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On June 6th, I participated in a Junior Rangers bat survey night in Balmaha, we learned a lot about different bats and their nature and - perhaps after dressing up as one (image 1) - I discovered I was really interested in them. So, over the summer holidays, I borrowed a bat detector from the national park and conducted several bat surveys on different days, times, and seasons. The first evening we went out was late July when bats are very active mating and preparing for hibernation - they are one of only 3 fully hibernating animals in the UK (the others being dormice and hedgehogs). With the bat detector at around 45-50kHz, we walked around different paths near Kinlochard and down to the loch for just under an hour. I counted 35 bats although there is potential for double counting. For the next few outings, my results were very similar, though as I was gaining knowledge about the species, I began to be able to identify that most of the bats I was hearing were Soprano Pipistrelles, a common bat that when detected at 50Khz will have a short, sharp clicking sound that evolves into a wet slapping sound when the frequency is increased. In my time out, I also detected common pipistrelles and think I heard a Daubenton's bat down by the loch. I also participated in a bat detecting night at the David Marshall Lodge in Aberfoyle, however, it was very wet and we found no bats. As the summer ended and autumn began, I began to detect fewer bats as they went into hibernation until when I last went out, in mid-September, I only detected 8 bats (all soprano pips). I found that there were many factors affecting bat's activity, including temperature, time, weather and season, however, in general, Kinlochard has a thriving population of bats. Unlike when I went on holiday to Laggan in the Cairngorms and only detected 1 bat on a night with perfect conditions. Due to the nature of the activity, I only have one (very blurry) picture as evidence (image 2) but hope my new knowledge and results are sufficient otherwise.

Earlier this year, I became really interested in geocaching and over the summer holidays, found 50 caches all over Scotland. Geocaching is a fun and interesting way to explore new and familiar places, with over 3 million sites globally. The ones pictured are larger caches but they can be as small as a thumbnail with a tiny rolled-up log inside and I found ones of all different shapes and sizes over the last few months. I spent my birthday close to home, walking up to the Black Linn waterfall and finding the cache there (image 1) - which I had discovered before when I was little but never while actually knowing what it was! Inside I also found a trackable - a small toy that travels the world through geocaches, this one (Karma Dillo/Karmen) came from Los Angeles and had travelled all across North America and Europe before ending up near Kinlochard. Later in the holiday, I dropped her off near Aberfeldy to help her on her journey (image 2). I also found one at Juras Rock (image 3), which I found while on a walk from Kingsbarns to Crail (a section of the Fife Coastal Path) when on holiday in St Andrews. I also walked a few different sections of the Rob Roy way which has geocaches galore (image 4 is one example). Among the other places I found caches in the holidays were in the Cairngorms NP (where I found another trackable), around Lochan Spling in Aberfoyle and in the Peak District when I went with the National Park in October.

In July, I went to Inchmahome Priory with LLATT National Park Junior Rangers, which I've been a part of alongside the Youth Committee since they were started in September 2018. After arriving onto the island, we spent the morning learning about its history, in the priory and the grounds around it (images 1 & 2). Although I live in the area, I'd never visited before so it was really interesting to explore and learn so much about the islands past. After lunch in the sun, we got to work clearing the weeds around old graves near the church, including Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham and his wife (image 3)

On day three of MHS Junior Rangers, we were joined by Active Stirling to canoe on Loch Ard. After carrying the boats down to the edge (image 1) we paddled around the end of the loch for a bit to learn technique and then set out down the loch. Although I've lived in Kinlochard my whole life, I'd never canoed the narrows before so it was really interesting to see a new section of a familiar place and to see my village from a different perspective (image 2)

On my second day of MHS Junior Rangers, we travelled to the David Marshall Lodge in Aberfoyle to meet Emily from the Trossachs Water Vole Project and the Foresty Commission. Before we went out, she gave a really interesting presentation on the key signs to look for when doing a water vole survey. These included the star-shaped footprints and tic-tac sized poo, we also discussed some of the reasons why water voles became an endangered species - habitat loss, minx, etc. We then moved to Loch Ard Forest where we kitted up in waders (image 1) and walked into a burn to look for signs of water voles (image 2). Unfortunately, my group didn't find anything, and this could be partly due to the recent rain but other groups did have something to report, including poo and footprints.

My first day of McLaren HS Junior Rangers was on Ben A’an with Rosie Winch from the ‘Mountains and the People’ project, who aim to increase and maintain path quality on mountains around both of Scotland’s National Parks. On the way up, we discussed some of the ways in which they monitor which paths need more maintenance than others, one of these being a people counter (image 1), a wooden post fitted with lasers to detect walkers going up and down the path. By using this data, the Mountains and the People can then see which paths are most walked and will require more work. We also had time for some STEM in the outdoors (image 2), by using a klinometer to measure the gradient of the hill (which was around 14°). 2.5km and 545ft later, we reached the top at around 12pm and had lunch with a view (image 3). On the way back down, we learned more about what Rosie does with volunteers for the project and helped clear some cross drains and water bars. Drainage is incredibly important on mountainous paths because if water is not diverted as it runs down the hill, it seriously erodes the path and increases the maintenance needed. They quickly fill up and frequently need to be cleared, which is what we helped with (images 4 is a before and after

Great use for our glutt of tomatoes!!