Undiscovered Scotland

 

"West Highland Way" by Jacquetta Megarry is the fifth edition of this excellent guide. The West Highland Way was Scotland's first and and is easily its best known long distance route. It was established in 1980 and extends for 96 miles or 154km from Milngavie, north of Glasgow, to Fort William. As the author says in her foreword, "you travel from the rounded Lowland contours of the Campsies and Loch Lomondside through rugged Glen Falloch and Strath Fillan, over the wildness of Rannoch Moor into the mountain grandeur of Glencoe, with the Mamores and Nevis ranges beyond."

This is one of a range of books produced by Rucksack Readers in their very distinctive and highly practical style. Designed, as the name implies, to be rucksack-friendly, these guidebooks cover some of Britain, Ireland and the world's finest long-distance walks and most inspiring mountains. They are tough, spiral-bound, lightweight, and, perhaps most important of all to anyone venturing into the outdoors in Scotland, printed on waterproof paper. This volume differs from earlier Rucksack Readers we've seen in being rather slimmer and with the spiral binding down the side rather than across the top. In our view both these changes make it even more usable.

This book begins with a key to the mapping inside the attractive cover. We then move on to a section on planning and preparation, covering everything from waymarking to accommodation and another giving background information. The latter provides information about Loch Lomond; about the historical background to the areas passed through; about Munros, Corbetts and Grahams (classifications of Scottish mountains of different heights); and about habitats and wildlife.

The core of the book is formed by a series of sections covering "The Way in Detail". The walk is broken down into seven sections, each with detailed large scale mapping commissioned specifically for the book and clear, detailed route instructions. The result is a book that gives the walker everything they need in one place and at their fingertips. At the back of the book is a reference section with a range of helpful contacts and sources of additional information

Combine the quality of the content with beautiful presentation and good colour photography throughout and the end result is a book that's a pleasure to use - or just to browse - and an essential companion for anyone wanting to tackle the West Highland Way.