Railway Walks by Julia Bradbury

Armchair Walking.
Review by Maryom

This is walking the way I like it - lovely scenery, interesting historical surroundings, firm tracks but away from traffic and, above all, nice and flat ( well, most of the time)!

Railway Walks is the tie-in to the TV series of the same name and covers 6 walks of varying distances from 7 to 23 miles: The Coast to Coast Trail in Cornwall, The Monsal Trail in Derbyshire, Callander to Loch Tay in Perthshire, Dolgellau to Barmouth in Snowdonia, The Strathspey Railway and the Rodwell Trail, Weymouth - all taking you through beautiful countryside.
There are maps and instructions to find your way with, but this is not a mere book of directions only suitable for the avid walker nor one solely of interest to the railway enthusiast. Yes, it's full of interesting nuggets of history about the building, use and decline of the railways - but also of the countryside they pass through - from the distilleries of Scotland to remote WW2 training camps on the Mawddach estuary to Derbyshire's dark mills - and characters associated with them - from Richard Trevithick, inventor of the steam-engine to George Marples, former owner of Thornbridge hall in Derbyshire who insisted on building himself a private railway station, 500 yards from the public one! There are many photographs taken of and along each route so you can follow without leaving the comfort of your armchair.

A fascinating book (dare I say 'Christmas present') for anyone with an interest in the often overlooked history of our countryside - whether they're a keen walker or an 'armchair' one.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars
Publisher - Frances Lincoln
Genre - Adult's Non-Fiction

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