There’s a new edition of Chris Bonington Mountaineer out imminently complete with five completely new chapters and a foreword by Leo Houlding.

Published by Sheffield’s Vertebrate Publishing, and sub-titled ‘A lifetime of climbing the great mountains of the world’,  it’s a lavishly illustrated account of more than 60 years spent climbing the world’s highest, hardest and most dramatic peaks. And what a story it is…

‘It is fair to describe Chris as an institution, the embodiment of British climbing, who has reigned with dignity, like Queen Elizabeth II, over a period of unprecedented change’ – Leo Houlding

It’s easy to forget just how much Sir Chris has accomplished his long climbing career.

Epics like the notorious first ascent of the Ogre, where Doug Scott crawled down the mountain with two broken legs. The first ascent of Annapurna’s south face. The leadership of the extraordinary siege-style ascent of the SW Face of Everest. A starring roles in the BBC’s 1966 live outdoor broadcast from the Old Man of Hoy. Alpine exploits in the company of the legendary Don Whillans. Extraordinary stuff.

He remains the one British climber who might just be recognised by the man or woman on the Docklands Light Railway and remarkably is now into his 80s and still going strong.

Back To The Old Man

Characteristically in 2014 he returned to the Old Man of Hoy to mark his 80th year, successfully climbing it with fellow Berghaus athlete Leo Houlding almost 50 years after the famous BBC broadcast from the sea-stack.

He’s also a prolific author, whose numerous mountaineering books have inspired generations of budding and armchair mountaineers alike. Which brings us neatly back to the new book.

You can see some sample spreads from the book below. It’s published by Vertebrate in paperback for £15. Out shortly, more information and pre-order at www.v-publishing.co.uk.

Watch this space for some scoop extracts and images from the book coming next week.