Walks The Trossachs & East Loch Lomond Author: Luke Williams rewalked 2010 – Rod & Lindsay Munro
First published in 2005, Walks The Trossachs was completely rewalked over last winter by Rod and Lindsay Munro. This was no small job – with 40 routes, the Trossachs guide is equalled only by our Orkney guide for its total number of walks. The bulk of the routes in the book are well-established, so it is perhaps unsurprising that no major alterations were required. There are no new routes in this reprint. The Trossachs is, of course, one of the finest walking areas in Scotland, and its proximity to the Central Belt makes it very popular – particularly the walks along the east side of Loch Lomond (including the West Highland Way) and around Callander and Aberfoyle. There are hill climbs (Ben Lomond, Ben Ledi, etc), lochside walks, forest walks and glen walks, and all of them are good. In addition, we extended the area covered north to include the section of Breadalbane included in the Stirling Council area: past Balquhidder to Crianlarich, Tyndrum and Killin. This brings some more big hills into the book (Ben More/Stob Binnein, An Caisteal) plus walks overlooking Loch Earn and Loch Tay, as well as some more unusual walks such as the climb up through the old Tyndrum lead mines (see left). Part of the purpose of this series is to show that even less thought of areas of Scotland can provide good walking, but the popular areas are usually popular for a reason. Few areas of Britain can provide a greater density of terrific walks than the Trossachs. For more details of Walks The Trossachs, or to order a copy, click here.
NEW EDITION JULY 2010
Walks Stirling including Clackmannanshire & The Campsie Fells Author: Alistair Lawson rewalked 2009/10 – Richard Hallewell & Becky Coope
The old Walks Stirling & District guide has been completely rewalked and – by extending the area covered to the south-west – altered to Walks Stirling including Clackmannanshire & The Campsie Fells. For those who have the old guide, this book is similar except that some of the woodland and long-distance routes have been removed and have been replaced by the Campsie Fells routes. The new walks are the climb up Dumgoyne (bottom left) from Glengoyne Distillery and a connected circuit through Strathblane and the valley of the Blane Water; a short walk in Campsie Glen and an extension up Cort-ma Law; and a short climb up Tomtain from the hill road. The Campsies are a fine walking area – notable in particular for the terrific views south over Glasgow and the surrounding towns – and we are glad to have found a way of fitting them into the series. That apart, there are no major changes to the book; just the usual alterations where we found the situation on the ground had changed since our original descriptions. It was a great pleasure to rewalk the routes – particularly the hill routes in the Ochils (still remarkably under-walked given their charms) and the Ochil Glens – some of the best den walks in Scotland. For more details of Walks Stirling, or to order a copy, click here.
NEW EDITION MAY 2010
Walks West Sutherland Author: Peter & Rosemary Koch-Osborne rewalked 2010 – Richard Hallewell & Becky Coope
With the long winter finally relenting, we managed a first rewalk of the West Sutherland book in April. Personally, this was my first visit to the area, and I found the landscape every bit as stunning as I had expected. The coastline is of cliffs (notably at Cape Wrath) and sand beaches; inland it is wide, empty moorland with steep-sided hills (Suilven being the most famous - centre left) rising abruptly from the heather and peat bogs. The paths are often rough and wet but the views are terrific. Settlements are few and far between and the roads often tortuous, but the settlements that there are (such as Tarbet - bottom left - start point for the ferry link to the walk on Handa Island, and the end of an enjoyable coastal route from the village of Scourie) provide good options for refreshements on the walks. It is a long way to go for a walk, but well worth the effort. Changes have been made to a number of the walks in the guide – often to align the route described with the signposting which has appeared on the ground since the book was written. An example of this is at Faraid Head, by Durness, where the walk described now follows the signposted route around the dunes and cliffs. Something similar has happened at Point of Stoer. In addition, a number of signposted walks have appeared around Lochinver (the main settlement in the area) and we have made space for these in the book. These are a loop up the River Inver and back by Glencanisp; the paths through Culag Woods (just behind the harbour); the moorland/coastal path to the sands of Achmelvich and on to Alltanabradhan; and the waymarked paths laid out through Little Assynt Estate. Even the short walks in West Sutherland are testing, but it is an experience which you won't forget. For
further details about Walks West Sutherland, or to buy a copy click here.
NEW EDITION MAY 2010
Walks Deeside Author: Richard Hallewell rewalked 2009/10 – Rod & Lindsay Munro; Richard Hallewell
Walks Deeside - our first guide in this series (1994) and now in its 9th reprint - was rewalked in Autumn 2009/Spring 2010. This is probably our toughest guide, and we would like to thank the Munro brothers for undertaking the high, long routes in the Cairngorms and across the Mounth. The winter was particularly tough this year and weather-related delays resulted in the book selling out before we could finish the new edition - I hope this didn't cause too much inconvenience. There were few significant changes in the high routes - the one exception, perhaps, being the National Trust for Scotland's removal of the track - always an eyesore - which used to zig-zag up the south-western flank of Beinn a' Bhuird. The new path is perfectly clear. We have made some changes to the shorter routes in the guide. In particular, quite a bit of work has been done since 2004 to the path network around Loch Kinord and Burn o' Vat (between Ballater and Dinnet) and we have extended the entry in the guide to include the new waymarked walks. These include a very pleasant walk through the birchwoods around Loch Kinord and a linking path with the forest walks at Cambus o' May. The information centre at Burn o' Vat (for the Muir of Dinnet National Nature Reserve) was in the process of being done up when the walks were undertaken. The other addition is the forest track linking Scolty Hill (Banchory) with the forest walks at Shooting Greens. Walks through conifer plantations can be rather dull, but this lineal track gives good views across the valley and the mature woodland makes for pleasant walking. In general, the walks around Deeside are as splendid as they have always been. The hill walking around Braemar (bottom left) is amongst the finest you will find in Britain and anyone with an interest in peaks and hill-crossings (the numerous paths between the glens of Deeside and Angus) should really give the area a visit. For further details about Walks Deeside, or to buy a copy click here.
NEW EDITION MAY 2010
Walks East Lothian Author: Richard Hallewell rewalked 2009/10 – Richard Hallewell
Walks East Lothian was completely rewalked over Autumn 2009/Spring 2010. It is a beautiful county with – given its small size – a surprisingly wide range of walking – from the moorland hill-crossings in the Lammermuirs, through the farmland in the heart of the county, to the cliffs, beaches and mudflats of the coast. There are no high hills, but the low ones – the dramatic mound of North Berwick Law, Traprain Law, the Garleton Hills – give terrific views. There are the usual minor changes to the walks but no major alteration to the contents. The main area of change since the last rewalk (2004) is the extension of the John Muir Way – a largely coastal path named in memory of the great naturalist, born in Dunbar. The path now runs 45 miles/73km, without breaks, between Fisherrow (by Musselburgh) and Dunglass (by Cockburnspath). Paths have been upgraded, the signage improved and some alterations have been made to the route. In the guide (where elements of the John Muir Way are used in a number of walks), this has had a particular impact on the walk around Levenhall Links and the southern end of the route between Dunbar and Dunglass. If you are interested in the route of the path, East Lothian Council have information about it on their website (www.eastlothian.gov.uk). For more details of Walks East Lothian, or to order a copy, click
here.
NEW EDITION FEBRUARY 2010
Walks Angus & Dundee Author: John Fyfe rewalked 2009 – Rod & Lindsay Munro; Richard Hallewell, Becky Coope
Walks Angus & Dundee was rewalked last Autumn. For the serious walker, walking in Angus is all about the Angus Glens: a series of long, narrow valleys winding into the eastern Grampians. There are some terrific paths linking the glens, or heading north to Deeside: Jock's Road, Capel Mounth, Firmounth, Fungle. Glendoll (where there is a new information centre), at the head of Glen Clova, is a good place to start exploring. In addition to the long hill paths heading north, west and south there are a number of short, signposted paths which give a flavour of the place. Further down the glen are The Minister's Path and the circuit of dramatic Loch Brandy (centre left). In this edition we have also added a moderate walk past the Airlie Monument, in neighbouring Glen Prosen. At the edge of the hills there are two fine waterfall/glen walks, at Reekie Linn and Edzell. After that, you are into the farmland of Strathmore, and there is little to interest the walker until you reach the coast. Here, there is a great deal of variety, from the mudflats of Montrose Basin – a birdwatcher's paradise – and the wide sands of Lunan Bay to the sandstone cliffs north of Arbroath (bottom left). On the latter path, the section from Carlinheugh Bay to the old fishing village of Auchmithie – once very rough – has been greatly improved. Further south, we have added the path linking Carnoustie and Broughty Ferry on the north shore of the Firth of Tay – part of the intermittent Angus Coastal Walk. As the selection above might suggest, there is no lack of variety in the county's walks, but it is the hill routes which particularly deserve attention – a calm Spring day in the Angus Glens is one of the great joys of Scottish walking. For more details of Walks Angus & Dundee, or to order a copy, click here. Please note that Walks Angus is now also available in an A5 pdf downloadable format – see below.
POCKET WALKS GO DIGITAL
In order to keep up with changing technology, we have just launched our digital download service on the website. Starting with three titles - Walks Coniston, Walks Angus & Dundee and Walks Edinburgh. The books have been reordered to fit the digital format, but essentially the content is the same as the printed versions. When you purchase a digital book, a PDF file is downloaded to your computer that you print out, page by page, as required. One difference is that the download pages are A5 rather than the A6 of the printed books - twice the size - and are therefore a little easier to read. More details are available from the About Downloads page. If you use this service, or have any comments on it we would be pleased to hear them.
