I have a holiday home on the Isle of Arran where I and my wife spend half of the year but have been visiting for decades. I was born and brought up in Girvan so would see Arran and the Sleeping Warrior outline pretty much every day of life.  I now live in Ayr but still see the island on a daily basis.

I've always loved hills and have been a competitive hill runner much of my life.  My children grew up holidaying on Arran and still love it. 

The Isle of Arran is a wonderful place notwithstanding the Scottish weather.   The beaches are wonderful, the wildlife is wonderful, the lochs and rivers are wonderful and the mountains are pretty good too.

My writings concern routes that, in the main, have been missed by the traditional guidebooks.  Routes that are often challenging, maybe dangerous but always fun.

I tend to write in the vernacular because I like to be as informal as possible.  If you struggle with my prose, try to read it with a west coast Scottish accent, a touch of cynicism and a helping of dry humour. 

The first half of the Lesser Known Hill Routesdescribes routes where you may see not another soul as you visit parts of the island generally only viewed on a map.  The second part of the book is all about 'trigging' the trigs.  There are 17 triangulation pillars on Arran.  Some can be reached easily but others are an adventure in themselves.

By the way.  That's not me in the picture above; that's my Springer Spaniel, Alfie who has taken on the role of substitute child in our household since the exodus of the real bairns.  He accompanies me on most of my jaunts where he also accepts the role of personal trainer.

Enjoy.