Welcome to Stone Country. We publish books & e-guides on sporting & natural heritage in Scotland and beyond. Explore the links below through the books. To contact us, drop us an email here >>>
Essential Fontainebleau 2nd edition
November 2014 Stone Country Guidebooks
This guide introduces the climber to the magical bouldering in the forest of Fontainebleau. Every climber should visit Fontainebleau at least once in their life - the beauty of the forest and the sculpted sandstone boulders attract climbers from around the planet keen to test their technique and ability on stones shaped as though for the very soul of a climber. This new edition has been expanded and improved to help the first-time visitor to navigate the classic venues. It also provides advice, guidance and keys to the boulder problems, and the ethics and techniques required to become a devotee of the world's finest collection of stones - a first step on the path to becoming a 'Bleausard'. The style of the guidebook is very clear which allows ease of use and quick choice of problem or circuit. It is the most affordable of all the Font guidebooks.
Dumby Bloc
Stone Country Guidebooks
Dumbarton Rock, or 'Dumby' as it is known to locals, is Scotland's prime urban bouldering venue. This is the first guide to document the complete bouldering at Dumby - the straight-ups, the traverses, the eliminates, the link-ups, the circuits and the testpieces, as well as the projects... If you're visiting Dumby for the first time, or have become smitten with the place as a local venue, this is the guide for you! Photo-topos, circuit maps, extended descriptions and historical notes provide the first complete tick-list for bouldering at Dumbarton - even getting to 100 complete problems will seem like an achievement, whilst ticking all 300 would be a world-class first. This notoriously fickle and difficult venue can safely be described as the spiritual home of Scottish bouldering.
The Boulder: A Philosophy for Bouldering
By Francis Sanzaro
An enlightening book, this is an inspired collection of thoughts on the practice of bouldering, bringing it into conversation with arts and sports as varied as architecture, dance, skateboarding, painting, parkour, martial arts and gymnastics. Reading it will enrich your climbing and encourage you to appreciate the natural physicality and artful play of bouldering. Francis Sanzaro, a boulderer and academic, shows how the pursuit of bouldering is a philosophy which can be improved and strengthened just like a muscle, benefiting both body and soul. Explores the philosophy of bouldering and give boulderers a unique voice of their own - accessible and inspiring writing from a real philosopher.
Rathlin: Nature and Folklore
By Philip Watson
Rathlin is Northern Ireland's only permanently inhabited offshore island, sitting like a stepping stone in the narrow and turbulent Sea of Moyle between Ireland and Scotland, straddling cultures, habitats and peoples. It is a busy, vibrant and beautiful place with a resident population of around 100 islanders who look to the future with confidence but can also hark back to a past of massacres, famine and emigration. Peopled for about 7000 years, the island's rich natural resources on land and in the sea supported a population that rose as high as 1200 souls in the 1780s. Today, Rathlin's landscape and nature and the islanders' stories reveal rocks and wildlife with global connections and a culture linked to Ireland, Scotland and the natural world. This is the first combined guide to Rathlin’s natural and social histories. The book includes a map of the island and suggested walks and two sections of stunning colour photography.