Volunteers who give up their time to maintain the north and north-east’s many rural bothies have also been honoured with the UK’s top charity award.
The Mountain Bothies Association (MBA) was founded in 1965 to maintain remote buildings for which the owner has little or no use but which provide much-needed shelter to walkers, fishermen and others in times of need.
The association maintains almost 50 of the buildings, which include unused farm houses and fishing huts, across the north and north-east.
It is one of 187 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups across the UK to receive the Queen’s Award this year.
The honour will be presented to Simon Birch, MBA chairman, by Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of the county and city of Bristol later in the summer.
Mr Birch said: “We are very proud to have received this award.
“It recognises the huge efforts that have been made by many, many volunteers over the half century that the MBA has been in existence. These volunteers have restored, and continue to maintain as open shelters, buildings that are greatly valued by those who explore the remoter parts of the country on foot or by bike.
“Bothies have a long tradition within the outdoor community and indeed can be a lifesaver if the weather deteriorates unexpectedly or a hill walking route turns out to be more arduous than expected.”