The Book of the Bivvy

Ronald Turnbull

Being a penniless student, all my early mountain adventures meant following the black art of ‘dossing’; the Americans call it ‘dirtbagging’, and in today's speak it’s morphed into ‘bivvying’. Essentially it’s about travelling light, forgoing a tent, and relying on not much more than a stove, some basic sleeping gear, and your wits to secure shelter. Part autobiography, part instruction book and part guidebook, The Book of the Bivvy unlocks this glorious pursuit, and once you’ve read it, the days of lugging round a tent, for you, may well be confined to history. Through lack of gear and/or a natural desire for self-reliance, spending a night under the stars, or tucked under a boulder is woven into the fabric of mountaineering and walking. With humour and a fair degree of self-deprecation Ronald Turnbull steers us through the history, skills and possibilities. He is clearly a master of this art form; in this pocket-size tome he has managed to distil all the ups, and some of the downs, so that when you’ve read it you’ll have the knowledge to truly travel light for overnight mountain adventures.