A daily newspaper reporter is swapping her desk for a tent and backpack as part of a new approach to news-gathering.

Scotsman journalist Katharine Hay, pictured, has embarked on an epic six-month journey around Scotland on foot, saying she wants to “try doing journalism in a different way”

Katharine, the paper’s rural affairs correspondent, has already travelled 200 miles across the Scottish countryside with her despatches being published in print and online in a project called Hay’s Way.

She aims to witness at first hand the issues which matter most to The Scotsman’s rural readers as well as bringing the newspaper’s brand to communities throughout the country.

Said Katharine: “Part of it is to do with getting tired of reporting on stories from a desk in Edinburgh. I wanted to change my approach to gathering news and storytelling. I wanted to try doing journalism in a different way.

“Setting out on foot to gather stories isn’t anything new, but in the world of AI-generated content and with homeworking taking more of a hold, it just felt right to do the opposite. So, when The Scotsman said it was behind me and this journey, that was it really.”

Scotsman editor Neil McIntosh added: “Katharine’s brilliant initiative is already bringing previously-unherd stories to life, and opening up communities which will be new to so many of our readers around Scotland, and the world.

“The Scotsman is committed to finding innovative new ways to tell our nation’s story, and our staff live and work among the cities and communities on which they report. Hay’s Way takes that commitment to a new level, and proves nothing beats having people on the ground, talking to the people who matter.”

Katharine’s travels over the next six months will take in the Highlands, Lowlands, Borders and Islands and cover themes as diverse as land ownership, rural innovation and food and drink.

The project has been given its own page on The Scotsman’s website at https://www.scotsman.com/hays-way