Trailblazer Guide Books

TRAILBLAZER             Route guides for the     adventurous traveller

Travel guides written by travellers for travellers

Since 1991 we've been publishing a select list of practical guidebooks written by travellers for travellers. Trailblazer authors have a voice and these books are opinionated. They tell it like it is – bad as well as good.

We've concentrated on providing readers with information on routes as we believe the interest can be as much in the getting there as in the final destination. The range now includes adventure travel guides, rail guides, worldwide trekking guides and British walking guides. Take a look at our booklist and be inspired! 

Trailblazer British Walking Guides App

Our partner, Guthook Guides, has produced a British Walking Guides App that now includes the South Downs Way, West Highland Way, and the Ridgeway. Additional trails are coming soon. More here...

North Downs Way - 2nd edn

Henry Stedman and his faithful dog Daisy have re-walked and re-researched The North Downs Way, and the new edition is out now. This 131-mile (211km) National Trail runs from Farnham in Surrey to Dover in Kent via Canterbury, winding its way through the protected landscape of two Areas of Outstanding National Beauty, the Surrey Hills and the Kent Downs. The path passes medieval churches, castles, Neolithic burial sites, vineyards and numerous WWII defences. There are literary associations with Swift, Cobbett, Dickens and Jane Austen.

• 84 large-scale walking maps – at just under 1:20,000 – showing route times, gradients, where to stay, interesting features; includes GPS waypoints
• Guides to 44 towns and villages – where to stay, restaurants and pubs
• New second edition – includes extra colour mapping and trail profiles

Read more and buy the book.

Kilimanjaro - The Trekking Guide - 5th edn

At 5895 metres (19,341ft) Kilimanjaro is Africa’s highest mountain. Yet with no mountaineering skills necessary to reach the summit, even non-climbers can experience the thrill of climbing one of the world’s greatest peaks. Taking you from the dusty plains of East Africa through jungle and moorland to the glacier-clad summit, this is one of the most beautiful and challenging treks there is.

• The most authoritative and detailed guide to climbing Africa's highest mountain.

Read more and buy the book.

Dorset & South Devon Coast Path - 2nd edn

This guide covers the third and last section of the South West Coast Path, from Plymouth to Poole Harbour (217 miles).  This beautiful route includes 95 miles within England’s only Natural World Heritage Site, the Jurassic Coast, and passes dramatic cliffs and headlands, Chesil Bank’s impressive spit and Lulworth Cove, winding through idyllic seaside villages such as Beer and Lyme Regis.

• 97 large-scale walking maps – at just under 1:20,000 – showing route times, gradients, where to stay, interesting features; includes GPS waypoints
• Guides to 48 towns and villages – where to stay, restaurants and pubs

Read more and buy the book.