Book Reviews Roly Smith
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Hamish MacInnes : The Fox of Glencoe
Hamish MacInnes , ed . Deziree Wilson Scottish Mountaineering Press , £ 30 ( hb )
Scottish mountaineering legend Hamish MacInnes had always planned his magnum opus before he died in 2020 and , albeit posthumously , this handsomely produced anthology of his writings over the 90 years of his remarkably adventurous life magni�icently achieves that ambition . MacInnes was one of the world ’ s last great explorers and adventurers , in the mould of Merewether Lewis and William Clark , Freya Stark and Eric Shipton . And if that wasn ’ t enough , he was also a pioneering rock and ice climber , the designer of some revolutionary climbing equipment and , perhaps most signi�icantly , a world-respected mountain rescue expert . As Michael Palin , who befriended MacInnes while �ilming Monty Python and the Holy Grail in Glencoe , writes in his heartfelt foreword , MacInnes was “ Lean , taciturn , fearless and resourceful … a combination of the adventurous qualities I admired so much .”
Whether he was making historic �irst ascents of some of the most remote mountains on earth ; inventing equipment like his legendary Terrordactyl metal iceaxe or the box tents used on the �irst ascent of Everest ’ s south west face ; supervising Clint Eastwood ’ s stunts in The Eiger Sanction , or pioneering the use of dogs in mountain rescue , MacInnes was always an innovator in his �ield . You can relive some of his greatest adventures in this superb book , which also has contributions from his old climbing partners Tom Patey and Mike Banks , and the OWPG ’ s very own John Cleare , whose stunning photographs illustrate many of MacInnes ’ s most gripping stories . In the last chapter MacInnes movingly relates the sad story of his latter day illness , which saw him sectioned and con�ined to a forbidding psychiatric hospital until he was “ rescued ” by some of his friends . All pro�its from the sales of this book will help fund the Scottish Mountaineering Trust , a charity that provides grants promoting recreation , knowledge and safety in the Scottish hills , all things very close to MacInnes ’ s heart .
Walking the Invisible : Following in the Brontës ’ Footsteps
Michael Stewart HQ Harper Collins £ 16.99 ( hb )
This is the spin-off book from the author ’ s Brontë Stones Project , in which boulders and crags in Brontë Country of West Yorkshire were inscribed with specially composed poems by Carol Ann Duffy , Jeannette Winterton , Kate Bush and Jackie Kay . It also led to four walks , one from Thornton to Haworth and three circular ones for each of the sisters . The author has added a further nine-mile route linking the Brontë Stones and a 10½ mile Wandering Bard walk from Luddenden Foot to Haworth , relating to brother Branwell Brontë ’ s journey to and from his work . The excellent maps for each walk are by Christopher Goddard , author of many successful , Wainwright-style footpath guides to West Yorkshire . But don ’ t be deceived into thinking this is a walking guide . The author is Head of Creative Writing at the University of Hudders�ield , so Walking the Invisible is much more of an investigation into the landscapes which led the talented and troubled sisters to making such an important and valuable contribution towards the previously largely masculine �ield of romantic �iction . Apart from the strange title – I don ’ t know how you can physically “ walk the invisible ” – this is really a literary study of both the social and natural history which inspired the writings of the famously dysfunctional family . So we are taken to “ wild , windy moors ” of
12 outdoor focus / autumn 2021