there is little provision for managing their numbers and the
detrimental effects that result. A report to the Argyll & Bute Access Forum suggested that
assistance should be given to the community to develop a Visitor Management Plan for the
island however insufficient resources mean that there has been little progress to date. A
meeting was held with a number of agencies including Historic Scotland, Scottish Natural
Heritage and the Council however there has been no subsequent action. The hope would be
that in time a network of paths promoted at the ferry landing, on maps and elsewhere which
would help to spread the visitors more equally across the island reducing the impact on anyone
croft.
I am recommending that this Core Path C044 continues to be proposed with the small
amendment in the village of Baile Mor. This is because it is one of the most popular paths in
Argyll & Bute and if it is not designated this may make it more difficult to access funding to
resolve any issues that arise as a result of the high level of use.
8. Advice received from the Access Forum
9. Access Officer’s Final Recommendations
Page 10 of 1910. Appendices
Appendix I. Copies of the representations received during the formal consultation
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Appendix II. Copies of relevant correspondence
Appendix III. Copies of responses additional consultations
Page 18 of 19Appendix IV. Additional supporting documents
A route incorporating this path can be found at http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/mull/iona-
north.shtml;
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