Ultra race criticised for marking mountain route on Arran

Organisers of one of the world's most expensive ultramarathons have been criticised for marking out a route on a well-known Scottish mountain.

Highland Kings Ultra, a race covering 120 miles (193km) on the west coast of Scotland, costs more than £15,000 per person to enter.

A stage was held on Arran and yellow markers were left on rocks on Goatfell, the isle's highest peak.

Organisers said they had used a high quality biodegradable chalk.

They added that it had always been planned for the race team to return to the course on Friday morning - the day after the race - to wash down all surfaces.

Highland Kings involves trail running on Scotland's west coast with transfers by speedboats to luxury accommodation at the end of each day.

Its organisers describe it as a luxury wilderness experience.

Lucy Wallace, a mountain leader and wildlife guide on Arran, has raised concerns about the marking of the route on Goatfell.

She said: "Last night, while I was having a brilliant time on Goatfell with my friends, we saw that the mountain had been daubed in hundreds of these sprayed-on yellow waymarks."

Ms Wallace said she had worries about the chalk's potential environmental impact on the area, which is designated a site of special scientific interest.

Goatfell is also part of land managed by the National Trust for Scotland.

The trust said it had been made aware chalk had been applied to some rocks on the mountain.

It said the race was organised by an external company and that it had no authority or control over the use of open landscapes for such events.

A spokesperson added: "We had previously made it clear to the organisers that we expect all events on trust land to be operated on a 'leave no trace' basis.

"We have been in touch with them again today to remind them of this and expect that they will take steps to remove the markings and ensure no damage to flora and fauna."

Public body NatureScot, which looks after sites of scientific interest, said it would encourage any event organiser to leave no trace afterwards.

A spokesperson added: "If anyone has any concerns about damage to an SSSI, they should contact Police Scotland."

A spokesman for the race said its team was "acutely conscious of the environmental impact that events such as Highland Kings have".

He said: "We did carry out industry research and went over and above to source material recommended for this type of event. The route markers were only used purely from a safety point of view for the athletes.

"Moving forward, we are always looking at best practice and working with the local community is of paramount importance to us, and so feedback such as this is extremely helpful."