Twelve Mountains

A year in Britain's highest peaks, where the weather changes fast, the ground shifts slowly, and every summit feels deeply personal to walkers, climbers, poets, and workers alike.

Sometimes in life it's good just to head for the hills – to seek refuge from the vicissitudes of the everyday and take in the wonder of Britain’s landscapes.

With the nation in a full-blown identity crisis, Tom Chesshyre aims to break free from the turbulent news cycle and indulge in some mountain therapy. So, he sets off to conquer – more like scramble up – a dozen of Britain's highest peaks. He does not purport to be a ‘climber’; you’ll find no ropes or clips here, nor tents either. But as the weeks unfold, each ascent becomes a quiet act of resistance against noise, speed and overload. On these mountains, time stretches and priorities reset with the breathtaking clarity of each cloud inversion.

From the mist-shrouded crags of Scafell Pike to the rugged, ancient shoulders of Ben Nevis, he explores the contrast between the permanence of stone and the fleeting anxieties of the news alert. In the shadow of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), he explores the resurgence of the Welsh tongue and the mythic weight of King Arthur. In the Mourne Mountains, he traces the granite walls that inspired Narnia, finding magic in a land once defined by division.

Yet this book is as much about people as peaks. In pubs, B&B kitchens and bus shelters he meets farmers, fell runners and accidental guides, all with their own relationship to the high ground. Their stories anchor the mountains in lived experience, reminding our guide that these places are not escapist fantasies but working, weather-beaten realities. And threaded through the climbs is a gentle questioning of what Britain still shares, what endures when politics fractures and certainties erode.

Twelve Mountains celebrates the joy of hitting the trail, the rhythmic crunch of boots on scree … and going up.

Mountains include: Ben Nevis, Ben Lomond, Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), Scafell Pike, Helvellyn, Cross Fell, An Teallach, Tryfan, Pen y Fan, Slieve Donard, Buachaille Etive Mor and Suilven