2 comments about St Kilda: Colin Baxter Island Guides.

1. I've been reading books on St. Kilda, the "island at the edge of the world," for a year, and this is the most useful one I've found. That holds good whether you're planning to go there, as I am, or just traveling by armchair. Considering the many books written about this remote and storied island in Scotland's Outer Hebrides, it's surprising how few have good pictures. The photos here have not only luscious color, but also a real feeling for the island's rugged topography. Backing up the photos are directions for excellent "walks," starting at the village abandoned in 1930 and continuing to the tops of the 1,000-foot cliffs and the remotest areas of the main island of Hirta. There's enough history and description to satisfy without overwhelming the traveler. (St. Kilda is a difficult destination, but the first chapter is "How to Get There.") There are also bird checklists, a geology guide, a chronology of St. Kildan history, and descriptions of the inaccessible outer islands. Those who want to dig deeper should try Mary Harman's "An Isle Called Hirta" and the very readable "Island on the Edge of the World" by Charles MacLean. But for my trip, I'm taking Martin Martin's 1698 travel classic, "A Late Voyage to St. Kilda," and this book.



2. First do a Google search on St Kilda to get an impression of this fantastic place, then get David Quine's book. There are finely detailed maps of the main island, Hirta, and of the smaller islands as well. There are lots of color photographs that help do justice to these Hebridean outliers 40 miles west of the Outer Hebrides. There are drawings of the houses that remain. You'll see why this is a difficult place to reach, even when weather conditions. About 100 years ago a small group of St Kildan men was landed on one of the smaller islands to see to the sheep or collect birds' eggs, and when the weather conditions changed it took several months before the men could be retrieved--this is not a hospitable place!
   
   There are a number of other good books on St Kilda (including Francis Thompson's St Kilda and other Hebridean Outliers, also through Amazon) and there's also a fine adventure novel Atlantic Fury by Hammond Innes (now out of print, but also through Amazon) centering on a military evacuation--the dwindling civilian population was evacuated in 1930. Innes calls his island "Laerg", but it's really Hirta. Atlantic Fury was what introduced me to St Kilda 40 years ago, and I've retained that interest ever since. I don't think I'll ever get there physically, but I can get there mentally in seconds by grabbing David Quine's book off my bookshelf!

No comments about Glasgow (Pocket Mountains).

No comments about Jimmie Macgregor's Scotland.

No comments about Touring Map of Scotland (Touring Maps).

No comments about The Great Glen, Monadhliath, and Moray: A Personal Survey of the Great Glen, Monadhliath, and Moray for Mountainbikers and Walkers (Cicerone Guide).

No comments about Glasgow: City Guide.

No comments about Hebridean Light (Birlinn).

No comments about The Grampian Highlands and Aberdeen.

No comments about Motorist's Atlas Britain (AA Atlases).

No comments about "Description of the Western Islands of Scotland,".