Lead guide, Scottish Highlands

Ailsa MacLeod

“There is no bad weather in Scotland, only a tent pitched in the wrong place.”

Ailsa teaches wild camping and navigation across the Highlands and has a story for every glen. She trained as a mountain leader after ten years as a geography teacher, and it shows: nobody leaves her trips without knowing how a corrie was made.

Lives in: Fort William
Guiding since: 2015
Speaks: English, Scottish Gaelic
Trips: 2

Trips with Ailsa

Why I guide

I taught geography for ten years and spent every holiday in the hills. One summer I realised I was happier explaining a glacier valley while standing in one than drawing it on a whiteboard, so I trained as a mountain leader.

Wild camping changed my life. A night alone by a loch teaches you more about yourself than any classroom, and I love watching nervous first-timers become confident campers in a weekend.

How I guide

I teach rather than lead. By day two you hold the map, choose the pitch and light the stove, and I step back. I want you to leave able to go out on your own.