The Hidden Ways


Book Description

Shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards In The Hidden Ways, Alistair Moffat traverses the lost paths of Scotland. Down Roman roads tramped by armies, warpaths and pilgrim routes, drove roads and rail roads, turnpikes and sea roads, he traces the arteries through which our nation's lifeblood has flowed in a bid to understand how our history has left its mark upon our landscape. Moffat's travels along the hidden ways reveal not only the searing beauty and magic of the Scottish landscape, but open up a different sort of history, a new way of understanding our past by walking in the footsteps of our ancestors. In retracing the forgotten paths, he charts a powerful, surprising and moving history of Scotland through the unremembered lives who have moved through it.




The Drove Roads of Scotland


Book Description

One of the great classics of Scottish history, The Drove Roads of Scotland interweaves folklore, social comment and economic history in a fascinating account of Scotland's droving trade and the routes by which cattle and sheep were brought from every corner of the land to markets in central Scotland. In pastoral Scotland, the breeding and movement of livestock were fundamental to the lives of the people. The story of the drove roads takesthe reader on an engrossing tour of Scottish history, from the lawless cattle driving by reivers in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the legitimate movement of stock which developed after the Union of the Crowns, by which time the large-scale movement of stock to established markets had become an important part of Scotland's economy, and a vital aspect of commercial life in the Empire.




The Military Roads in Scotland


Book Description

This text is a history of the military roads in both the Highlands and the south-west of Scotland. It offers an account of the building of the roads, and includes details of the difficulties encountered and the construction techniques used by General Wade and his lesser-known successor, Major Caulfield. This information is supported by a description of the military roads that have survived to the present day, accompanied by maps and references.



















The Wee Mad Road


Book Description

Lovesick sheep, rumors of war, storms at sea, whisky galore - a midlife escape from an 'empty nest' in America to start afresh in the wilds of Scotland.When their children grow up and leave home, authors Jack and Barbara Maloney sell their house in a midwest suburb and run off to the Highlands. Following a one-lane track called "The Wee Mad Road," they discover an isolated remnant of traditional Gaelic culture, peopled by characters as unique and memorable as the surrounding mountains. The Maloneys settle into an old stone cottage and spend two years in repeated collisions with quaint Highland ways. Entries from Barbara's diary detail the realities of village life, while Jack recounts tales of poachers, crofters and lairds in one of mainland Britain's most scenic and isolated corners.The Wee Mad Road is a warm and witty account of two years in the Highlands, with illustrations of everyday life in the wildest reaches of the United Kingdom. It's a 'how to' book for anyone who dreams of escaping the doldrums of suburban midlife and starting over.




Scotland's Magazine


Book Description