The New Forest is hardly the sort of wild or remote place where you would expect to get lost, especially if you are an experienced traveller, but Douglas Botting managed it. 'There were no sounds of civilization to give us a bearing on the outside world, no distinguishable landmarks, just trees, and more trees, and clearings, thickets, groves, gullies leading nowhere in particular, and trees again.' As he explains in this warm and lyrical book, it does not do to underestimate wild Britain. He makes a wonderful job of showing you around, taking you from the broad-leaf woodlands of southern England to the wind-lashed basalt and granite cliffs of the Outer Hebrides. Whether he is celebrating the rolling Yorkshire Dales of his childhood, where the lapwings cried and the bluebottles huzzahed in the cowpats, or engaging with the earth-shattering intricacies of plate tectonics, Douglas Botting is always readable and entertaining. The book also describes in detail where to go fishing, climbing, cycling, caving, riding, camping and even ballooning, and offers some unusual ideas for where to stay, including the time capsule of Kinloch Castle on the Isle of Rhum, intact in every detail down to the scoreboard of its Edwardian billiard room.

About the Author
Douglas Botting is co-founder and General Editor of the Wild Guides series. He has travelled on numerous scientific and filming expeditions to wildernesses around the world and has circumnavigated the 6,000-mile coast of the British mainland twice on assignment for the BBC and The Times. He has won acclaim for his recent biography of Gerald Durrell, the conservationist and author of My Family and Other Animals.

Reviews
'Will be enjoyed by everyone who hopes to find unspoiled places off the tourist path.' - The Times. 'Book of the Week... There's plenty of relish in Douglas Botting's text and lots of information about where to stay, what to take and which maps are best.' - The Observer. 'You are put in the places that are mentioned through a blend of expert storytelling and information.' - TNT Magazine.



Book Information
ISBN 9781873329313
Author Douglas Botting
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Sheldrake Press
Publisher Sheldrake Press
Weight(grams) 425g