This page lists long-distance footpaths in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Scottish Natural Heritage have defined such paths as meaning a route that is at least long and primarily off-road, or on quieter roads and tracks. This definition is consistent with that of the British Long Distance Walkers Association.

Classification

Under

Scots law Scots law () is the legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. Together with English law and Northern Ireland l ...

the public has a right to responsible access to most land in Scotland, in accordance with the

Scottish Outdoor Access Code The Scottish Outdoor Access Code provides detailed guidance on the exercise of the ancient tradition of universal access to land in Scotland, which was formally codified by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. Under Scots law everyone has the ri ...

, and access rights for new routes do not generally require to be negotiated. Many named walks have therefore been developed by local authorities, tourist organisations and guidebook authors. There is thus no single register or list of such paths, however some classifications have been developed by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH): *

Scotland's Great Trails Scotland's Great Trails are long-distance "people-powered" trails in Scotland, analogous to the National Trails of England and Wales or the Grande Randonnée paths of France. The designated routes are primarily intended for walkers, but may have se ...

: these are routes judged as meeting standards defined by Scottish Natural Heritage. There are 29 such routes, offering over of trails in total. Each of the routes is clearly waymarked with a dedicated symbol, and run largely off-road. They range in length from , and are intended to be tackled over several days, either as a combination of day trips or as an end-to-end expedition. They are primarily intended for walkers, but may have sections suitable for cyclists and horse-riders. One of the trails, the Great Glen Canoe Trail, is designed for

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

ists and

kayak A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word ''qajaq'' (). The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each se ...

ers. *Heritage paths are routes that have historically been used for a specific purpose, such as

Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...

s, drove roads,

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

routes and miners’ paths. *Themed routes are routes based on a specific topic, such as the social history or literary associations of the area through which the route passes. *Virtual routes are routes which have do not have any official recognition or waymarking, but which have been promoted via media outlets such as websites, guidebooks or television programmes. A subcategory of these routes are "epic routes", defined as being routes that provide challenging travel over often rough ground in more remote ‘wild country’, being suitable for more experienced walkers with good navigation skills. These routes are not waymarked, so as to protect the ‘wild country’ qualities and to retain the element of challenge. *Finally, the of the Pennine Way terminating at

Kirk Yetholm Kirk Yetholm ('kirk yet-ham') is a village in the Scottish Borders region of Scotland, southeast of Kelso and less than west of the border. The first mention is of its church in the 13th century. Its sister town is Town Yetholm which lies ...

are in

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...

, but are designated as one of the National Trails of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

.National Trails
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List of Trails

References

{{reflist

Classification

List of Trails

References

See also