Undiscovered Scotland

 

"Skye Munros: The walker's guide to bagging the Cuillin summits" by Adrian Trendall is an absolute gem of a book. There's a slight pun in that: the book is small, beautiful and extremely valuable. It's a book we'd recommend without reservation to anyone who's ever thought about taking on the jagged peaks of the Cuillin ridge and Bla Bheinn on the Isle of Skye.

Most walkers, climbers and cyclists will be familiar with the format of Cicerone's guidebooks. "Skye Munros" retains the pocket-sized format, and adopts the approach sometimes used before of dividing the content into two volumes. The first provides all the background information you are likely to need when planning your trip, while the second gives the route information you will need to safely gain the summits. This includes detailed and full colour large-scale mapping by Harvey Maps and colour photography intended to show aspects of individual routes. This gives you less to carry while actually on the hill.

These are Munros I've often admired from afar, with the exception of Bla Bheinn, which is the one mountain covered by the book that I've stood on top of personally. Suffice it to say that if I'd had the benefit of this book three decades ago, I might not have lost my bearings in cloud on the summit and I might have been able to take a rather less er... adventurous route back down!

The publisher's description gives a good idea of what you get: "A definitive 2-volume guidebook to the 12 Munros of the Cuillin on the Isle of Skye – the most technically demanding Munros in Scotland, rising in a jagged 3000ft skyline straight from the sea. More than simple hillwalking, these summits demand Grade 3 scrambling, rock climbing to Moderate and abseiling, technical skill, a head for heights and confidence on steep and exposed rocky ground. This set is written for experienced mountain walkers, Munroists and seasoned scramblers looking to complete the Cuillin ridge peaks safely and efficiently."

"Volume 1 covers planning and logistics, seasonal and weather considerations (with a focus on the summer “window” from May to September), recommended kit for technical ground and the best bases in Glen Brittle and Sligachan. It also introduces the history and character of each of the 12 summits. Volume 2 provides five carefully structured routes – a 5-day itinerary that can also be broken down into bite-sized chunks of a single peak or two per day – with step-by-step route description, Harvey mapping and detailed photo topos to support safe navigation on complex terrain. The two volumes are sold together."