LAURENCE MACKINreviews Kamchatkaby Diana Gleadhill and the Lonely Planet guide to Russia
Kamchatka
Diana Gleadhill
Odyssey Publications, £15.95
Kamchatka must number among the world’s few remaining true wildernesses. This extraordinary peninsula, linked to the most eastern part of Russia, is a place of raucous seismic activity where summer sees the hills wreathed in berries and plant life and an arduous winter wraps the countryside in snow and ice. It is to this land of astounding beauty that Diana Gleadhill and her friend Elise travelled while in their 60s. There are no mountain lodges and lakeside villas to stay in; rather, they rough it in tents on the rims of volcanos and make their homes in forests, with only rare birds, wild bears and the fish from the lakes for company. This book is essentially Gleadhill’s charming journal broken up with some more academic chapters on the scientific end of Russia’s land of fire and ice, and a wealth of terrific pictures. It is the breathless account of an intrepid, unmistakably Irish traveller, thrilled with living and moving at the edge of her comfort zone, written with irrepressible good humour and boundless energy.
Russia
Lonely Planet, £19.99
This guide is a little more sober in its treatment of Kamchatka, though no less in awe of it. It doesn’t flinch from the tougher side of Russian life, with plenty of guidance on how to avoid trouble and racism. However, that is no reason to not visit the country, and there are plenty of urban and rural jewels highlighted in this book that would make any trip more than worthwhile. A weighty cultural section is a terrific opener on a country that continues to wrap itself in eastern mystery. There are also good accommodation listings at the affordable end of the scale, which could be particularly useful when visiting Moscow.