Читать книгу The Southern Upland Way. Scotland's Coast to Coast trail онлайн

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When to go

You can walk the SUW at any time of the year, although during the winter months on the upland sections of the Trail, you will need the usual winter hillwalking gear, together with the appropriate experience. When the hills are plastered in snow and ice then crampons and ice axes must be carried. The Southern Uplands may not be the Highlands of the North, but the landscape here is nevertheless often rough and unforgiving, and once off the route of the SUW then few paths and fewer signposts are the norm.

Loch of the Lowes, Tibbie Shiels, and St Mary’s Loch (Stage 10)

Long-distance walkers tackling all or major sections of the route would be wise to confine their activities to the spring, summer or autumn months, from April to October, when the days are longer and the weather conditions are (usually) less severe. Only the hardiest, suitably experienced backpackers should consider walking the SUW in winter. An appreciable amount of the accommodation and other facilities that serve the Way will be closed from November to March, so winter hikers have little alternative than to backpack and camp wild for several nights. For a winter crossing, it is essential to be fully equipped and experienced enough to cope with short daylength, long, cold and dark winter nights, snow and ice on the route, and winter storms. Several of the long cross-country stages between towns and villages cannot be completed in the daylight available in a winter’s day. Nevertheless a winter SUW completion would make for a very special and magical experience for well-equipped and experienced backpackers, but would be way beyond the ‘comfort level’ of most ramblers.