It is not as widely known as it should be that Britain has the most varied geology of any country in the world. This book is a celebration in words & pictures of what its mountains are made from, & how they got there. This in turn determines what they`re like to climb, scramble on, or walk over. Why is Skiddaw slate so slippery? How do tors form? Why is gritstone so difficult? Why is Lakeland so picturesque, & the granite lands so grim & forbidding? Geology is destiny, whether it`s the rubbishy nature of gullies & screes, the sculpting of valleys by ice or the landslip weirdness of Quiraing on the Isle of Skye. British mountains contain many interesting & different ingredients: gneiss & granite & gabbro; limestone & sandstone; schist & slate; the product & the debris of tectonic shifts, volcanoes, earthquakes & glaciers over many millennia. This book explains all this to the layman, from an expert but personal perspective, & will add immeasurably to the fun & satisfaction to be gained from any day in the hills.