The West Highland Way: The Official Guide

by Bob Aitken, Roger Smith

Opened in 1980, the West Highland Way was Scotland's first Long Distance Route and remains the most popular, with more than 15,000 walkers tackling it each year. It runs from Milngavie, on the outskirts of Glasgow, to Fort William. The 152km route passes along the east of Loch Lomond, the largest expanse of fresh water in Britain, and across Rannoch Moor, Scotland's grandest wilderness, through some of the finest scenery of mountain and stream, woodland and moorland, that Scotland has to show. This ninth edition of the Official Guide has been revised and updated to include recent modifications to the route, is accompanied by a full-colour folding map and packaged in a practical plastic wallet.

Genres: Travel, Guidebook, Walking, Scotland

128 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1984

Reviews

[Brian Page · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will refrain from reviewing this book until I return from the walk. If I fail to comment by the end of October then you may surmise that the guide was lacking in some respect and that I am lost somewhere out there in a boggy moor.

I finished the West Highland Way walk, just over 100 miles from Milngavie to Fort William. This book provides good background and atmosphere, but it's not really a guide for the walk. I recommend reading this to really get a full appreciation for the land & people of the highlands. Otherwise, the WHW is just a hike.

[Jeremy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good practical guide with nice information on the route as well as background details.

[Brian Gowthorpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent guide: surprisingly well written, comprehensive and with a useful map. It also has careful warnings and advice on the hazards that could be encountered and the kit needed. We are attempting the entire walk in about 5 weeks.

[AJW · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third book I’ve read as preparation for walking the West Highland Way (WHW).

There is a lot of historical, geographical and geological information in this book. The book points out the various geological changes as the WHW progresses northward as well throwing in historical information of key landmarks and quoting famous writers and poets inspired by the surrounding landscape. There is a little bit of practical information such as where shops, ATMs and accommodation can be found, but not as comprehensive as the Trailblazer book. Rather it gives details of some websites that you can go to for more information which are more likely to contain up-to-date information.

Also included is an OS strip map of the route, but it is at the 1:50,000 scale rather than the more detailed (& thus more useful) 1:25,000 scale.

Personally speaking, I’m not interested in geology so all the talk about glaciers and granite and whatnot made my eyes glaze over. The historical snippets were more interesting, such as the history of the various clans. The writer(s) would often refer to landmarks and places not covered by the enclosed strip map, so I’d have to refer to separate maps.

The range of information offered by this official guide to the WHW is impressive. It has enriched my knowledge of the WHW which was more focussed on distances between places and where accommodation, shops and campsites can be found.

But this won’t be the book I’ll carry with me on the WHW. That honour goes to the Trailblazer book with its more extensive practical information on the accommodation, shops, transport, etc. I cannot rely on getting access to information via the internet when walking the WHW.

However I do recommend that anybody who is planning to walk the WHW, or even has completed the WHW in the past, to read this book for its extensive background information and select photographs, as it will enrich your enjoyment of the walk.

[Achim Barczok · Rating 2 out of 5]

Detailed descriptions of the stages of the West Highland Way. On many points a little to detailed on the history and geology while sometimes not detailed enough with useful information like accomodations. Not the best guide for hikers who want to camp on the way...

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, now I have to wait for two-and-a-half-weeks to test it out properly by doing the whole walk :)

http://bit.ly/1gNIvss

[Esther · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's an interesting read with good information about historic facts and sights, but too heavy to take along and not suitable for in depth planning of accommodation etc.

[Jg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good with lots of background information, sometimes this makes it harder to quickly find that info about the specific location you're at now. Also compared to the earlier sections, that last one to two days seem handled in quick succession.