Hopetoun House Footpath Repair Project, South Queensferry, Edinburgh
The site
Hopetoun House is owned and managed by an independent, charitable trust created in 1974 by the current Marquess and his father in order to preserve the House with its historic contents and surrounding landscape for the enjoyment and education of the public for all time. While it is the house that is the most recognisable ‘face’ of the estate, the grounds offer a great deal to the public – both local people and visitors from elsewhere. Hopetoun has over 150 acres of land, which includes grazing land, woodland, a deer park and a number of miles of seashore. As such, the estate has a great deal of biodiversity and environmental value, and appropriate management of this asset for the benefit of current and future generations takes a great deal of input.
The project
There are a number of public footpaths which run through the 150 acres at Hopetoun House. One section of footpath requires upgrading as erosion mostly as a result of rainfall is causing the path to wash away. This project would aim to upgrade this section of footpath, and would involve the following tasks:
Put wooden edging along the edge of the path to prevent material from the path being washed away by rainfall.
Spread bark on sections of the path to protect exposed tree roots from walker’s feet.
Cutting back of low and overhanging branches to make the path easier to walk along.
As part of the project, Hopetoun House would like to offer a free tour of the house as a token of its appreciation for the work carried out by the group.
