Scotland Outdoors

BBC Radio Scotland

4.8 (240)
NATURE
UPDATED BIWEEKLY

A topical guide to life in the Scottish outdoors.

3H AGO

Crovie - A Village on the Edge

Rachel Stewart talks to poet Anne Wiseman about Crovie's past and its fragile future.

24 min
4D AGO

A Cairngorms Soundscape, Harvesting Sap and Cycling from Boring to Dull

Cyclist Mark Wedgwood has completed some enormous challenges, including a journey from America to Scotland. Rachel meets him in Aberdeenshire to find out more about his adventures. People across the UK are being invited to celebrate the unsung heroes in their communities as the BBC launches the 2026 Make a Difference Awards. Last year, New Start Highland Garden in Inverness won the BBC Radio Scotland Green award. Mark visits the garden with James Dunbar and Marion Cordiner. New research from Stirling University suggests that walkers are increasing the popularity of Park Run events. Rachel takes a wander with parkwalkers Lynne Zabek and Andrew Aird and Dr Andre Gilburn who explains more about his research. In this week’s podcast excerpt, Mark’s in Glasgow to chat to cyclist and content creator Somhairle Johnston about his new BBC Alba series 'Somhairle Spins'. Phil Sime and Morven Livingstone join survival instructor Zeki Basan on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park to observe the delicate process of harvesting birch sap. Trees for Life Heritage and Gaelic Development Officer Eilidh Sykes joins Mark and Rachel to talk about the links between the Gaelic language and the landscape. A new children’s book, ‘Heather Munro's Race Against the Flames’, aims to raise wildfire safety awareness. Mark meets author and Director of The Heather Trust, Katrina Candy. Rachel meets Rosie Beetschen of Cairngorms Connect who has created a soundscape of her explorations of the Cairngorms landscape. One of the UK’s most experienced mountain rescue experts, David “Heavy” Whalley, has been remembered in a new book charting his life. Mark visits Strathblane to meet Bob Sharp who helped compile Heavy’s story in ‘A Heavy Affair with the Mountains’.

1h 24m
FEB 25

Bikepacking with Somhairle Johnston

Mark Stephen meets cyclist and content creator Somhairle Johnston to discuss his new series on BBC Alba 'Somhairle Spins' in which he undertakes five different bikepacking adventures in Scotland.

19 min
FEB 21

Tawny Owls, Pearl Mussels and Jelly Ears

The iconic ash tree on Glasgow’s Argyle street won UK Tree of the Year last year and is now nominated for European Tree of the Year. Mark looks up at the giant ash with arborist David Treanor and discovers why the 170-year-old tree is so cherished. Fresh efforts are underway to save critically endangered fresh water pearl mussels in the Cairngorms National Park. Rachel catches up with Freshwater Restoration Manager Dr Sally Mackenzie on the River Spey to discuss the fascinating life cycle of the species and the projects aiming to save it. New research suggests that tawny owls, which normally rely on sound to hunt, are adapting to noisy urban roadsides by hunting in areas lit by streetlights. Mark meets Glasgow University PhD Researcher Giuseppe Orlando in Milngavie to find out how he studied the bird’s nocturnal movements. In this week’s midweek podcast excerpt, Rachel takes a wander in the Kinrara Estate near Aviemore with storyteller Sarah Hobbs to discover how women have shaped the Cairngorms. A Brush with Fungi is a compilation of new watercolours produced by artist David Mitchell. Mark joins David in Kirriemuir to explore the process behind painting the intricate detail of hundreds of species of fungi. Glasgow Film Festival will host the Scottish premiere of nature documentary, Super Nature, directed by Ed Sayers. The film was shot collaboratively across 25 different countries using Super 8 cameras, including footage from Richard Davies who filmed Atlantic Salmon in Scotland. Rachel and Mark are joined by Director Ed Sayers. Fyrish Hill, close to Alness in the Highlands, entered the wider public consciousness recently when it featured in the Traitors. Morven Livingstone meets Fiona Stephenson who was inspired to write a poem about Fyrish.

1h 23m
FEB 18

Women of the Cairngorms

Rachel Stewart meets storyteller Sarah Hobbs to hear how women have shaped the landscape.

25 min
FEB 14

Here Comes the Sun, Europe's First Feminist Bird Club and Eating Jellyfish

Mark Stephen and Rachel Stewart with stories from the great outdoors

1h 23m
FEB 11

Murmurs of Spring

Mark Stephen visits the Murmurs of Spring art exhibition at the Scottish Ornithologists Club in East Lothian

29 min
FEB 7

Swift Bricks, Palm Houses and Potholes

The swift population has seen a significant decline in recent years. Now, Scotland has become the first country in the UK to introduce a legal requirement to install swift bricks in all new buildings. Rachel meets Cally Smith of North East Scotland Swifts to discover how the bricks will help to protect the birds. The historic Palm Houses at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh are newly restored and the team are beginning to move the plant specimens inside, starting with the largest. Mark meets Glasshouse Manager Fiona Inches to find out what it takes to move hundreds of specimens. Rachel is at the Herpetofauna Workers Meeting in Glasgow to find out about the work being done to help our reptiles and amphibians. She chats to volunteer Cally Ullman-Smith and his mum Janet of Saving Scotland’s Amphibians and Reptiles. Recent stormy weather is causing puffins and other seabirds to struggle and many are being washed up on Scotland’s coastlines. Rachel and Mark are joined by Paul Reynolds of New Arc Wildlife Rescue, Aberdeenshire, to discuss the pressures seabirds face. In this week’s podcast excerpt, Mark meets master wood carver David Robinson at his studio in East Lothian to learn more about how his work is inspired by nature. Back at the Herpetofauna Workers Meeting, Rachel speaks to ecologist and survey volunteer Stephen Corcoran whose work is related to adders and restoring peatland. Orkney based artist Anna Charlotta Gardiner is undertaking a month long residency in Aberdeen as part of the Royal Scottish Academy’s 200th anniversary. Mark meets Anna near Aberdeen harbour to explore how her work takes inspiration from the city’s maritime heritage. Mark takes a wander in Aberdeenshire to check out potholes exacerbated by stormy weather.

1h 22m

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Helen Needham

Host
Mark Stephen

Host
David Robinson

Guest
Will Cresswell

Guest

4.8

out of 5

240 Ratings

Fun and makes you think

Feb 2

MarkGoFast

I enjoy listening to topics that are informative yet the hosts have this calming jovial attitude that makes a nice listen in the morning. Plus, with myself being from the Arizona, having episodes that talked about my own backyard in Scotland, I was hooked.
Love the show

10/06/2025

Birddog29!

I listen on Saturdays with my wife. We listened religiously each week while traveling to mum to take her out for weekly breakfast. Each article is well times and I have only guessed the Mystery Sound correctly once! Cheers. Keep it up
Is a river alive?

08/23/2025

a speck of stardust

Mark, please read Macfarlane’s brilliant book so you can understand why the answer to that question is “yes!” Your commentary revealed you’d not read it. The first few pages will convince you.
The best place - specific podcast

07/01/2024

archeoleg

It’s hard to explain the magic involved in the podcast…dense, rich, and often hilarious. If either of the two words in the title hold any appeal for you, just listen.