The transformative impact of major giving

Major gifts are truly transformative, enabling the John Muir Trust to achieve significant conservation milestones and make long-term investments in the protection and restoration of wild places. Philanthropic support has helped us acquire and safeguard some of the UK's most precious landscapes and, more recently, fund vital restoration work across the land in our care, from comprehensive deer management programmes to large-scale native woodland regeneration.

This generosity strengthens every aspect of our mission: restoring and protecting wild landscapes through responsible land stewardship; securing their future through policy and advocacy; and inspiring people to experience, understand and care for these extraordinary places.

Knoydart and Quinag

The remote Knoydart Peninsula in the Scottish Highlands is home to Lì and Coire Dhorrcail, often described as one of Britain's last true wilderness areas. Accessible only by boat or by long journeys over mountain passes, this rugged landscape embodies the sense of remoteness and wildness that the John Muir Trust was founded to protect.

In 1983, the Trust was established in response to proposals by the Ministry of Defence to purchase part of Knoydart as a military training area. Four years later, in 1987, the Trust acquired Lì and Coire Dhorrcail, ensuring the long-term protection of this remarkable place.

Traditionally known as part of the "Rough Bounds" because of its challenging terrain, the area lies within the Knoydart National Scenic Area. For centuries, its hillsides and glens were cloaked in temperate rainforest, a globally rare habitat now found only on the oceanic fringes of Britain and Ireland.

Today, these habitats support a rich diversity of life. Ancient woodlands draped in lichens, mosses and liverworts provide refuge for pine martens, bats and woodland birds, while the surrounding coast and uplands are home to otters, seals, water voles, buzzards, and both golden and white-tailed eagles.

Thanks to funding from major donors, the Trust has undertaken an intensive three-year deer management programme across Lì and Coire Dhorrcail. By reducing browsing pressure, natural regeneration is beginning to take hold, allowing native trees and woodland habitats to recover. These early signs of renewal are helping to restore ecological processes that have been absent for generations and creating the conditions for a thriving temperate rainforest to return.

Glenlude

When the Trust purchased Glenlude just over twenty years ago, it was a former sheep farm and conifer plantation. Through careful, long-term stewardship, it has been transformed into a thriving haven for nature and people. Open glades and expanding native woodland now provide valuable wildlife habitat, while local school groups and volunteers travel from near and far to help care for this secluded corner of the Scottish Borders.

Change on this scale is only possible through the commitment of people who share our vision for the future. Nick and his late wife, Clare, were longstanding Trust members and volunteers whose love of the outdoors and fell running inspired a lifelong commitment to conservation. Through volunteering on native woodland restoration projects, including at Glenlude and on Helvellyn in the Lake District, they discovered not only practical conservation skills but also a strong sense of community and connection to nature.

Following Clare's passing, Nick chose to honour her memory with a major gift to the Trust. Inspired by their experiences at Glenlude, his support has helped fund volunteer work parties, the materials and equipment needed for restoration, and practical conservation activities delivered with the support of local contractors and the Trust's site team.

As a result of this generosity, hundreds of native trees have been planted, new infrastructure has been installed, and countless volunteers, school groups and visitors have developed new skills while deepening their connection to this recovering landscape. As a member of the Corbett Club, Nick later visited Glenlude to meet the team and see firsthand the lasting impact of his gift, witnessing how Clare's legacy continues to shape the future of this special place.

“I enjoyed the trip to Glenlude and have taken away an optimism about the work there. What the Trust’s staff are achieving, with help from the volunteers, is very inspiring.”