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Review
A useful guide.
--The Independent, October 2011
All the info you need.
--Wanderlust magazine, November 2011
Fully updated and includes downloadable GPS waypoints. --Strider, December 2011
--The Independent, October 2011
All the info you need.
--Wanderlust magazine, November 2011
Fully updated and includes downloadable GPS waypoints. --Strider, December 2011
Product Description
The Offa s Dyke Path is a superb national trail that runs from the North Wales coast to the Severn Estuary following the line of Offa s Dyke, an impressive 8th century earthwork along the English/Welsh border. The ever-changing landscape the Clwydian Range, the Shropshire Hills, the Black Mountains and the Wye Valley is steeped in history and legend providing 177 miles of fascinating walking. The guide includes: 87 large-scale walking maps; itineraries for all walkers; practical information for all budgets - guides to 52 towns and villages showing where to stay, where to eat, what to see, plus detailed street plans; comprehensive public transport information; flora and fauna four page full colour flower guide, plus an illustrated section on local wildlife; green hiking; and GPS waypoints.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Trailblazer have released a new edition of their Offa's Dyke Guidebook, to coincide with the path's 40th Birthday - being celebrated by Monmouthshire County Council on 23rd September in Chepstow - the end/start of the path.
This third edition has been re-walked and re-worked by Keith Carter, make sure you look out for the 3rd Edition star in the bottom right hand corner, or you could end up buying the old edition.
The guide weighs in at 297g, which isn't lightweight in any way, but as anyone who is familiar with Trailblazer guides will know, they use good quality, heavy grain paper that won't dissolve like tissue paper and they are remarkably sturdy and won't fall to bits the first time you bend the spine.
This is a traditional Trailblazer guide in every way - there are a minimum of colour pages - just a few interspersed through the book for detailing flora and fauna and one or two scenery shots. But I'm a big believer in keeping things simple and by reducing the colour to a minimum, Trailblazer are able to pack so much more detail in here for the much less than the price of the National Trail guide for example.
As with all recent Trailblazer releases, there are GPS waypoints and a supporting website that will keep readers up to date with any changes to the book or the route subsequent to publishing. At the time of writing this review the update page relates to the 2nd Edition, but this will be changed after publication.
The real problem with the Offa's Dyke Path is the lack of a cost effective baggage courier along the route. There are plenty of companies who will arrange the whole holiday for you, but only one company that does baggage transfer and that charges about £30 per day - probably more expensive than your accommodation. The Trailblazer guide walks you through the alternatives, from using taxis, to recruiting the help of B&B owners through to offering advice on how to effectively carry all your own gear.
All the usual planning and preparation are included in the guide - all updated for 2011. A number of alternative walking itineraries are included too, so you should be able to find a pace to suit yourself.
I've saved the best to last of course - the maps. I've reviewed a few Trailblazer guides now and the maps are a joy to behold - I'd love to meet the person who does them - they're a true artist. The detail is perfect - all the detail you need close to the path and none of the fluff that surrounds it. Compare these to the National Trail guide - which uses OS 1:25k scale mapping and the difference is startling - even at 1:25k scale the route is often hard to follow. There are so many changes of direction, fields to cross, sunken lanes, wooded tracks, but the Trailblazer maps show them all clearly. There are something like 600-700 stiles on the path, which shows how many field boundaries you are going to cross. I for one would take the Trailblazer maps any day, even over the OS version.
This third edition has been re-walked and re-worked by Keith Carter, make sure you look out for the 3rd Edition star in the bottom right hand corner, or you could end up buying the old edition.
The guide weighs in at 297g, which isn't lightweight in any way, but as anyone who is familiar with Trailblazer guides will know, they use good quality, heavy grain paper that won't dissolve like tissue paper and they are remarkably sturdy and won't fall to bits the first time you bend the spine.
This is a traditional Trailblazer guide in every way - there are a minimum of colour pages - just a few interspersed through the book for detailing flora and fauna and one or two scenery shots. But I'm a big believer in keeping things simple and by reducing the colour to a minimum, Trailblazer are able to pack so much more detail in here for the much less than the price of the National Trail guide for example.
As with all recent Trailblazer releases, there are GPS waypoints and a supporting website that will keep readers up to date with any changes to the book or the route subsequent to publishing. At the time of writing this review the update page relates to the 2nd Edition, but this will be changed after publication.
The real problem with the Offa's Dyke Path is the lack of a cost effective baggage courier along the route. There are plenty of companies who will arrange the whole holiday for you, but only one company that does baggage transfer and that charges about £30 per day - probably more expensive than your accommodation. The Trailblazer guide walks you through the alternatives, from using taxis, to recruiting the help of B&B owners through to offering advice on how to effectively carry all your own gear.
All the usual planning and preparation are included in the guide - all updated for 2011. A number of alternative walking itineraries are included too, so you should be able to find a pace to suit yourself.
I've saved the best to last of course - the maps. I've reviewed a few Trailblazer guides now and the maps are a joy to behold - I'd love to meet the person who does them - they're a true artist. The detail is perfect - all the detail you need close to the path and none of the fluff that surrounds it. Compare these to the National Trail guide - which uses OS 1:25k scale mapping and the difference is startling - even at 1:25k scale the route is often hard to follow. There are so many changes of direction, fields to cross, sunken lanes, wooded tracks, but the Trailblazer maps show them all clearly. There are something like 600-700 stiles on the path, which shows how many field boundaries you are going to cross. I for one would take the Trailblazer maps any day, even over the OS version.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I think this book is the 'bible' when it comes to walking Offa's Dyke. I and 2 friends had limited time to do the walk but managed to walk several sections between Sedbury Cliffs and Prestatyn with the aid of this book. Between us we had OS maps and other Offa's Dyke material that we had also purchased especially for this walk but because of the confusion with the other material kept referring back to this book to check the routes etc. After only a few miles along the route we ditched the other maps/aids in favour of this book which proved to be worth its weight in gold. The detail in the book is excellent and has obviously been meticulously researched(styles, paths across fields and even the location of where you can refill your water bottle en-route - you don't get that on an OS map!). Incidentally, if we had any comment to make it was the direction of the book - we walked what is considered the traditional and 'normal' direction of South to North. The book is written North to South and we would've preferred it if the book had been written the other way round. In fact when you look into this particular walk and discover that S to N is the usual route you wonder (despite the author's explanation) why on earth he didn't write it S to N in the first place as there are more people walking S to N than the other way round and I would've thought the book would've sold more if it was indeed S to N, BUT the author has included ALL the information needed for BOTH directions, so don't be put off buying this. We just used the maps in reverse, i.e. started from the back of the book. We had no problems at all using the book 'in reverse', and with the easy map numbering, it was quick to find the relevent page in the book while walking. We would highy recommend this book to anyone thinking of walking Offa's Dyke.
The reason most people walk S to N is so that you have the sun and the wind behind you - better photography and views as well as more comfortable walking with the wind generally pushing you ahead!. N to S you'll be walking into the sun which even when wearing sunglasses is not pleasant and also you'll be walking into a general headwind. The only reason I haven't given 5 stars is because of the book's direction. The information within the book deserves a full 5 stars but I wish the suthor had stuck with tradition and printed it S to N. Had he done so, I would happily scored 5 stars.
The reason most people walk S to N is so that you have the sun and the wind behind you - better photography and views as well as more comfortable walking with the wind generally pushing you ahead!. N to S you'll be walking into the sun which even when wearing sunglasses is not pleasant and also you'll be walking into a general headwind. The only reason I haven't given 5 stars is because of the book's direction. The information within the book deserves a full 5 stars but I wish the suthor had stuck with tradition and printed it S to N. Had he done so, I would happily scored 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I bought this book after using the Coast to Coast Guide from the same series. I haven't actually walked Offa's Dyke yet but so far this looks as good as the Coast to Coast version - which was brilliant, with really helpful diagrams and descriptions to help you through some of the navigationally more tricky sections. I also found the timings they suggested for each section of the walk generally fairly accurate. The only thing it doesn't have is OS style maps included, however I carried actual OS maps on the walk (as I was worried about getting lost and wandering off the strip map), so this did not bother me. Overall, I would definitely recommend this series of books for anyone considering a long distance walk.
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