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Swimming with Strangers is the journey that began when Lindsey Cole stopped asking Where should I live? and started asking Who wants to go for a swim?Lindsey had spent years chasing adventures. She'd walked across Australia, cycled to the South Africa World Cup and swum the River Thames in a mermaid tail. But when she finally felt ready to settle down, she realised she had no idea where she belonged. As her last single friend got engaged, Lindsey felt lost and left behind. Then her Thames swim went viral after she rescued a drowning cow, and messages began arriving from strangers inviting her for swims and places to stay. Perhaps if she cycled to the Scottish Winter Swimming Championships, staying with swimmers along the way, she might discover somewhere that could feel like home?One invitation became another, and soon Lindsey was cycling thousands of miles across Britain and Ireland, from the most northern beach of Shetland to the Isles of Scilly, swimming in rivers, lochs and seas with people she'd never met, discovering hidden corners of her own country and an extraordinary community stitched together by cold water. It was only meant to take two weeks, but for six months, wherever an invitation came from, Lindsey went. Warm, joyful and uplifting, Swimming with Strangers is a celebration of wild swimming, ordinary kindness and the remarkable people who make Britain's cold water feel like home.

Great Scottish Bike Rides is a guide for cyclists who seek out the hard, the remote and the rewarding. Dave Barter author of bestselling guidebook Great British Bike Rides presents 25 of Scotland's most compelling road cycling routes, linking legendary climbs, long, empty glens and stretches of deserted moorland. These rides demand effort and judgement, where distance, weather and elevation all have a part to play. Tackle the terrifying Wall of Talla and traverse reservoirs in the Scottish Borders, loop round the remote glens of Lochay and Lyon in the shadow of Ben Lawers in the Highlands, and enjoy views of the Cuillin Ridge from Skye's relentlessly steep and challenging roads. You're safe in the knowledge that Dave has carefully designed each route, so each offers unforgettable climbs, quiet roads and stunning scenery. Each ride is accompanied by detailed route information, bespoke mapping, an elevation profile and downloadable GPX files everything you need to ride with confidence. Answer the call of the Highlands and discover the best road cycling in Scotland.

Gravel Rides Loch Lomond & The Trossachs showcases 15 of the best gravel bike rides across the Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park and west into Argyll. From 15 to 177 kilometres in length and covering a variety of terrain, there is something for every gravel cyclist. Immerse yourself in the Gravelfoyle trails around Aberfoyle, the heart of Scottish gravel riding; sample sections of the West Highland Way and John Muir Way, two of Scotland's Great Trails; and take on coastal adventures on Mull, while scanning the skies for Scotland's eagles. Also included is a coast-to-coast challenge, cycling west from the Firth of Forth across the Central Belt into the national park. Researched, ridden and written by Bikepacking Scotland's Markus Stitz, the routes feature clear and easy-to-use Ordnance Survey maps; easy-to-follow directions; details of distance, timings and difficulty gradings; stunning action photography; refreshment stops and local knowledge; and a detailed appendix. Also included is a link to downloadable GPX files.

Gravel Rides Northumberland showcases 15 of the best gravel bike rides across North East England. From 10 to 104 kilometres in length and covering a variety of terrain, there is something for every gravel cyclist. From the gentle beauty of the Reiver Trails and South Tyne Trail to the wild uplands of Kielder and the Cheviots, Gravel Rides Northumberland captures the region's full variety. Riders can enjoy peaceful commons, hidden forests and rolling valleys, with everything from easy lowland spins to remote and challenging routes through the most dramatic and rewarding landscapes of Northumberland and the North Pennines. Researched, ridden and written by local author Jordan Matthews, the routes feature clear and easy-to-use Ordnance Survey maps; easy-to-follow directions; details of distance, timings and difficulty gradings; stunning action photography; refreshment stops and local knowledge; and a detailed appendix. Also included is a link to downloadable GPX files.

In 2019, Siobhan Daniels - also known as the Retirement Rebel - made a life-changing decision: to stop waiting and start living life on her own terms. And she's never looked back. Travelling the UK and Europe in her motorhome Dora the Explora, Siobhan inspires thousands of women with her positive-ageing message. Now, in Retire & Refire, the follow-up to her popular debut book Retirement Rebel, Siobhan takes on her biggest adventure yet at sixty-six years of age: a 4,000-mile solo journey from Canada to Alaska along the legendary Alaska Highway. Leaving Vancouver, she hits the road in a rental RV heading north into the wild in freezing temperatures, yet absolutely ready and capable to face the unpredictability of life on the road. Because her message to women of all ages is this: your strength does not expire do not let fear stop you as you get olderJoin Siobhan as she voyages into this awe-inspiring landscape of soaring peaks, frozen lakes, biting winds and raw beauty, battling the elements yet free from everyday anxieties. If you've ever wondered whether it's too late to change your life, Siobhan's story proves it isn't.

Sir John Laurence 'Jack' Longland (1905-1993) was one of the defining figures of British mountaineering and outdoor education in the twentieth century - a man whose influence reached from the highest mountains of the world to the classrooms, airwaves and policy rooms of post-war Britain. As a young climber, Jack Longland stood at the forefront of adventure. His eponymous climb on Clogwyn Du'r Arddu in North Wales in 1928 the first on the crag's imposing West Buttress confirmed his standing among Britain's leading rock climbers, while his 1930 ascent of Javelin Blade (E1) in Cwm Idwal was ahead of its time in terms of difficulty and boldness. Further from home, he was a member of the 1933 Everest expedition, gaining first-hand experience of the world's highest mountain at a formative moment in Himalayan exploration; after helping to establish camp 6, he famously led his team of Sherpas down to the safety of camp 5 in a storm. His participation in the 1935 Greenland expedition further demonstrated a lifelong appetite for remote and demanding terrain. Yet Longland's greatest legacy is how he connected mountaineering with public service. Appointed director of education for Dorset during the Second World War, and later for Derbyshire from 1949 to 1969, he became a visionary advocate for outdoor learning. In 1950 he founded White Hall, the first local authority outdoor pursuits centre in Britain, establishing a model that transformed access to the outdoors for generations of young people. He was knighted on his retirement in 1970. A respected leader within the climbing world, Longland served as chairman of the Mountain Leadership Training Board and of Plas y Brenin between 1964 and 1980, and as president of the Alpine Club from 1974 to 1976. His authority was matched by a gift for communication: he was a familiar and much-loved voice on BBC Radio, regularly contributing to Any Questions?, as well as chairing Country Questions in the 1940s and 1950s, and My Word! for twenty years from 1957. In A Man for All Mountains, the long-awaited biography of Jack Longland, Mark Lambert profiles a climber, educator and broadcaster united by a single belief: that mountains, landscapes and ideas are at their best when shared.

Essays from the Edge gathers fifty years of selected writing by Dennis Gray, one of British climbing's most influential voices. These twenty-one essays, spanning one of British mountaineering's most exciting periods, provide a compelling narrative of a life studying the art of climbing and of living it first-hand on the cliffs and mountains of the world in the company of some of the sport's most colourful characters of the last century. Vivid portraits anchor the collection: the legendary Joe Brown and Don Whillans, members of the Rock and Ice Club; American pioneers Royal Robbins, Jeff Lowe and Warren Harding; and unsung originals such as the Barley brothers, Robin and Tony. A wide-ranging 1973 interview with climber Allan Austin gives a fascinating insight into the Yorkshire scene of the early 1970s. Dennis's commentary expands to cover other issues, such as the 1932 Kinder Mass Trespass, climbing's debut in the Olympics and the development of modern rock climbing in Belgium. Broad in scope yet precise in observation, Essays from the Edge celebrates the values and spirit of British climbing.

Vertical Pleasure is the first set of climbing memoirs from Mick Fowler - Britain''s hardest-climbing tax inspector, the ''Mountaineer''s Mountaineer'' and recipient of the Piolet d''Or. Vertical Pleasure begins with Fowler''s early teenage years on easy British rock and Swiss 4000m peaks under the guidance of his father. A frenzied spell follows, with climbing worked in around jobs, discos and girlfriends before Fowler takes a job at the tax office and settles in London. Long-distance drives in clapped out mini-vans see him tackle new winter routes in the Scottish Highlands, always managing to return for work on Monday mornings. He dodges vomiting fulmars, sinking boats and over-enthusiastic policemen in the pursuit of first-ascents on remote sea-stacks and crumbling coastal cliffs, and tackles Alpine testpieces as he develops into one of Britain''s finest mountaineers. Along the way, the sport of chalk-climbing is born on the White Cliffs of Dover and a burst and frozen water pipe allows the first winter ascent of St Pancras station in London. It is when he moves in to the Greater Ranges that Fowler really begins to shine. With climbers such as Victor Saunders and Steve Sustad he begins a run of first ascents on peaks like Taulliraju, Spantik and Cerro Kishtwar. Written with a dry sense of humour, Vertical Pleasure is a must read for the enthusiastic rock, winter and Alpine climber - a classic of the genre.

This book describes walks, treks, climbs and caves in the district of Al Ayoun just north of the great castle of Ajloun in North Jordan. It is a region with its own uniquely beautiful forested valleys, flower-covered springtime meadows, orchards, olive groves and sites of antiquity dating back into prehistoric times. Al Ayoun is in beautiful limestone country with walks and treks to cater for all abilities. There is also caving here, including a recently discovered pothole, and new climbs on cliffs that have only just been discovered. All this combined with Jordan's famous hospitality exemplified by the people of Al Ayoun who welcome you to their villages, their homestays, their unsurpassable local food, and to the Ayoun Trail and associated routes in this guide. Within these pages, you will find all there is to know about adventures in Al Ayoun, one of the most beautiful and verdant regions in the Kingdom, where the local people live a quiet rural life, tolerant and understanding of other religions and customs and always with a warm welcome for visitors.