Space Below My Feet

Description:

Space Below My Feet by Gwen Moffat is a mountaineering memoir from one of the UK’s foremost female climbers.

‘A story of climbing and compulsive love of mountains … magnificent’ OBSERVER

In 1945, when Gwen Moffat was in her twenties, she deserted from her post as a driver and dispatch rider in the Army and went to live rough in Wales and Cornwall, climbing and living on practically nothing. She hitch-hiked her way around, travelling from Skye to Chamonix and many places in between, with all her possessions on her back, although these amounted to little more than a rope and a sleeping bag.

When the money ran out, she worked as a forester, went winkle-picking on the Isle of Skye, acted as the helmsman of a schooner and did a stint as an artist’s model. And always there were the mountains, drawing her away from a ‘proper’ job.

Throughout this unique story, there are acutely observed accounts of mountaineering exploits as Moffat tackles the toughest climbs and goes on to become Britain’s leading female climber – and the first woman to qualify as a mountain guide.