On 27th October 16 members of our team simulated an off-road deployment with the primary purpose of testing our new Sarstuff CAD ´Computer Assisted Dispatch´ system. Each Responder replied to a tasking sent via SMS and used a dedicated app to regularly receive details for the deployment and update their live status with our control team.

During the day we ran our basic off-road course. Whilst another group recce'd a new area to be used for future training exercises. Conditions were windy and chilly but we cracked on with our drills as planned and all went home feeling like they had picked up some new skills thanks to everyone who gave us their time on this day and a special thanks to the Landowner where without their generosity this day would not have been able to happen.

We are already running callouts for the NHS as we approach the Winter season. To support effectively we need more volunteers!! If you have a 4x4 we would love to have you on board. If not, please join our vital Controller team or help support our committee. See our FAQs Page for more information or contact us through facebook!

 Thanks to Helen Amos for giving up your Sunday to get some great photos of the group and their vehicles.

We are delighted to officially announce our new partnership with Vivisol UK. Vivisol UK provides the Home Oxygen Service to patients on behalf of NHS Scotland. Highland 4X4 Response volunteers will be assisting their technicians to ensure that patients across the Highlands who rely on oxygen continue to receive uninterrupted service during periods of poor weather or unforeseen incidents.

We are steadily growing our team and extending our reach and capabilities in the Highlands. At the end of July in Thurso we ran a training day for our new Responders in the area, it was a great day sharing experiences and practicing some off-road driving and Traction assistance skills.

Winter is coming (even if summer never arrived!) and the more Responders we have on our team the more we are able to successfully deploy and assist our community and partners. Our members only need give the time they have, there is no requirement to leave work or an important social event to attend a callout. If you think you can help, even if it is just a few times a year please contact us for more information.

​Have a read through our FAQ page if you have a moment.

A big thankyou to Robertson’s Training for supporting us and providing access to his dedicated LANTRA training ground.

Highland 4x4 Response are actively recruiting in the Caithness area so that we can effectively support our partners such as NHS Highland during poor weather scenarios.

We are hosting an OPEN DAY on Sunday July 28th. location: W3W plastic.crank.braked. Just outside of Thurso.

Feel free to attend at any point during the day and meet some of the team. There will be an off-road course that you can test your vehicle on if you wish.
We are also running an off-road driving training day for our members. Should you join the group before this date or wish to on the day then please arrive promptly at 9:30 AM, bring lunch and suitable clothes for the weather. This thoroughly enjoyable course covers the basics for using you 4x4 off road or in low traction environments and will fast track you to becoming an operational member of the group. There is no cost.

Any queries?

Then we would love to hear from you, please email James: vicechair@highland4x4response.com or contact us on facebook.

We are also at the Caithness Show the weekend before so please come and say hello.

For more information about what we do and how to join us, browse our website. Or let us know you are interested here on facebook fb.me/e/55FHVUOP1​

Brief
Planning for the Cross starts a few months prior to June for the Team – we are asked for between 7 and 9 vehicles each year to support Kintail (2 vehicles) and the Yellow Brick Road – Altnamulloch to the Quarry.  Our role is to support the Altnamulloch Team through the most remote section – to transport them and their equipment out, to assist with setting up and returning them back down the track, as well as providing transport across the yellow brick road for any competitors who are unable to continue. 
As ever, there are Standard Operational Procedures to follow, to ensure that our Responders know how to keep each competitor and themselves safe and this is communicated to all who are supporting the day.
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Preparations
As this was the 40th anniversary, the team leader for Altnamulloch and myself had a ‘vital’ coffee and cake meeting two weeks prior to the Cross to discuss how we were best to celebrate this – agreed upon; 80s music; banners, balloons and cake!
The night before the event, we collect all the equipment that is needed – from the gazebos, to gas bottles and the food, a full trailer load!

 
Day of the Cross
0700 – Meet up at the old Cannich Hotel site, to have a catch up, a full Team briefing and to respond to any questions that the Team may have.
0800 – Stop off at the quarry to pick up the radio for Altnamulloch and then onto the car park to collect the Altnamulloch Team before moving off.
0900 onwards – We then erect two gazebos and a walk through. The gazebos provide space and cover for the Altnamulloch team to lay out their food along with an area for MERT to provide any first aid needed.  The walk through is to provide shelter to the volunteers handing out water and juice. This year we had a mixed bag of weather, sunshine, showers with a wind but no midges!
Breakfast is always important to the team, a cuppa and bacon rolls which always goes down well.

Two team members support taking volunteers and their equipment further up the track, before returning and setting off to their respective posts, Forrest Boundary; White Cottage and the Quarry (change over point).
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This year, it felt as though the runners and walkers came through in a steady stream, with members of both groups (Altnamulloch and Highland 4x4 Response) supporting each other to ensure that water and refreshments are provided to the competitors who pass through, along with shouts of “well done” and clapping from us all.

​The helicopter landed this year to support with anyone who required to be medevac’d but everyone was able to continue. One of our Responders works with the helicopter to provide transport between the landing zone and the medical tent.
1500: The day moved quick and not before long the sweep team for the runners had passed through, therefore it was time to pack up, to reverse the process, but we had to ensure that our vehicles could move along the Yellow Brick Road safely and not interfere with those walkers or runners still on the track, which we did via the radio.
1700: After dropping the Altnamulloch Team at the car park, we then meet up at the Quarry to support any Highland Cross volunteers and organisers who may require a lift back to Inverness before heading back to drop of the equipment and home for a takeaway and a well-earned drink!

​A debrief always takes place so that we can communicate any worries or concerns to the organisers of the Cross and they do take these on board, which supports everyone in future years.  Highland 4x4 Response has been a part of the Highland Cross’s community for around 13 years, it is a great day, always very well run (excuse the pun) and a worthwhile cause. We hope that this partnership will continue for many years to come. 

Thankyou to all our Responders who joined us for a very information packed off-road and Traction Assistance training day.
Thankyou also to the @BritishRedCross for making the trip all the way from Aberdeen to take part in the day. We very much look forward to collaborating further.
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Topics Included:
• Fording and Wading
• Vehicle based Traction Aids
• External Traction Aids
• Proper gear selection and route planning
• Failed Hill Assent Recovery
• Traction Assistance and Towing
To join us and help your community in your spare time or learn more about what we do visit our how to join page or our FAQ's.

A look back to the Responder stories from our most recent deployment.

Our responders were often tasked with transporting carers to local home addresses and whilst making a bowl of soup may seem a basic gesture, it provides a nutritional and hot meal to someone who is unable to make it. This carer may have been the only person that this patient would have seen that day and with everyone else tucked in out of the weather, should anyone have had an accident in their home and been unable to call for help your actions could have been critical in avoiding undesirable consequence.

I was at a farmhouse assisting two carers who look after the farmer’s wife. The Farmer was surprised that they turned up without fail over these few days and in a show of gratitude, he told the carers to pull over at a specific gate on the way home where they would discover a quad behind the hedge. In the back was a gift for them… I wasn’t told this when they got in, so off I went to the next job and 5 minutes after setting off, totally out the blue, I was asked to pull over next to a gate. Totally oblivious I asked what was happening. “Oh, just picking something up”. Off they go behind a hedge and return with the biggest goose I’ve ever seen slung over shoulder!! What a laugh I had with those carers. They are underpaid and Underappreciated, but they do the job day in day out with such good humour.

​The Thurso Mental health team were transported to provide vital medical treatment to their patients. One of which had been unable to get to shops to buy some food. So, this callout ensured a member of our community ate that day.

Enroute home from Caithness, Responders Josh HI06 and James HI01 came across an old school rocker and his partner who had bellied out their campervan in deep snow. They were tired and not making much progress so we got stuck in. 2 hours of careful digging and assistance with traction boards saw him free and clear. 

The snow was pounding the road ahead of us, wind howling, with the drifts forming as quickly as they were being cleared. We got to the edge of Castletown where we came across multiple vehicles stuck in both directions. After chatting with the council lads there trying to keep the road open, we got the traction boards out of the truck and helped out getting some cars going again. One car was particularly tricky, stuck in a drift with no traction at all. Five people pushing finally got it moving and once onto the boards it had enough momentum to keep going...or so we thought. After it just got out of sight in the blizzard, where visibility was down to only 5meters, someone ran back to grab us and said it was stuck again. The weather was so bad you needed goggles, you couldn't talk or see each other, you had to yell! 

The sun came out on our first training and social day of the year this weekend! The emphasis for the day was to decompress after our busy start to the year and focus on enjoying the day out in the stunning wilderness we are privileged to have access to.

We started the day with the principles of water crossings, then drove in convoy up to the hill where one of our members kindly demonstrated safety and applications of a High-Lift Jack.

Over lunch we ran through our updated kit list with a practical demonstration and discussed any changes.

To finish the day there was an optional rough/scratchy route back to base. The recent weather had taken its toll on a section of this track, whilst unexpected this resulted in an excellent teamwork opportunity. All responders got stuck in to ensure all our vehicles passed over the obstacle.

If you would like to join our team we are seeking more members to support us and our partners throughout the Highlands, particularly in the following areas: Caithness, Skye, Gairloch, Badenoch and Strathspey. Visit our website using the link below or contact us on facebook to find out more.

http://highland4x4response.com/2024-recruitment.html
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Photographs by: Stuart Elliot

It has been a privilege to support NHS Highland and all our partners during the January period of very adverse weather. The teams have collectively covered 1000's of miles over a huge area including Inverness, Aviemore, Ullapool and Caithness. Thankyou also to the Nurses, Care staff and all those we assisted for remaining in such good spirits making each callout a pleasure. 

''As a team we have been able to provide a service that has had such a positive impact for our Highland community. In only a few days we covered 2385 miles and transported tens of essential NHS staff to and from their place of work through challenging conditions. On some taskings the roads could be clear and quiet. Whilst on others our responders were met with challenging weather conditions such as blizzards, deep drifting snow, black ice, and stranded motorists in need of urgent assistance. Each callout was diligently approached regardless of how minor the task may have appeared. One such example comes from the team based in Caithness. Who were informed that transporting just one senior nurse meant that up to 50 hospital clinic appointments that would have otherwise been cancelled, could go ahead as planned, well done all.''  James Amos (Vice Chair)

​ At the end of November we had a busy weekend for Highland 4X4 Response and COTAG 4x4 Response. Here we are working together during a joint training exercise running through the different scenarios that we may come across whilst responding, both in the day and the night.

- Recovery and winching procedure and equipment
- Navigation
- convoy leading
- Steep hill assent and descent practice
- Wading

A big thankyou to COTAG for organising and running this fantastic day, every member of the team thoroughly enjoyed themselves and we look forward to working with you again in the future.
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Photos - Stuart Elliot