Wild Land News no 62, Winter 2004/2005

A Celebration of Mountains Article

Irvine Butterfield reports on an exhibition in Blair Atholl last Autumn to raise the profile of the case for including highland Perthshire within the Cairngorms National Park.

Perthshire Alliance for the Real Cairngorms (PARC) was set up to promote the inclusion of the areas of Highland Perthshire as originally recommended by the SNH report on the provision of the Cairngorms National Park. The community of Blair Atholl is represented on the PARC committee and is being encouraged to promote Blair Atholl as one of the gateways to the park; the other being Spittal of Glenshee. The Munro Society, formed in 2002 to provide a forum for those who have completed the round, were encouraged to support PARC and the community through the provision of an exhibition of mountain photographs and paintings.

It was argued that there is a continuing need to keep the objectives of PARC before the general public, and that an exhibition such as this would be an encouragement to those most affected by the National Park in the area along the busiest approach by way of the A9 corridor near Blair Atholl. Atholl Estates were pleased to offer a venue, the Banvie Hall at Blair Castle, and through the good offices of a Munro Society member, Michael Urquhart, display stands were offered by B & S Graphics of Glasgow. Several contributors to Irvine Butterfield's books offered support through the loan of slides for photographic reproduction, with an international dimension added by the offer of the collection of the Dundee Mountain Film Festival, and framed panoramic photographs by Ian Evans. Alan Gordon provided calendars in panoramic format and well-known mountain artists Neil Barlow and Paul Craven added paintings, small desk calendars and greetings cards to provide a selection of merchandise for sale. This was a means of helping to defray costs. Society members also pitched in with loans of paintings, and offers of help to be on hand through the ten days of the exhibition. Support was also forthcoming from Sir Hugh T. Munro himself in shape of his effigy, courtesy of his creator Robin Campbell!

Thoughout the exhibition visitors to the castle expressed their approval with many suggesting that this was not only a pleasant means of supporting the objectives of PARC, but also a means of promoting the beauties of Scotland at large. Though late in the season, the organisers and the people of Blair Atholl were pleased to find that Sir Hugh's collection jar contained the sum of £122.30. This has gone to help the community to further progress a paper which they hope to submit to a committee of the Scottish Parliament, making the case for Blair Atholl's continuing claim to Cairngorm gateway status. This will also enhance the claims to be made for redrafting the park boundary to that originally envisaged, which are to be set out in a Private Members Bill supported by a cross-party alliance of MSPs. The Munro Society is to retain the mounted photographs used in this exhibition which, along with the images of the Dundee Mountain Film Festival, could be made available by arrangement for future events of this kind.