Saturday 8 September 2007

Book - Highland Reflections by Donald Fraser(Aberfeldy)


Donald Fraser’s book Highland Reflections is a fascinating insight into a lifetime spent in and around forestry. It is also an account of life in the Highlands, and offers a very personal reflection on the often radical changes seen and experienced by that society over recent generations.

Highland Reflections is the story of a Perthshire man brought up on a highland estate in the 1930’s, who spent the majority of his life working for the Forestry Commission based in a variety of locations in central and highland Scotland.

As well as being the story of a forester, the book charts Donald’s life and is populated by an array of lively characters encountered over his period of service and beyond. Highland Reflections also includes accounts of general and historical interest directly related to forestry life. It unfolds at a gentle, conversational pace and will reinforce the views held by many on the nature of rural life and its qualities.


Highland Reflections takes readers on a lifetime’s journey starting in Blair Atholl, and includes life in Fife, Inverness, Angus and Lochtayside. The story also takes in visits to Avoch in the Black Isle, Islay, and RAF national service in the 1950s England.

This is the diverse narrative of a career in and around forestry and it offers readers an often lighthearted insight into a highland man’s life spent in a very specialised industry.

Highland Reflections by Donald Fraser (Wm Culross & Son, Coupar Angus)ISBN 1 873891 80 6

More Scottish books

Accommodation in Aberfeldy

Eating out in Aberfeldy

Sunday 6 May 2007

Canoeing in Scotland Books


This is a fantastic book for anyone, whether you're a kayaker or not.

Brian Wilson appears to be a natural author - it was his first book. It reads fluidly and quite poeticly. It's a real page-turner.

He writes from the heart and very honestly. The book covers an amazing adventure, from the initial idea right through to the end. During his journey around the coast of Scotland he experiences intense highs and lows in the course of his adventure. Blissful moments through to depression and near-death!

The book also gives you interesting snap-shots of local folklore and history which is hard to find elsewhere. He gives his own thoughts on the environment and our treatment of it.

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Canoeing in Scotland Books


At last, here it is ... Scotland's first guidebook for sea kayakers wishing to explore its amazing coastline and magical islands. It brings together a selection of fifty great sea voyages around the mainland of Scotland, from the Mull of Galloway in the SW to St Abb's Head on the east coast, as well as voyages in the Western Isles, ranging from day trips to three day journeys. Illustrated with superb colour photographs and useful maps throughout, it is a practical guide to help you select and plan trips. It will provide inspiration for future voyages and a souvenir of journeys undertaken. As well as providing essential information on where to start and finish, distances, times and tidal information, the book does much to stimulate and inform our interest in the environment we are passing through. It is full of facts and anecdotes about local history, geology, scenery, seabirds and sea mammals. A fascinating read and an inspirational book.

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Canoeing in Scotland Books

Eddy has chosen his favourite twenty-five inland touring routes and described them in loving detail. The routes are beautifully illustrated with numerous colour photos and specially commissioned maps. The selected routes are suitable for open canoes, sit-on-tops and touring kayaks. Many of them are multi-day trips that can be tackled as a single voyage or a series of day trips. Great variety is provided, the journeys taking place on inland lochs, sheltered sea lochs and rivers of up to Grade 2. This is a wonderful book for planning, dreaming of future voyages, or sharing your experiences with non-paddling friends.

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Canoeing in Scotland Books

This is an account of a canoe journey from Bowling to Kyle of Lochalsh with numerous stops along the way, made by Alastair Dunnett and Seumas Adam. The book recounts how they spent a heady late autumn in the early 1930s meandering up the West Coast of Scotland.

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Canoeing in Scotland Books


So here it is at last, the long awaited guide to Scottish white water, written by paddlers for paddlers. Scottish Whitewater opens the door to a host of adventures, epics and fun days on the river. Here you will find descriptions to both well-known classics and little known gems. Covering the length and breadth of Scotland and providing something for everyone, whatever the conditions. Whether you are a white water novice or an out and out hair boater, you need this book. With maps, pictures and first hand accounts, here is a guide that captures something of the spirit of Scottish white water. The proceeds of the sale of this book will go towards protecting and enhancing access to the rivers that we all enjoy.

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Welcome to the wonderful world of Scottish white water, and the 2nd edition of the white water guide. One of the most notable achievements of the first edition is that it inspired many people to get out there, get off the beaten track and paddle something new. In an age where park and play is becoming ever more popular, it's been great to see paddlers once again seeking out the wilderness experience that for me is such an important part of what makes paddling special. Published in 2001, we had no idea that the 1st edition would sell out so quickly. So many thanks to everyone who bought a copy and helped raise money for the access fund, and also to everyone who wrote in with corrections, comments, suggestions and new descriptions for the 2nd edition. Once again, all proceeds from this guide will go towards the SCA access fund, and if you bought direct from the SCA, even more of your money will go towards promoting and improving access in Scotland. In this edition, we have tried to give more information on all those tantalising runs just mentioned last time round. We have also included 2 completely new sections and a total of 42 new rivers. So why not push the boundaries, go somewhere new and discover what those less well-known runs have to offer. For those who like the unknown, there's still more out there waiting to be explored, so it's not too late to make your mark and see your name in print next time around! The 2nd edition has also given us a chance to update paddlers on the access legislation that came into force in Scotland in the autumn of 2004, to tell you more about the threat that our wonderful rivers face from new hydro-electric developments and to let you know about the Water Levels Website developed by the SCA to help paddlers find out which rivers are at a good level. I hope you enjoy this guidebook and that, like its predecessor, it will inspire you to try new things, go new places and come back full of the wonder of Scottish white water.

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