'[Glencoe and Lochaber] had everything: peak, plateau, precipice, the thinnest of ridges, and green valley, all set between the widest of wild moors and a narrow sea-loch.'
WH Murray, Undiscovered Scotland
WH Murray is not alone in thinking the dramatic concluding stages of the West Highland Way (Glencoe and Lochaber) equal in beauty to anywhere in the world. The Way has become a pilgrimage for mountain lovers keen to travel simply on foot into the heart of the Scottish Highlands. A better introduction to this stunning region could not have been designed and, what is more, you don’t have to wait until the end for the highlights. Right from the start the Way gives walkers a taste of the magic of Scotland’s wild land and within a week you will have walked through some of the most fabulous scenery in Britain with relative ease, safety and comfort.
The Way begins kindly just 20 minutes from the centre of Glasgow, gently undulating through woods and farmland, easing you in to the new demands of long-distance walking. As you stroll along the length of Loch Lomond’s celebrated wooded shore, lowland subtly transforms into Highlands and rugged mountain grandeur begins to dominate the scene. Ancient tracks previously used by soldiers and drovers lead you north along wide valley bottoms past historical staging posts which still water and feed today’s Highland traveller.
The character of the Way becomes more serious as it climbs across the bleak, remote expanse of Rannoch Moor, skirting the entrance to Glen Coe and climbing over the Devil’s Staircase, the highest point on the trail. This is true hillwalking country and the extra effort is amply repaid by breathtaking mountain views. As you approach Fort William, the end of the Way, Ben Nevis comes into view rising above the conifer forests. If you have energy left after this superb 95-mile (152km) walk an ascent of the highest mountain in Britain makes a fitting climax.
About this book
This guidebook is as practically useful, comprehensive and up to date as humanly possible. It is the only book you require; no need to phone around for tourist brochures. From the comfort of your armchair you can look up everything necessary for planning your trip including:
– all standards of places to stay from the best free campsites to the most comfortable guest houses
– walking companies if you want an organized tour
– itineraries for all types of walkers
– answers to all your questions: when to go, degree of difficulty, what to pack and how much will the whole walking holiday cost me?
When you’re all packed, boots on and ready to go, there’s detailed information to get you from home to the start of the trail and 53 large-scale (1:20,000) walking maps to keep you on it. The trail guide section has:
– walking times in both directions
– details of campsites, bunkhouses, hostels, B&Bs, guest houses and hotels
– cafés, pubs, tea-shops, take-aways, restaurants and shops for buying supplies
– rail, bus and taxi information for all the villages and towns along the Way
– street maps of Glasgow, Milngavie, Glencoe and Fort William
– historical, cultural and geographical background information
Minimum impact for maximum insight
Nature’s peace will flow into you as the sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their freshness into you and storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.
John Muir (one of the world’s earliest and most influential environmentalists, born in Scotland in 1838)
Walking in wild places is about opening ourselves up to all that is ‘green’. Treading lightly and with respect we give ourselves a precious chance to tap into the curative power of the natural world. Physical contact with the land makes us more in tune with it and as a result we feel all the more passionate about protecting it.
It is no surprise then that, since the time of John Muir, walkers and adventurers have been concerned about the natural environment; this book seeks to continue that tradition. There is a detailed, illustrated chapter on the wildlife and conservation of the Highlands as well as a chapter devoted to minimum impact walking with ideas on how we can broaden that ethos.
By developing a deeper ecological awareness through a better understanding of nature and by supporting rural economies, local businesses, sensitive forms of transport and low-impact methods of farming and land-use we can all do our bit for a brighter future. In the buzz-words of today there can be few activities as ‘environmentally friendly’ as walking.
'Break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.'
John Muir
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