Cairngorms National Park: Living Walks
LFTOer book review - Cairngorms National Park: Living Walks
By
jintyville
Outdoor headlines
28 May 2009 12:37
Book Title: Cairngorms National Park: Living Walks
Book Author: Tony Brown
Book Publisher: Ice Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-900916-20-2
Price: £6.99
Reviewer: Janet Finlayson (jintyville)
This is one of six books in a series on Cairngorms National Park, and compared to the other titles e.g. ‘Where to Go: 175 attractions’ and ‘Golfing: Where to Play’ this one is a bit obscure: they should just have called it ‘125 Family Walks’ because that is exactly what it is.
Once you’ve figured that out (there is no overview on the back cover either) you will find this a wee gem of a book, a fantastic resource for walking with young children, wheelchair-users, and dogs in and around the villages of the Cairngorms.
For every walk, information is provided on pram/wheelchair accessibility, suitability for dog walking, nearest car parking, fuel station, food and toilet facilities, as well as a ‘noise indicator’ e.g. the White Water Trail starting from Glen Doll car park is described on page 40 as a ‘quiet walk with bird, wind and water noise’.
This is in addition to an easy to use symbol guide on each walk’s grade (easy, moderate or challenging), length, time, terrain, and height gain.
Pocket-sized books can be off putting when you are trying to follow routes on maps the size of postage stamps, but this book is supposed to be used in conjunction with the www.cairngormslivingwalks.com website.
This is where you can access and print out larger copies of your walk route marked out on an Ordnance Survey Explore map for free.
The author Tony Brown and his dog Brac completed all 125 walks. Tony’s walk descriptions are jargon-free and comprehensive.
He repeatedly tells you that ‘you don’t need overpriced clothes or fancy gizmos’ to enjoy the outdoors (and he has a dislike of collapsible ski poles in particular, which he pooh-poohs as the latest must-have accessory), but his advice is sound, straightforward (he even provides a 9-step guide for responsible country dog-walking).
I found amicable Tony’s use of terms like ‘numpty’ and ‘no-brainer’ most entertaining, but this could make it a difficult (or more fun?) guide for international visitors to use and understand.
Would you like to review books for our site?
We've got dozens of books in our office and would love you to get involved.
Just email matthew.pike@bauermedia.co.uk with your home address and tell us where you most like to walk and what sort of books you'd like to review.