 JJ - druidh did give the GR...The Cheviot if I'm not mistaken...on the border ;-)
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 I don't happen to have that map at my fingertips so I'm blowed if I knew what that was.
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 All I'd ask for on the routes is to incude more on the history of the place. I like reading about places I'm going to walk, but it means cros-referencing with the Munro Companion, Pocket Mountains, etc etc. A prog like Tir is Teanga [BBC2euchter Thursday] does it well, but they have the advantage of moving pictures.
As to gear, and just to be different, I like the single gear mag. I summarised what's available, and I've found it useful recently when looking for a new light 50L pack.
I did feel put upon when reading my TGO over lunch, stuffing my lardy gut with unhealthy rolls, to read "it's time to look at what's hanging off your front"! Talk about direct marketing.
I hope Mike Harding's not seriously ill, but you managed to dig someone up to fill his slot.
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 JJ... thanks! I owe you a drink if ever you make it out to Colorado.
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Maybe I can make it clearer. I was talking about the featured routes similar to the Utah or Lakes feature, and not step by step routes as in Trail-routes.
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Mike is fine - although we did manage to dig up the remains of James Joyce to write Mike's column for him...
Seriously I did look carefully at this issue, which contains Part 2 of a special Lake District pull-out, and decided it did have Scottish content in Steve's excellent account of his astonishing walk. I don't necessary agree the feature was about him - it was his account of a long walk in Scotland, 6 pages of it. Even more seriously I'm delighted that several of you want more stuff on the Scottish hills because that ties in with my own inclination that Scotland is where the mountains are, although I have a very definite soft spot for the Lake District. Interestingly several people have complained we don't publish enough on Wales, and others complain we don't do enough on the Peak District. Manning complains interminably that we don't do enough on Yorkshire, but hey, we gotta draw the line somewere. As I said previously, we can't please everyone all the time.
On a different theme, someone said earlier they couldn't buy the gear we review. We always publish phone numbers or web addresses of the gear manufacturers - get in touch with them and ask them where the nearest stockist is. As far as ultralight is concerned we will be publishing info on new gear that has become available in the UK, and where you can buy. At the moment it tends to be a handful of retailers some of whom are listed on P95 (The Light Guide) of the current issue. If you want ultralight gear I'd ask you to support these guys who are trying to sell it.
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 Andrew I loved this months article you did in Utah it was great and the photo's were excellent as usual! My Auntie has just taken a place as a ranger in Bryce National Park and is trying to convince me to visit and you've almost convinced me more!
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 Cameron
My comment wasn't aimed at the mag - which as i said gives good reviews of great gear but rather at the 'mainstream shops' who do not appear to want to stock the product.
Researching company websites to check stockists and calling the manufacture is one of the first things we do.
one example Kayland Boots - contact 1000 womens received great reviews in June 2005 issue.
There is one stockist in London who do not always have all sizes in stock, it is a 2 hour drive to the next stockist.
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Kevanliz,
I sympathise with you. It's really one of the big problems the outdoor industry faces. I remember the days when a retailer was only too glad to order an item for you, even if he didn't always stock it. I'm sure some still do.
I am very aware though that much of the stuff we review, particularly the ultralight gear, is not widely available. That's why we are going down the road now of specifically mentioning where you can buy it. Much of this gear is brought into the country by very small retailers and I kinda feel it's good to support them.
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Jamie... thanks.
With a ranger in the family you just have to go and experience the desert!
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 Re: Gear Reviews. I too have experienced the difficulties in getting a hold of many of the brands. While I can appreciate that media coverage = interest = possible growth in sales and therefore wider distribution, I suspect we've all got a Tog24 or similar nearby and these makes are rarely covered.
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I love Scotland's mountains, just like everyone else, but we do need that wider geographic coverage in TGO, and there are areas that deserve to be mentioned more regularly. And let's remember walking and backpacking isn't always about mountains - just done a glorious backpack round the full coast of the Gower Peninsula - that would make an excellent feature. And Shropshire is so under rated - but that's no bad thing since it remains completely unspoilt with ravishing hills and vales. What about a series perhaps looking at different islands off our coasts?
So keep Scottish and Lake District features but also cover unsung areas too and.... less gear reviews (far too many pages these days) and more articles please!
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