Kingussie Community Development Company (KCDC) Path Group won the accolade of Community Path Group of the Year at our 2022 Volunteer Awards.
The KCDC Path Group is a large group of volunteers dedicated to carrying out maintenance on the network of upland paths in and around Kingussie, and works to improve existing paths, while also creating new routes.
Volunteers also maintain signage and clear encroaching vegetation.
Since the summer of 2020, the KCDC Path Group has tackled projects at 12 locations around Kingussie.
This included spending over 500 hours transforming what was once a rocky and muddy 120-meter section leading to the 487 meter hill, Creag Bheag, which overlooks the town.
Sandy Maxwell, Director of KCDC said:
It’s fantastic that the work of our volunteers is being recognised.
Every week our volunteers come out in force regardless of the weather to make a positive impact on our local path routes which helps to promote active travel amongst the community.
The Kingussie area is a popular tourism destination so it is important to make sure our local assets can be enjoyed in a safe and accessible way.
There are still so many ambitions the group has for the future and for some of our existing projects we have a long way to go. We’re always looking for new members and would encourage anyone interested to come along and get involved in making a positive difference.
Kevin Lafferty, our Chief Executive Officer said: “Thanks to all of the Kingussie Path Group for their hard work and dedication to improving the local community.
“The work carried out by volunteers is directly improving the nation’s physical, mental and social health, reducing social isolation and loneliness and helping people make more environmentally friendly lifestyle choices."