Peter Barton

Walking in Torridon

Peter Barton

A guidebook to the best walking routes in the mountains of Torridon in the western Highlands of Scotland. Based around Shieldaig and Slioch, the 52 day walks include easy walks to routes up Torridon's best summits, including 9 Munros.
This book makes Shieldaig its base and covers the 200 square miles south west of Loch Maree and north of the Achnasheen – Achnashellach – Lochcarron road, as well as Slioch and its environs. The guidebook offers a wealth of routes of different grades and differing characters between 2 and 14 miles in length. It is also beautifully illustrated with Peter Barton's original drawings, alongside clear OS map extracts. Routes described include 11 easy walks, 11 long or high-level walks, ascents of 32 summits over 2000ft and 5 outline suggestions for major ridge walks.
The mountains of Torridon rarely have clearly defined paths to their summits, but the many excellent stalkers' paths take walkers deep into wild territory and often give them a flying start. To explore this remote and much-loved area of the Highlands fully you need to be prepared to free-range over heather, grass, rock and marsh and this guide will help you find the best ways across the landscape.

Vimy Ridge and Arras

Peter Barton

In April 1917, Allied guns pounded German positions near Arras with almost three million shells. During the early stages of the succeeding offensive, British and Canadian troops achieved unprecedented advances, capturing a huge swathe of enemy territory, including the famous Vimy Ridge. After the initial shock, however, the Germans quickly recovered to employ inspired battlefield tactics that crushed all hope of breakthrough, despite the injection of Australian military flair. The ultimate cost in human life was immense, with an average daily casualty rate 40 per cent greater than the Somme and almost double that of Passchendaele – making it hour for hour the most treacherous British offensive of the First World War. It stands alone as an example of missed opportunity, wasted lives, defective leadership and poor communication. Yet the determination and doggedness shown by the troops on both sides was breathtaking. In this major new account, Peter Barton showcases over 50 rediscovered British and German panoramic photographs of the battlegrounds. Taken at huge personal risk by specialist photographers, they reveal what no other photographs can – the view beyond the trench parapet – and a view not seen for over 90 years. Also included are many unpublished testimonies, letters, and memoirs, with stunning mapping, plans and diagrams throughout.