The Great Outdoors celebrates 40 years in print by naming the best of Britain’s peaks
What makes a fantastic mountain? It’s a question that’s been on the minds of the team at The Great Outdoors in recent weeks, as we’ve been compiling a list of Britain’s 40 Finest mountains for a supplement to celebrate our 40th birthday.
The Spring 2018 issue is out now and available to order. Single issues may be purchased direct with no additional postage cost.
In order to try and make the list as authoritative as possible, we assembled a panel of 15 experts – including Plas y Brenin Chief Instructor Carlo Forte, two-time Boardman Tasker Award-winning author Jim Perrin, BMC Hillwalking Officer Carey Davies, and distinguished outdoor writers Chris Townsend, Ronald Turnbull and Vivienne Crow – each of whom contributed ideas and feedback to the final list of 40.

“The Great Outdoors has established a reputation as the most authentic and authoritative magazine dedicated to British hillwalking”

The list includes 25 mountains in Scotland, seven in England and eight in Wales, each of which has been described and illustrated in a souvenir supplement to mark the magazine’s birthday, with contributions by the best of Britain’s outdoor writers and photographers.
The highest mountains in Scotland and Wales, Ben Nevis and Snowdon, both feature – but not Scafell Pike which, after great debate, was pipped to the post by its neighbour, Sca Fell. The furthest north is Ben Loyal, the furthest west Ben More (Mull), the furthest east Kinder Scout and the furthest south Pen y Fan.

Ben Nevis from CMD Arête © Dougie Cunningham


TGO Editor Emily Rodway said: “Over four decades, The Great Outdoors has established a reputation as the most authentic and authoritative magazine dedicated to British hillwalking. We were therefore able to call on some of the country’s greatest outdoor writers and photographers to create a beautiful tribute to Britain’s finest mountains in celebration of our 40th birthday.
“There was plenty of lively debate as we drew together our final list of 40 mountains, but it was worth the effort, and putting the supplement together was enormous fun.”
The Great Outdoors has had just four editors in its 40-year history, and Emily’s three predecessors – Roger Smith, Peter Evans and Cameron McNeish – all contributed memories from their time on TGO to the 40th birthday issue of the magazine, which comes bagged with the Britain’s 40 Finest Mountains supplement and is published today.

Inside the Spring 2018 issue

  • Exploring the quiet places of the mountains with Alan Rowan
  • Carey Davies enjoys a short but sweet trip to the Picos de Europa
  • Approaching Scafell Pike by stand-up paddleboard
  • 10 brilliant bothy walks
  • Hiking the Mourne Wall Walk
  • Andrew Terrill brings his young family home from Colorado
  • The latest gear innovations
  • 40 years on: Chris Townsend looks back on the gear he used on his Land’s End to John O’Groats walk in 1978 – and what he’d use now
  • Reviews: 40-60L packs
  • Nine fully mapped and described walking routes across the country

Order your copy here.