UKC

Stocking fillers: twenty gift ideas for the outdoor inclined Deal Of The Month

Wondering what to buy that certain someone who’d prefer to be braving the winter weather than snaffling mince pies this Christmas afternoon? We’ve selected twenty Vertebrate books – well, nineteen plus one series – that would make ideal festive gifts for people who’d rather be outdoors. For details of our special Christmas discount, scroll down to the bottom ...

Day Walks in the Lake District

Perfect for … Novice walkers or seasoned strollers seeking some truly memorable days out on the Lake District's well-worn valley tracks or moreland and mountain tops.

What’s inside? Day Walks in the Lake District is the second title in our series of compact and portable hillwalking guidebooks. This book showcases twenty circular day-length walks in the Lake District, between 5 and 13 miles (8 and 21 kilometres) in length. The routes are split into four geographical areas – North, East, South and West – and include walks from the main tourist bases, such as Keswick and Ambleside, as well as sought after peaks, such as Scafell Pike, Great Gable, Blencathra and Helvellyn. Also included for the adventurous are the Lake District's best known scrambles – Striding Edge on Helvellyn and Sharp Edge on Blencathra – together with more accessible alternatives.

Walking South Yorkshire

Perfect for … Walkers looking to discover some of Yorkshire’s rich but little-known heritage of ancient woodland.

What’s inside? A collection of thirty circular walks – between two and eight miles in length – that explores the ancient woodland and rural visitor attractions around Sheffield, Rotherham and Barnsley. Attractions visited include; Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wentworth Castle Gardens, Stainborough Park, Cannon Hall Museum and many more. Written by a local walker, each walk features detailed route directions, combined with a thorough insight into the county’s rich, yet little-known heritage of ancient woodland. All walks feature Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 maps and information on public transport, car parking, history, refreshments and terrain.

Lake District Trail Running

Perfect for … Runners of all abilities who want to get off the road and explore one of the world’s most beautiful landscapes.

What’s inside? A comprehensive guide to off-road running in the Lake District National Park. With twenty runs, from 5.1 kilometres to 17 kilometres in length, author and experienced trail runner Helen Mort has collected together twenty of her favourite Lakeland runs, from low-lying and scenic lakeside cruises, to steep mountain climbs and remote and wild enchainments. Features clear and easy to use Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 maps, easy to follow directions, details of distance and timings, refreshment stops and local knowledge, and a detailed appendix.

Good Run Guide

Perfect for … Runners of all abilities wanting to discover more about an area while on holiday or those who just enjoy using running as a way to explore.

What’s inside? A companion to the great running to be found in some of the most scenic locations of England and Wales. Experienced runners Louise Piears and Andy Bickerstaff – two of the founders of the Good Run Guide, the UK’s leading independent running website – have hand-picked forty of their favourite runs. Ranging in length from 3.4 to 10.7 miles (5.4 to 17.2 kilometres), there are routes for runners of all ability and fitness levels, on a range of surfaces.

1001 Climbing Tips

Perfect for … Experienced climbers seeking a somewhat off-the-wall instruction manual.

What’s inside? Based on three decades of Andy Kirkpatrick’s climbing obsession, this is a massive collection of all those little tips that make a real difference when at the crag, in the mountains or when you are planning your next big trip. The book is broken down into the following sections: Basics, Safety, Big Wall, Ice, Mixed, Mountains and Stuff!

1865: The Golden Age of Mountaineering

Perfect for … Mountaineers with an interest in alpinism’s most triumphant era.

What’s inside? Illustrated with 350 photographs and illustrations and lavishly produced, this is a documentation of what Reverend W.A.B. Coolidge called the ‘golden age of alpinism’ – the era of the first great guides and the successful first ascents of the Aiguille Verte, the Matterhorn, and the Brenva face of Mont Blanc. From the Wetterhorn in 1854 to the Matterhorn in 1865 – from triumph to tragedy – the Alps were conquered in a decade.

Chris Bonington Mountaineer

Perfect for … Anyone with a passion for exploration, mountains or climbing.

What’s inside? A photographic autobiography, documenting over sixty years of climbing the world’s most beautiful and challenging mountains. In this 2016 revised, updated and extended edition featuring over 500 photographs, we are given a frank perspective into the surreal, majestic and occasionally tragic corners of his incredible mountaineering career. Whether in the Arctic, the jungle or on an 8,000-metre peak, Bonington’s stunning photography and engaging conversational prose take us through the detail of daily life on expedition, the action of the climbing and the grandeur of the mountains.

Peak Rock

Perfect for … Climbers interested in the history of climbing in the Peak District and developments in trad and sport climbing and bouldering.

What’s inside? A celebration of significant developments at the cutting edge of rock climbing in the Peak District, from the day that James W. Puttrell first set foot on rock at Wharncliffe in the late nineteenth century, through to modern-day ascents on the area’s gritstone and limestone crags. Meticulously researched and written by a team of local authors, this is the story of the sharp end of Peak District climbing as told through the words of many of the Peak’s – and the world’s – top climbers, including: James W. Puttrell, Jack Longland, Joe Brown, Don Whillans, Ed Drummond, Tom Proctor and many more.

Alps Mountain Biking

Perfect for … Mountain bikers of all tastes and abilities who want to plan a great riding trip in the Alps.

What’s inside? A guide to the western Alps. The book reveals epic rocky descents, high-altitude blasts and hidden Alpine singletrack, all set against a backdrop of snowy peaks, pine forests and clear blue skies. This is some of the greatest singletrack, enduro and downhill riding the mountains have to offer.

Great Britain Mountain Biking

Perfect for … Mountain bikers wanting a go-to guide covering the best routes Britain has to offer.

What’s inside? A comprehensive area-by-area guide to the best of British mountain biking. Authors Tom Fenton and Andy McCandlish have compiled everything you need to know about the best places to ride mountain bikes in England, Scotland and Wales – the ideal companion for planning weekends away. The book is split into four sections – Southern England, Northern England, Wales and Scotland. Within each area is a detailed introduction, advice on what kind of riding to expect and when to go. Each area includes at least one featured route – fifty-six in total – complete with introduction, information pull-out box, route directions and Ordnance Survey map, together with suggestions for further rides (around 200 rides in total!), with beautiful photography throughout.

Traffic-Free Cycle Trails

Perfect for … Parents planning safe rides with children and novice riders looking to escape traffic.

What’s inside? The fully updated third edition of the popular guidebook contains more than 400 cycle routes around Britain. Written by Nick Cotton this book includes a great variety of routes on former railway paths, canal towpaths and forest trails in England, Scotland and Wales. Presented in an easy to use format and packed with useful information in regional sections, it includes route descriptions of rides in every region of Britain.

The Year

Perfect for … Road biking and cycling fanatics, and anyone interested in endurance sports, cycling heritage and human-interest stories.

What’s inside? In 1939 British cyclist Tommy Godwin cycled 75,065 miles in a single year – an average of over 200 miles each day. And it’s a benchmark that stood for almost eighty years until it was surpassed in 2016 by U.S. cyclist Kurt Seavogel. In The Year, Dave Barter resurrects the legend of the year record – a challenge nearly as old as bicycles themselves – and the cyclists who pushed themselves to establish and break it.

The Water Vole

Perfect for … People who love these appealing little creatures and want to know where to find them, and those with a passion for Derbyshire wildlife and the preservation of indigenous species.

What’s inside? The water vole is one of Britain’s most endangered mammals. A native of the British Isles, and popularised in modern culture as ‘Ratty’ in Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows, this once ever-present mammal, like so many others, is now in danger. In The Water Vole, author Christine Gregory draws on her years of painstaking research into the water voles’ decline and offers a unique insight into their lives along many of the watercourses of Derbyshire.

Villager Jim’s Peak District

Perfect for … People with a love of British wildlife and outdoor photography looking to explore the quieter side of Britain’s busiest natural park.

What’s inside? A collection of over 180 beautiful photographs from Villager Jim, the ‘Banksy of the Peak District’. Sneaking about at dawn and dusk, capturing images that surprise and delight, Jim’s images of his local Peak District entertain and enchant his growing audience.

Brown Hares in the Derbyshire Dales

Perfect for … Those with a passion for conservation of British native species and people looking for tips on where to spot brown hares in the Derbyshire pastures.

What’s inside? A written and photographic celebration of one of the Peak District’s most secretive and enigmatic animals. Meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated with over 100 colour photographs, this book gives a unique insight into the life, habitat and history of a much loved, yet threatened, species.

Lake District Mountain Landscape

Perfect for … Anyone who enjoys escaping to the Lakes or appreciates stunning landscape photography.

What’s inside? A spectacular photographic perspective on the Lake District from award-winning mountain photographer and filmmaker Alastair Lee. With an emphasis on the mountain heights, Lee captures the other-worldliness and majesty of the ‘English Alps’ in all seasons and conditions.

The Tilman series

Perfect for … Explorers with an appetite for discovering unchartered territory and prefer their expeditions to be led by a pipe-smoking, knickerbocker-wearing navigator who promises ‘no pay’ and ‘no prospects’.

What’s inside? Bill Tilman was among the greatest adventurers of his time, a pioneering mountaineer and sailor who held exploration above all else. The series covers Tilman’s early explorations with Eric Shipton in Africa, where the two men began their famed mountaineering partnership climbing Mount Kenya, Kilimanjaro, and Ruwenzori; to Tilman’s first ascent of Nanga Parbat; his seafaring highlights in the then-unmapped Patagonia ice cap and his voyages to the mountainous regions of Greenland and the Canadian eastern Arctic Islands; until he disappeared without a trace en route to the Falkland Islands in 1977. The first twelve books in the series are now available.

Dolpo: People and Landscape

Perfect for … Interviews with Dolpo’s inhabitants, meticulous research and stunning photography make this book a must-read for anyone with an interest in Central Asia and Nepal.

What’s inside? A culturally Tibetan region in the upper Dolpa district of north-western Nepal, Dolpo lies along the border with Tibet (China) and has been closed to foreigners for decades. In Dolpo: People and Landscape, Gerda Pauler explores the individuals, communities and culture that makes Dolpo one of the most fascinating regions of the Himalaya.

Lie Kill Walk Away

Perfect for … Your son/daughter who struggles to get stuck into a good book.

What’s inside? Joe and Becca are two teens on the run. Their families have been persecuted. Their worlds turned upside down as a devastating new weapon goes astray. There is no one they can trust; even the government is intent on betrayal. Operation Dark Heart is about to be unleashed by a twisted terrorist cell, a bioweapon more potent than any that has come before. Only by breaking a code can the secret remedy be found. Only by readying to fight can the final battle be won. No one believes them. No one will listen.

North Face

Perfect for … Readers aged nine- to fourteen-years old, with a taste for adventure.

What’s inside? This sequel to Matt Dickinson’s popular Everest Files book follows the adventures of eighteen year-old Ryan Hart – a young man on a mission to get himself to Mount Everest and check out the truth about the world’s highest peak. Just a few hours after he arrives at Base Camp, a lethal earthquake strikes. Avalanches pound the glacier, burying Ryan’s climbing buddy and killing many others. A local Tibetan girl is convinced her brother is alive on Everest’s treacherous north face. The mountain is shut for the season because it is judged too dangerous. As storm clouds gather, they set out on their illegal climb, a do-or-die mission, which the local militia will do anything to stop.

CHRISTMAS OFFER: GET 30% OFF ANY OF THESE BOOKS WHEN YOU BUY DIRECT FROM VERTEBRATE. JUST ENTER CODE STOCKING30 AT CHECKOUT. FREE POSTAGE ON ALL UK MAINLAND ORDERS. OFFER ENDS 15 DECEMBER 2016.





11 Dec, 2016
I knew it would come, running guide books, in competition with walking guide books covering the same ground. My head is in my hands, ffs.
16 Dec, 2016
Routes that make nice runs do not always make nice walks, and vice versa. But yes, probably not enough difference to warrant separate books.

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