Outdoor Odysseys

Hillwalking books: Scotland

Published on 25th August 2006 Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

As an enthusiastic hillwalker, I've developed a fondness for expanding my bookshelf over the years, as these books are invaluable for planning my outings. Here are a few of my Scotland-related guides:

SMC Hillwalkers' Guide: The Munros

SMC Hillwalkers' Guide: The Corbetts and Other Scottish Hills

These guides are my go-to resources when I find myself wondering, "What hill is that in the photo?" They are comprehensive and beautifully illustrated with photos of the featured mountains. Recently, while reorganizing the Lochaber section of my photo gallery, I delved into these guides and came up with numerous ideas for a weekend in Kinlochleven. Though not inexpensive, they are well worth the investment. However, they are quite hefty, so I usually keep them at home for planning purposes.

Pocket Mountains

At just £5.99 each, these guides offer incredible value, making it all too easy to accumulate an entire set. Illustrated with maps and photos, the concise route descriptions are perfectly suited for their purpose. My collection includes guides to The Central Highlands, The Cairngorms, The Islands, The Southern Highlands, and The Southern Uplands.

Walking on the Isle of Arran

The Isle of Skye

These are Cicerone Guides, coming from a publisher I greatly respect. They provide comprehensive route descriptions and maps as part of their package.

Scottish Hill Tracks

Due to a peculiarity in Scottish law, public rights of way are typically not indicated on Ordnance Survey maps. This makes the Scottish Rights of Way Society's guide indispensable. Many of these tracks are former livestock droving routes, so good navigation skills are essential, as the path may not always be evident on the ground.

For now, these guides fulfil my needs, though I can't rule out the possibility of acquiring more if I decide to explore other parts of Scotland. Nonetheless, I will continue to make the most of what I currently have.