Climbing the Walls at Gairloch

A fund-raising campaign in Gairloch has reached its target, paving the way for much improved facilities for climbers of all ages at Gairloch High School Leisure Facility.

The Community Climbing Group has raised £99,000 to upgrade the existing climbing wall at the school, which is widely used by the community.

The wall will be used to train children and adults of all ages, building skill and confidence in climbing at any level.  The project has been given the support of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland by inclusion of the new wall in their strategic plan for indoor climbing across Scotland.

The project started with a £25,000 donation followed by £6,000 from The Great Wilderness Challenge and the package has been completed thanks to recent awards from sportscotland of £47,000 and the Scottish Government and the European Community Highland LEADER 2007-2013 Programme of £20,500.

John Port, head teacher of the 180-pupil school said, “This is a wonderful development and we hope to make full use of the new wall as part of our encouragement of all pupils to develop fit and active lifestyles.” 

The Community Group behind the scheme also hope that the improved facility will encourage visitors to stay longer in the area.

sportscotland Chief Executive, Stewart Harris added; "We are delighted to support this project with £47,000 from the sportscotland lottery fund. The upgrades to the facility will benefit the local community, by giving them an exciting and challenging wall to develop their climbing skills.  It is also an excellent training facility for the Mountain Rescue and Coastguard, who provide an invaluable service in the area."