Managing Routes and Trails - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 244

Case Study: Stakeholder Management and Long-Distance
Walking Routes in Scotland ( Continued )
these long-distance walking paths traverse many local authority regions
and landscapes under different owners and stakeholders. In some situa-
tions they traverse areas under the jurisdiction of national park
authorities.
As Chapter 6 emphasized, this mix of ownership and responsibility
requires adaptive management where all stakeholders' views are repre-
sented. Scotland, compared to other countries, has been late in designat-
ing areas for long-distance trails. The first trail was the West Highland
Way in 1980, followed by the Southern Upland Way, the Speyside Way,
the Great Glen Way, Rob Roy Way and the Fife Coastal Path (Morrow,
2005). The West Highland Way remains the most popular trail, leading
hikers from the edge of Glasgow to Fort William at the foot of Ben Nevis
(Walkinghighlands, 2014). Some new trails, such as the Rob Roy Way,
offer ramblers a sense of Scottish history, leading through the glens, along
rivers and burns, and past mountains and lochs. The Rob Roy Way has
become popular in recent years, especially since being recognized as one
of Scotland's Great Trails in 2012 (Scotland's Great Trails, 2013). This
particular path traverses landscapes traveled often by Rob Roy MacGregor,
Scotland's most notorious outlaw, in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Given the diversity of landscapes and ownership of land associated
with Scottish long-distance walking routes, stakeholder theory holds
considerable explanatory power and policy guidance for effective heri-
tage management, in this case as regards linear cultural heritage spaces.
According to Morrow (2005), there are three dominant stakeholders of
long-distance routes in Scotland: first, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH),
a non-departmental government body funded by the Scottish govern-
ment; second, any local authority that routes traverse; and third, where
applicable, Scottish National Park authorities. The primary stakeholder,
SNH, has a mandate to promote, care for, and improve Scottish natural
heritage in a sustainable manner, ensuring that all users have an aware-
ness and understanding of the country's landscapes and that they enjoy
them responsibly (Scottish Natural Heritage, 2013). Local authorities
look favorably at long-distance routes across Scotland for their economic
potential from recreation and tourism. Bryden et al. (2010) noted that
the Fife Coastal Path has an annual net expenditure between £24
(low end) and £29 million (high end) and supports between 800 and 900
full-time jobs in Fife. The two Scottish National Park authorities, as an
additional stakeholder, are responsible not only for protecting landscapes
but also for making use of them in sustainable and responsible ways, as