A Look At The January Issue of TGO

The January TGO has a tribute to TGO's founding editor, Roger Smith, who sadly died recently. Roger was also one of the creators and for many years the co-ordinator of the TGO Challenge. I think it is fair to say that both the magazine and the event may well not exist without all the work and effort Roger put into them. 

Unsurprisingly this issue has a wintry theme. The opening spread is a dramatic image of climbers on Am Basteir on the Cuillin Ridge in winter by Hamish Frost. 

There's a big feature called The Power Of Cold in which various outdoors people who love winter and snow are interviewed. I'm one of them, talking about winter camping along with David Lintern, a section illustrated with four of my snow camping photos. The whole feature starts with a double-page spread of another of my winter camp photos, taken on a memorable dawn after a bitter January night. In the same pages Gilly McArthur describes the joy of cold water swimming illustrated with shiver-making photos including plunge holes in ice (not something for me!) and Carla Khouri and Alice Kerr discuss becoming devoted winter walkers. There's advice for coping with the cold from Mountain Leader Jenny Bushell too.

The wintry theme continues with the story of a winter Wainwrights round by fellwalkers David Johnson and Nicky Oliver (and Floki the dog), and an account of snowshoeing in the Austrian Tyrol by Alex Roddie, along with advice on learning how to snowshoe.

Away from winter Adam Weymouth writes about his walk retracing the 1000-mile migration of a lone wolf across Europe, as told in his book Lone Wolf: Walking the Faultlines of Europe, which I am looking forward to reading. 

In The Long Review section of the gear pages I write about my now old and well-worn Paramo Aspira Jacket and Fuera Smock and how I care for them. In individual reviews Francesca Donovan tries the Finisterre Iris 1.2mm Yulex swimsuit and David Lintern the Durston X Dome 1+ tent. In comparative reviews Lara Dunn and Peter Macfarlane each try two pairs of gloves suitable for winter, James Roddie tests six head torches, and Lara Dunn relaxes in a couple of camping chairs.

In shorter pieces Nadia Shaikh looks for winter bird flocks, Francesca Donovan reviews a new film from the Save Windermere campaign called Origin: Finding The Source of Windermere, cancer survivor Marisa Wray talks about the mental and physical benefits of wild swimming, Jim Perrin pens a paean to Holyhead Mountain, and Juls Stodel advises a lonely camper. There's also information on The Great Outdoors Awards 2026.

Wild Walks looks at peak-to-pub winter walks. James Roddie takes a there-and-back trip from the Sligachan Hotel to Bruach na Frithe on the Cuillin Ridge, Vivienne Crow does a circular trip from the Shepherds Inn over Fiend's Fell in the North Pennines, James Forrest goes up Helm Crag from Tweedies Bar in Grasmere in the Lake District, also in the Lakes Norman Hadley traverses Ill Bell from the Mortal Man in Troutbeck, back in the North Pennines Ian Battersby ascends Scargill High Moor from The Ancient Unicorn in Bowes, a bit further south in the Yorkshire Dales Francesca Donovan makes a circuit of Middleton Fell from Barbon Inn, and down in Eryri/Snowdonia Andrew Galloway climbs Yr Wyddfa from the Cwellyn Arms in Ryhd-Ddu.