Mountain writing competition launched

A NEW monthly writing competition has been launched this month, with a top prize of £100 worth of mountain equipment.

The project is looking for stories based on the theme: ‘The day a mountain changed my life.’

Trail Magazine will publish a winning entry each month for the rest of the year, along with a year’s membership of the John Muir Trust for the successful candidate.

One overall winner at the end of the year is chosen to spend the day on a John Muir Trust-managed mountain such as Ben Nevis, with a guide from outdoor gear company Mountain Equipment.

Kevin Lelland, head of development and communications for the John Muir Trust, said: ‘As a charity that manages special and dramatic peaks, we’re looking forward to reading people’s accounts of the life-affirming relationships they have with mountains. Perhaps we’ll find the next generation of inspirational mountain writers.’

In 1849, John Muir emigrated from his native East Lothian as a boy to America, where today he is celebrated as the founder of the conservation movement.

Muir was passionate about wild places which he explored, wrote about and campaigned to protect, and he helped establish several national parks in the US.

To find out more about the competition head to the Live For The Outdoors website: www.livefortheoutdoors.com/ changedmylife