Christmas Gift Guide 2025
With winter upon us we’re finally feeling the time to slow down and soak up snow-dusted peaks, quiet trails, and long evenings that invite reflection or a new burst of creativity. It’s the perfect time to share stories and fuel inspiration, so we’ve gathered a selection of our books that makes festive gifting simple. Whether you’re buying for a seasoned climber or someone who simply loves to explore wild places, you’ll find something here to bring some new adventures and broad horizons to their year ahead.
Photo journeys to inspiring places
Equally at home on a coffee table or a bothy bookshelf, these books showcase the work of talented creative adventurers from some of the wildest places in the UK.
Northern Horizons
Will Herman’s stunning ode to the mountains of Cumbria and Scotland, the culmination of a life-long passion for exploring and experiencing the places closest to home, and award winner at the 2025 Banff Mountain Festival. Northern Horizons combines stunning photography with personal essays and route information for 32 original journeys in wild, remote reaches. Finlay Wild said ‘Like the quieter corners of the rugged mountains of Scotland and Cumbria it vividly describes, this book is to be relished – I loved it, and I’m feeling very inspired.’ In other words, Northern Horizons is the perfect gift to be devoured between courses at Christmas, we reckon.
The Great Mixed Climbs of Scotland
The Great Mixed Climbs of Scotland follows on from Guy’s first epic photo book, The Great Sea Cliffs of Scotland. This time he’s teamed up with award-winning adventure photographer Hamish Frost for this incredible new anthology, showcasing evocative essays and breathtaking photography that capture the spirit, history and community of Scottish winter climbing. The book is also the culmination of an incredible community effort, bringing together a collection of voices from both acclaimed and lesser-known climbers, with contributions from Dave Cuthbertson, Nick Bullock, Simon Richardson, Greg Boswell, Ines Papert and many more. Also available in a limited edition slipcase for an extra special gift this Christmas.
The Great Sea Cliffs of Scotland
The Great Sea Cliffs of Scotland is the 2021 Banff Mountain Book Award-winning anthology of outrageous climbing adventures from 26 of the most extraordinary sea cliffs across Scotland. From the farthest-flung sandstone sea stacks of the northern isles to the granite playground of the Aberdeenshire coast, via the intricate archipelago of the Hebrides, all major sea cliffs on the Scottish mainland and surrounding islands are covered in five distinct sections. Each area is described in rich detail and accompanied by personal accounts that offer an intimate perspective of the distinctive nature of this unique environment, and the generous rewards for those willing to accept the challenge of these seemingly improbable lines.
Stories from mountaineering legends
Autobiographies and biographies from some of the most iconic contributors to climbing (in the UK and beyond) as we know it today.
Harold Raeburn: The Steps of a Giant
Harold Raeburn was one of Scotland’s greatest ever mountaineers, with a legacy of prized lines scattered far and wide across the Highlands. With extracts from Raeburn’s own elegant writings and accounts from his friends and climbing companions, The Steps of a Giant is an intimate portrait of a master craftsman, chronicling his outstanding mountaineering record while digging beneath the surface of his modest reserve to reveal a complex, driven character upon whose shoulders subsequent generations of climbing luminaries stand.
One Man’s Legacy: Tom Patey
One Man’s Legacy chronicles the brief but brilliant life of Dr Tom Patey: bard, musician, and one of Scotland’s foremost climbers and mountaineers. By drawing on Patey’s essays and verses, published collectively in the celebrated One Man’s Mountains, the narrative is imbued with dry wit and gentle satire, and brought to life by unseen images from renowned photographer John Cleare and the Patey family archive. Supported by a foreword from Mick Fowler and first-hand insights from some of the leading climbers of the last century, including Sir Chris Bonington, Joe Brown and Paul Nunn, One Man’s Legacy celebrates a complex, larger-than-life character who rightly deserves his place in mountaineering history. This book was shortlisted for Mountain Literature at the Banff Mountain Book Festival in 2023.
Tears of the Dawn
In Boardman Tasker winning Tears of the Dawn, Jules Lines, Britain’s most accomplished free solo climber, gives a rare and candid glimpse into the mind of one of climbing’s most audacious and determined legends. With eloquence and unexpected humility, Lines recounts triumphs, tribulations, friendships, romances and, perhaps most poignantly of all, his close encounters with death. It is a journey like no other, leaving the reader breathless, on edge, and dreaming of mountain tops and adventure.
Stocking fillers
Pocket-sized volumes perfect for tucking into a stocking – including our exciting launch from this year of our very first children’s book!
I Don’t Do Mountains!
I Don’t Do Mountains is a thrilling adventure set in the Cairngorms, perfect for ages 8 – 12, written by award-winning local author Barbara Henderson. In her vivid first-person narrative, readers accompany reluctant adventurer Kenzie and her friends to travel to the windy peaks of Scotland’s wilderness, and survive, even thrive. “Henderson’s eco-adventure kept me turning the pages faster and faster. Just when I thought the stakes couldn’t get any higher, they did! A brilliant story with all the right ingredients.” Gill Lewis, Author
Cairngorms Scene & Unseen
A delightful short book packed with fascinating tales from the Cairngorms, and one of the best original accounts of Scotland’s bothy culture. A Lovat Scout, Syd Scroggie was a true man of the hills and an ‘inveterate scribbler’. Despite losing his sight and one leg a fortnight before the end of the Second World War, he returned to the Scottish mountains with companions and summited over 600 hills well into his 80s. Syd is frequently quoted as saying, ‘I can do without my eyes, but I can’t do without my mountains,’ and his rich, vivid descriptions of his beloved Cairngorms speak of an insight that transcends the corporeal.
Highland Scrambles North
This excellent guide describes some of the best scrambles and easy rock climbs in the North-West Highlands of Scotland, the Outer Hebrides and Rum. With 200 routes stretching from Sutherland in the north to Glenfinnan in the south, and from Uist in the west to Caithness in the east, its scope and range offer scrambling options across all levels and rock types. Keen hillwalkers can build their confidence on straightforward itineraries with a bit of exposure, and there’s plenty to whet the appetites of those who already have some experience and want to explore new territory on sustained, technical journeys requiring greater commitment.
Guidebooks for rock, snow, ice and trail
From mountain tops to ancient tracks, these guidebooks are guaranteed to inspire your nearest and dearest to reach new heights and explore wild new terrain in 2026.
Ski Mountaineering in Scotland
The definitive guide to exploring Scotland’s mountains by ski or snowboard. This fully-revised edition builds on the original guide first published almost 40 years ago in 1987, capturing the timeless thrill and challenge of ski mountaineering in one of the world’s most unique and technically challenging winter environments. The new guide offers detailed route descriptions and planning advice for over 140 tours, from short outings on individual peaks to extended traverses, including for some, the epic Scottish high-level route. Covering terrain from the gentle slopes of Galloway to the rugged western ranges, the Cairngorm plateau, and the remote mountains of the far north, this is a definitive resource for winter adventurers of all levels.
The Corbetts
The much-anticipated revised edition of the Scottish Mountaineering Club’s original guidebook, describing the best walking routes on Scotland’s 222 Corbetts. Standing between 2,500 and 3,000 feet and bounded on all sides with a descent of at least 500 feet, these hills are distinctly separated from their neighbours, providing excellent less-trodden journeys in some of the finest wild landscapes. Available for pre-order now, and expected to arrive mid-December. If it looks like this won’t be possible, we’ll have a downloadable Gift Certificate available you can email or print and pop in a card instead!
The Munros
This fully revised fourth edition of the Scottish Mountaineering Club’s original and best-selling guidebook The Munros describes the best walking routes on Scotland’s 282 mountains above 3,000ft. Comprehensive descriptions in this definitive guide recommend ascent and descent routes for each of the Munros and their 226 subsidiary Tops, with maps of the peaks and principal surrounding hills to help you plan the most enjoyable journeys through Scotland’s wild landscape. The descriptions are brought to life throughout with vivid photography that illustrates the dramatic beauty of these much-loved mountains.
The Cairngorms & North-East Scotland
Shortlisted in the guidebook category at the Banff Mountain Book Festival 2024, this new book, written by Iain Young, Anne Butler and Heather Morning, sheds new light on the Cairngorms & North-East Scotland. It’s aimed at those wanting a deeper appreciation of this unique region of Scotland, encouraging enjoyment at a slower pace. It’s an ode to the wonder of these mountains and their surrounding uplands, amongst whose nooks, crannies and sweeping plains newcomers and aficionados alike will find inspiration for journeys of all lengths and a bewitching sense of space and timelessness. The book contains routes for 169 Munros, Corbetts, Grahams & other hills described, maps for almost every route and hill, as well as chapters on long distance walks and passes through the mountains, insights into the flora, fauna, geology, stories, people and history of the area, and sublime photography throughout.
Scottish Hill Tracks
Scottish Hill Tracks is a unique resource describing 350 routes for walkers, cyclists, riders and runners to explore the paths, old roads and rights of way which criss-cross Scotland’s hill country, from the Borders to Caithness and on the surrounding islands. This rich, sprawling network journeys through farmland and forest, moorland and coastline, bladed ridges and high plateaux, deep glaciated glens and peatlands—and much else besides. This guide is an essential companion for anyone with a keen interest in Scotland’s cultural heritage and for whom wide horizons, wild places and adventure beckon.
Lowland Outcrops
From Ayrshire, into the Central Belt and up to the Stirlingshire hills, the Lowland regions of Scotland are within easy travel distance of its two main cities and the majority of its climbing population. Though perhaps lacking the grandeur of the Highlands, the Lowlands make up for this in variety and accessibility with dolerite quarries, adventurous greywacke sea-cliffs and basalt test-pieces. With over 1,900 trad, sport and bouldering routes, from esoteric gems to world-classics, the area holds something for everyone. Compiled and updated by local activists, this new guide presents the best that the Lowlands have to offer. With colour photographic topos throughout, inspiring action shots, detailed maps, public transport and accessibility details, it’s designed for both seasoned climbers and those taking their first steps onto outdoor crags.
Scottish Winter Climbs West
Covering not only the classic winter climbing venues of Glen Coe and Ben Nevis, but spanning the Southern Uplands all the way to the rugged hinterland of Knoydart and Glen Shiel beyond, Scottish Winter Climbs West is a grand tour of the best winter climbing destinations across western Scotland. With over 1,300 routes and an abundance of new lines covering both familiar and lesser-known crags, its scope and range offers options for climbing across all levels and styles and in almost all conditions.
Cover image: Tom Southworth on Beinn a’Chrùlaiste. © Al Todd (Ski Mountaineering in Scotland)