Trailblazer Guide Books

Guides that will send you packing.
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ACCOMMODATION

Most of the hills in this book are sufficiently close to villages to allow for overnight stays in a B&B (bed and breakfast) or hotel. These bastions of occasional luxury, however, are not for all tastes and budgets. Many of the more popular tourist haunts, such as Glen Coe and Skye, offer cheaper accommodation in the form of bunkhouses, hostels and campsites.

For each region in this book there is a list of villages and towns and a rundown of the accommodation that is on offer in the area, while each walk comes with an indication of the nearest gateway village or town. Bookings for all types of accommodation are strongly advised at Easter, on Bank Holiday weekends and between June and August.

A few of the walks are in very remote country and are reserved for the true outdoors person who is not afraid to rough it by sleeping under the stars, either with or without a tent.

Camping
There is no better way to get a real feel for the mountains and the outdoor life both day and night than to shun all mod-cons and camp. There are a number of campsites in the popular areas offering heated showers and washing facilities. Prices typically range from £5 to £8 per person per night.

Many campers baulk at the thought of pitching on a carefully mown field full of caravans, preferring instead to camp out in the wild. Wild camping (see p41) is a far more liberating experience than camping at an organised site and in some cases is the only choice for campers. The Scottish Outdoor Access Code (see box p40) states that responsible wild camping is allowed but you should not camp by roadsides or close to houses. It is also vital that you consider other land users. In the Highlands it is particularly important to avoid disturbing deer during the stalking season (see box p23).

Bivvying
The alternative to camping is to bivvy: the most natural way to spend a night. All that is needed is a sleeping bag, a sleeping mat and a bivvy bag (see Bivvy gear, p28) to keep everything, including you, dry. Bivvying is not everyone's idea of a night of luxury. Most people tend to prefer the shelter of a tent at the bare minimum, if not a roof and walls. The advantage of bivvying is the ability to sleep just about anywhere: on rocky beaches, among boulders on a grassy col or even on the top of a stony mountain. Add to this the chance to sleep directly beneath the stars, feel the wind on your face and wake to the sun climbing above the mountains and you have the ultimate way to pass the night in the outdoors.

If you are not familiar with the concept of bivvying start off gently by sleeping in a forest or somewhere not too far from civilisation in case things do not go according to plan. As you get to know the mountains and how the weather works you can start to take that bivvy bag to higher ground.

Bothies
Scotland is blessed with a number of bothies: simple mountain shelters, often restored from old, ruined crofts and typically located in beautifully remote spots. Bothies are unmanned and free for anyone to spend a night or two in but they are very basic shelters, usually consisting of a fireplace, dusty floor, some resident mice and, if you're lucky, a few chairs and a sleeping platform.

Their popularity has increased over the years and sadly a minority of people who use them show little respect for the bothy or their fellow bothiers. Litter, graffiti, wanton defecation and anti-social behaviour are growing problems that can lead to permanent closure by the estate owner.

Advertising the whereabouts of bothies is something of a faux pas, partly for the above reason and also to prevent overcrowding. It is commonly believed that to earn the right to stay in a bothy you should either stumble across it or hear about it by word of mouth from like-minded souls.

A night in a bothy can be a magical experience. Just remember to respect the surroundings, the other bothiers and the bothy itself (see the Bothy Code, box p11). And don't forget to pack a few candles, perhaps some dry wood for the fire, and of course a hip flask with a drop of your favourite malt. I have tried to avoid revealing the locations of many of the bothies for the reasons just mentioned, even though some of them are ideally situated for a number of the walks.

For more information contact the Mountain Bothies Association (website www .mountainbothies.org.uk), the registered charity that is responsible for the maintenance of the majority of the bothies in the Highlands.

Hostels and bunkhouses
The standard of hostels and bunkhouses varies greatly but most charge between £10 and £16 a night. Hostels , such as those run by the Scottish Youth Hostels Association (tel 01786-891400, webswite www.syha.org.uk) and independent hostels, usually have washing facilities, central heating, hot showers, and often a drying room for wet socks. The better ones also have a self-catering kitchen.

Bunkhouses usually offer more basic accommodation, often in dormitories, and you will need to bring your own sleeping bag. There are independently run bunkhouses all over the Highlands, and not just in the popular hillwalking centres such as Fort William and Aviemore. Many of them are perfectly positioned in some of the best hillwalking country.

Bed and breakfast
There are plenty of B&Bs across the Highlands, many of them situated conveniently for a day on the hill. B&Bs usually offer at least some rooms with en suite accommodation but most walkers are more concerned about getting just a good bed and a hot bath after a day's walking.

Rooms are usually designated as singles (one single bed), doubles (one double bed), twins (two single beds), and family rooms which comprise a double bed along with one or two singles. Single rooms are often hard to come by and the owner may choose to accommodate single guests in a double room only at quieter times and with a supplementary charge of between £5 and £10.

Rates can vary wildly depending on the luxuriousness, or lack thereof, of the establishment. The cheapest double or twin rooms are about £15 per person while places with a few more stars nailed to the wall will charge £35 or more per person. Most standard B&Bs, however, charge around £20 to £25 per person per night.

Guesthouses, hotels, pubs and inns
Guesthouses and hotels are a step up from B&Bs, usually offering an evening meal, a residents' lounge and sometimes room service. Accordingly, room rates are higher, with standard rates around £25 to £50 per person. The grander hotels may charge much more and may also sniff at the presence of a hillwalker treading bog-mud into the shag-pile. Nevertheless I have included some of these classier hotels in the accommodation sections of the guide for those who want to indulge in a little luxury whilst on their trip to the hills. Just remember to take your boots off before reaching reception.

Pubs and inns are great places to stay, not just for the bar downstairs, but also for the usually high standard of accommodation at a more affordable price than a hotel. Rates are typically around £20 to £30 per person. The only disadvantage is for those looking for an early night. There is always the potential for a disturbed evening from noisy drinkers below.

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