ETHICAL TRAVELLER:AS THE days shorten our capacity to have days out or weekends away shrinks. It is no coincidence, therefore, that the pile of books beside my bed seems to grow at this time of year, as I mollify my winter moroseness through reading about places I dream of visiting when the skies brighten. I also obsess about winter walking routes – the ones I can do before darkness falls.
It was during one of these literary love-ins that I was struck by the amount of fine writing about our countryside and so I feel a need to defend travel writing or nature interpretation which often gets derided by academics. Bill Buford, when editor of the literary Grantamagazine, once described travel writing as the "beggar of literary forms".
However, not only is travel writing growing, it also teaches tourists to be more responsible in their travels. And I don't just mean the greats – Bryson, Theroux or Murphy – it's people like Tony Kirby (heartofburrenwalks.com) whose The Burren and The Aran Islands(Collins Press, 2009) not only increases your knowledge of the region's geology, flora, fauna, history, farming and folklore, but also brings simple beauty to life through words.
Or how about Zoë Devlin's just published Wildflowers of Ireland - A Personal Record(Collins Press, 2011) where, on the yellow-rattle flower, she writes: "I first recorded this species in 1976 at Rossadillisk, County Galway. The plants were flowering in a beautiful old meadow by the sea, jostling for space among a number of other wildflowers, all crowded together, their heads swaying and tossing in the breeze. The hidden corncrakes were calling 'crex crex' and it seemed as if time had passed it by altogether."
Bird lovers will love The Complete Guide to Ireland's Birdsby Eric Dempsey and Michael O'Clery – it has been in print for almost 20 years and has been updated in The Complete Field Guide to Ireland's Birds,another Gill Macmillan production.
Irish Wildlife Trust's magazine has contributions from many nature experts. If you sign up for annual membership (€35) you get four seasonal editions. Some of the best nature libraries to be found are those on shelves of my favourite Irish places to stay. At Inis Meáin Restaurant Suites (inismeain.com), a copy of Nature Guide to the Aran Islandsby Con O'Rourke (Lilliput Press, 2005) is in all the rooms. At Cnoc Suain in Spiddal (cnocsuain.com), the favourite book from botanist owner Charlie Troy's library is Ireland: A Smithsonian Natural Historyby Michael Viney (Blackstaff Press Ltd, 2003).
Kayaking and marine life expert Jim Kennedy of Atlantic Sea Kayaking in west Cork (atlanticseakayaking.com) never goes out on the water without a copy of Ireland's Sea Shoreby Matt Murphy of Sherkin Island Marine Station (sherkinmarine.ie).
Apps and podcasts are also bringing expert voices to life and, as much as I love books, the addition of a warm, knowledgeable voice can really enhance a trip. A great gift for visiting family members at Christmas, check out the free downloadable walking apps from Navigatour (navigatour.ie), whose founder, Donegal man John Ward, knows all the nooks, crannies and interesting characters you would hope to discover along, for example, the Blackwater Valley, the Warren Point looped walk in Roscommon and the towns of Donegal, Cashel and Sligo.
Similarly, Ingenious Ireland (ingeniousireland.ie) has a lively set of downloadable podcasts by Mary Mulvihill, whose superb knowledge of science and architecture is matched by her gift for storytelling. With audio tours which include the Botanic Gardens, the Hill of Tara and one of Dún Laoghaire Harbour and East Pier, her eclectic knowledge and gift for words will brighten up many a winter walk.
- Ethicaltraveller.net, twitter.com/catherinemack