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Hebridean Gurkha
Walking the Outer Isles
Neil Griffiths
ISBN 0-9544416-6-4 pbk £10.99 £5.00
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Gurkhas are not often seen in the Western Isles; perhaps these were the first. Hebridean Gurkha tells the tale of what was to be much more than a walking holiday for Neil and five Gurkhas. As the boys set off in heavy rain across the low peat bogs of Lewis, they were to encounter the rocky hills of Harris before striding along the sweeping white beaches of the Uists under blue skies. Then on to the sand-ringed Isle of Barra where a boatman took them to their journey’s end, Barra Head, in the far south. The wee men from Nepal called it ‘Barra Heaven’.
This is a story of Gaeldom and Buddhism, broadswords and kukris, with the great Highland pipe a constant accompaniment. It involves the search for penguins, haggis and the perfect pool table, Compton MacKenzie and Bonnie Prince Charlie, on the isles where the sea meets the sky, and the Hebrides meet the Himalayas. It is about marching through some of the most dazzling scenery in the world, hearing about its folklore and history, while all the time acquiring more and more islander friends. The Gurkha penchant for laughter, singing, dancing, whisky and tartan all came together in a land that couldn’t be much further from their home.
About the Author
Neil Griffiths is the author of the highly successful Gurkha Reiver: Walking the Southern Upland Way, and Gurkha Highlander: Walking Mallaig to Stonehaven. Both books were acclaimed by Joanna Lumley, much-loved actress and the daughter of a Gurkha Major. Now living in Edinburgh, Griffiths is a former soldier and Fleet Street journalist who has written for The Guardian, The Scotsman, The Glasgow Herald, The Sunday Post, The Sun, The Glasgow Evening Times, The Edinburgh Evening News and many magazines and weekly papers. He is perhaps best known as the press officer for the Scottish Poppy Appeal, The Royal British Legion Scotland, The Gurkha Welfare Trust Scottish Committee and as editor of the Legion’s journal, The Scottish Legion News.