St Magnus Way
David Mazza Rucksack Readers , £ 14.99 ( pb )
St Magnus , the patron saint of
Orkney , is an otherwise little known Celtic saint who was martyred after a Norse power struggle on the outlying island of Egilsay in 1116 or 1117 . This 60- mile route , starting with a traverse of Egilsay and then winding across Orkney ’ s Mainland to Kirkwall , is in every sense a pilgrimage in his footsteps , and follows the themes that he followed in his life . The guide is written by a Guild member who is also the GP for Westray and Pappa Westray , and is in Rucksack ’ s new , perfectbound format in place of the former spiral-bound books . But it faithfully follows the publisher ’ s well-proven formula of 1:30,000 Lovell Johns mapping and clear directions printed on rainproof paper . The Mainland route takes in many of Orkney ’ s historical features , such as St Magnus Church and the ruins of Earl ’ s Palace at Birsay ; St Michael ’ s Church at Quean ; Firth Church and the Cuween Chambered Tomb at Flinstown ; Scotland ’ s only round church at Orphir and ending at the magnificent St Magnus Cathedral in the capital of Kirkwall . It seems a pity that the route could not have included the fascinating prehistoric highlights of Orkney in places like Skara Brae , the standing stones of Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar , all of which are now included in the UNESCO Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site . But being much earlier in date , I suppose they did not fit into the story of the saintly Magnus .
Wainwright Memories
Chris Butterfield Chris Butterfield , £ 24.99 ( hb )
The author of this mainly pictorial account of three lesser-known stories associated with the legendary fellwanderer Alfred Wainwright could lay claim to the title of being his greatest aficionado . His archive of Wainwright material , website and Facebook group devoted to the work of AW is unmatched , as is his unstinting , almost hagiographical , worship of the author of the ground-breaking , best-selling series of guides to 214 of the Lakeland fells . Taking the form of a series of holiday snaps taken by the author and Andrew Nichol , former publisher of the Wainwright guides when he was manager at Westmorland Press , the book records then and now photographs of locations on three excursions they took together in the late 1980s . This pictorial homage inevitably results in some duplication , and one image even features the ghostly image of AW towering over the author by a wall at Gatesgarth near Buttermere . Wainwright was a regular visitor to Scotland , and the first chapter recalls a holiday the Wainwrights took to Wester Ross with Nichol and his wife in 1988 . The final records when a notoriously shy AW was persuaded to do a photoshoot with photographer Ken
Shepherd in Langdale in 1990 . One provides the cover of the book and they represent the finest series of pictures I have seen of the reclusive yet on this occasion , surprisingly relaxed , guidebook author . But perhaps the most interesting is the unfinished book which Wainwright hoped would be published but never was . The title was Points of Interest on the Coast to Coast Walk and it was designed to be used by car drivers who , like AW at this time , could not walk very far . In this chapter , for example , there are no fewer than eight pictures of Wainwright at the start of the walk on the beach at St Bees . New maps of the routes have been drawn by Wainwright ’ s successor , Chris Jesty , and additional photography is by Steve Barber and Sheila Richardson .
The Lost Rainforests of Britain
Guy Shrubsole William Collins , £ 20 ( hb )
When you think of a rainforest , the chances are that an image of a subtropical Amazonian jungle , dripping with epiphytes and bromeliads , will spring to mind . But this new book from one of the founders of the Right to Roam campaign reveals that Britain is one of the last remaining strongholds of temperate rainforest , a habitat now even rarer and more precious than its much heralded Amazonian equivalent . Climatically , temperate rainforest could occupy up to 20 per cent of northwestern and western Britain . But a new map compiled by Shrubsole and Tim Richards in this fascinating and important book shows the fragmentary remains now cover
outdoor focus / spring 2023 15