Inshore Britain by Stuart Fisher

Published 2006 by Imray

Paperback

ISBN 978-085288906-0

Price £29.50

Stuart Fisher is well known as the editor of White Water magazine, which turned into Canoeist, one of Britain’s most respected paddling magazines. In the spring of 1989 he published his first coastal guide to sea kayaking around Britain, which was part of west Cornwall. In the next 15 years he paddled around the British coastline.

This was no sprint or continuous journey but a 15 year odyssey during which time Stuart explored the coast, probably in more detail than any of the other sea kayakers who have circumnavigated Britain. He divided the coast into 62 sections, aiming to complete 4 each year. His regular articles in Canoeist were both informative and readable, so this collection of the original articles is a real pleasure to discover.

Even if you have all the issues of Canoeist, sifting through each to find the appropriate guide is possible but not that convenient so the release of this volume should interest all sea kayakers as well as other water users.

The book is an invaluable source of a wide variety of information including campsites, youth hostels, tidal constants and references to appropriate charts and O.S. maps. The details are easy to find in distinctive boxes but these are just bare facts and are accessible elsewhere. What makes this book interesting is Stuart’s descriptive writing of his journey around the coast. Another highly useful feature is the comprehensive index, ensuring that it is easy to locate the particular area that interests you.

The historical, geographical and human background to the coastline is revealed by his extensive research. There are some paddling references such as Cockleshell Heroes in northwest Devon but this is not the main focus of the book. Stuart describes the more general features, such as historic shipyards, the fishing industries and lighthouses to name just three. It is the nature of these stories, which will ensure that the book will appeal to a wide variety of water users, not just sea kayakers.

There is plenty of information which would prove useful for passage planning, such as the time and direction of tidal flows which are always referenced to Dover. One slightly irritating aspect of the book is that all the speeds are quoted in kilometres per hour, whereas as a general rule most sea kayakers use knots for their navigation and all other sources of tidal information will be given in knots.

This not a book for you to take out on a trip - rather a lavish volume which you will return to time and again whilst searching for inspiration at home. The numerous colour photographs stimulating thoughts of potential future journeys. All of the photographs, except for 10, were taken by Stuart and represent a remarkable record of the coastal scenery of the British Isles because so many of them could only have been taken from a craft as versatile as a sea kayak.

Stuart Fisher is a name that has been at the forefront of kayaking literature for many years because of his involvement with Canoeist magazine. The publication of this book should ensure that his name remains well known for years to come because it is an essential volume for anybody who is interested in sea kayaking in Britain.

Kevin Mansell