A Hillwalker’s Guide to the Geology & Scenery
The Scottish Highlands are home to Britain’s most spectacular mountain scenery. The stark hills, fearful crags, glorious glens and sparkling lochans make for a wide range of landscapes and have attracted generations of landscape lovers, hilllwalkers and mountaineers. This book is intended to help those who adore this landscape to gain an insight into the geological forces that shaped it. The first half of the book tells the story of how the rocks were created and shaped by the gross forces of plate tectonics, colliding continents, volcanoes, mountain building and glaciation. The second half of the book details 18 walks with a variety of geological features set among consistently fantastic views. The walks are widely spread, encompassing the isolated peaks of Sutherland in the far northwest, the rolling granite massif of the Cairngorms in the east, the haunting beauty of the Ardnamurchan peninsula in the west and a select choice from the vast range of stunning mountains in the central and southern Highlands.
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‘Not intended as an academic work, or even a field guide in the more traditional sense, but to enhance the experience of hillwalking in the Highlands ... the focus on the general understanding of the landscape, rather than a series of detailed locality descriptions that are the staple of excursion guides, enhances the value of the book; it allows a general understanding of the geology of groups of hills, rather than describing very specific features. ... The text certainly achieves Gannon’s aim of being accessible and minimizing the use of technical terminology ... Plentiful illustrations are mostly of high-quality and well chosen. Some are pure landscape or ‘action’ shots. Some of the interpretative diagrams are of a very high standard, such as the relict landscape of the Lewisian seen across Loch Maree. ... Overall, I think the book will appeal to the target audience of hillwalkers and those involved in outdoor education. Those of a more academic persuasion could do worse than to consult the volume to find ways to engage the interest of non-geologists in the topics of geology and landscape, geoconservation and geodiversity’
Alastair McGowan, Scottish Journal of Geology
‘I was transported to a violent geological past of plate tectonics, volcanic eruptions, and intense heat and pressure applied to ancient rocks deep with the Earth’s crust. Mountains that I know were shown in a new light, their crags, gullies and folds given new meaning ... Gannon presents ideas clearly with the aid of drawings and photographs, keeping geological jargon to a minimum, writing with the passion of an enthusiast in both geology and hillwalking. He speaks to the hillwalker as an equal with a shared love of mountain scenery ... I particularly like the simple presentation. Gannon has brilliantly nailed a way of explaining complex geology to the lay person’ Lucy Walker, Professional Mountaineer magazine
‘The geology and scenery of the Highlands is laid bare in this knowledgeable but very readable guide ... a walk in the Highlands might never be quite the same again!’
Walk, magazine of the Ramblers
‘The latest in the Rock Trails series covering the classic areas of the Scottish Highlands. Containing 18 well described walks - this is a real MUST for anyone venturing out in the area.’
Geosupplies
‘Describes the geology for hillwalkers with clarity, enthusiasm and great photographs’
Teme Valley Geological Society
The walks in the book:
1 - Arkle
2 - Ben Stack
3 - Quinaig
4 - Breabag
5 - Meall a’ Ghuibhuis
6 - Coire Mhic Fhearchair (Beinne Eighe)
7 - Beinn Bhan
8 - Sgurr an Airgid
9 - Cairn Gorm
10 - Creag Megaidh
11 - Glen Roy
12 - Ben Nevis
13 - Glen Nevis
14 - Ben Hiant (Ardnamurchan)
15 - Meall nan Con (Ardnamurchan)
16 - Bidean nam Bian (Glen Coe)
17 - Meall nan Tarmachan ridge
18 - Ben Lomond
- 252 pages; 189 full colour photos, 27 maps & 21 diagrams, plus fold-out topographic & geology maps; geology glossary & index of place names with grid references
- ISBN: 9781906095383 Published by Pesda Press www.pesdapress.com