Hi Mike,
I'd tend to agree that most queries on here about long distance trails are to do with logistics - where can I buy food, campsites, pubs,etc.
I do quite a few West Highland Way and CTC trips and these are also the things that people ask about the most when thinking of doing those.
I guess that the problem is making sure that information is up to date, as these things change. Nothing worse than a guidebook with out-of date info.
Things I don't like about existing guidebooks? The format is often not user-friendly in the field once you've stuck the book in a waterproof pouch it's a faff to turn the pages and to fit it in your pocket requires you to fold the spine back and trash the book. Your laminated cards in a box format sounds interesting. One thing I've found on long distance trips is that the background/historical/environmental info can make good reading when not actually walking. So I could imagine following a route card by day having read the background from a book the night before.
Ian
www.mountainfreedom.co.uk
Hi Ian
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
I take on board your comments about out of date info and intend to ensure it's as current as can be with contact info for users to confirm at the time of their travel.
As I intend to continue my current theme of walking cards I am restricted to what will fit on an A5 card without it looking cluttered so hopefully there will be a nice balance between the route guide and additional info on the area itself.
With the idea being to spilt the Coast to Coast walk up into 20 walk cards with approx a days walking on each the faff you speak of with traditional books will be eliminated and as a bonus the walk is easily read from the walk card in its own weatherproof mapcase.
Perhaps it would be an idea to produce guide books in ebook format so they could be updated every few months.Customers can then print the book at home and also have the benefit of not having to worry about damaging the book in the field.I suggested this format to a friend who publishes martial arts books in America and since adopting it his sales have almost quadrupled.We live in an age where people wnat everything on the minute and being able to click on a link and instantly download it catches them before they change their mind and see something else.Ebooks are far cheaper to produce than printed books and any that do get pirated will be offset against the increase in profits.
Thanks tonyk - ebooks are a very interesting idea and something I have given some thought to. Not come to any conclusion how it would work but I suppose it would have to be based around my website where people could download a walk much as they do at the walking mag sites.
Even if you don't go the ebook route could buying the book allow you to link to a website with up to date info?
Most books are small and fat, they fit easily in to your pack but not a map pouch, I would prefer larger pages and therefore overall a thinner book, and spiral bound.
There is a Japanese story telling method (stay with me guys this is culture!) called kamishibai where you have a stack of cards and the information on the back of the back card relates to the picture on the front of the front card. You then move the front card to the back and carry on. The only problem with this is you have to keep the cards in order but it would allow you to more easily move on if they were all in a map pouch than having to turn the pages of a book.
Hi Ridge, Thanks for taking the time to respond. I like the Kamishibai story...When I first started publishing my guides 15 years ago I looked at the spiral bound idea but settled on the laminated walking cards. My current titles have 20 walks in each pack with a seperate walk on each card. This allows the walker to do away with the fat books you speak of in favour of a walk card for that days walking with maybe the relevant OS map as back up.
Great responses - thanks again for your help. Any more ideas will be gratefully received.