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Ailsa Ross — Author, editor, fact-checker

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28 things I love about Japan

by Ailsa Ross on March 29, 2018April 18, 2018

End of year thoughts

by Ailsa Ross on December 29, 2017April 3, 2018

Notes from the Skye Trail

by Ailsa Ross on August 8, 2017July 24, 2018

Tangerine moons

by Ailsa Ross on April 6, 2016July 20, 2016

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My favourite towns have four things:⠀ 🚲Good hills for cycling down⠀ 🌊Seaside ⠀ 🍰Good places for cake⠀ 📚Really good bookshops⠀ ⠀ Stromness, on the Orkney mainland, has all those things. ⠀ ⠀ Especially, it has a teeny tiny absolutely magic independent bookshop called Stromness Books & Prints. ⠀ ⠀ A Guardian “favourite bookshop”, a couple of summers ago I picked up two of my favourite non-fiction books there: The Seabird's Cry by Adam Nicolson and The Periodic Table by Primo Levi.⠀ ⠀ Then, a couple of days ago my dad sent me these pics of the shop’s display window. I am amazed.⠀ ⠀ Ailsa from @WomenAdventurers
In 1975, Junko Tabei became the first woman to summit Everest. She was also the first woman to ascend all Seven Summits (the highest peak on every continent).⠀ .⠀ Growing up in rural Japan, Junko was considered a frail and weak child. Still, she loved climbing. And though her family could not afford for her to do more than a few climbs through high school, it was all she could think about. After graduating from university, Junko founded the Ladies Climbing Club — their slogan was “Let's go on an overseas expedition by ourselves." It was the first club of its kind in Japan.⠀ .⠀ By the time she passed away in November 2016, Junko had reached the highest peak in 56 of the world’s countries. Photo: Jaan Künnap⠀
Where should The Woman Who Rode a Shark go next? 📘Please suggest somewhere warmer than this Canadian glacier!
Nan Shepherd worked as an English teacher in Aberdeen, and as soon as class finished on Friday afternoons she would head straight for the Cairngorms in the Scottish Highlands. There she could be seen striding over the moors in tawny cardigans, scarves and skirts. Never trousers. ⠀ .⠀ Shepherd saw the mountains differently from most mountaineers. There were no summits as goals to be achieved. Her only hope was to be in the company of the mountain. This progressive woman is now featured on the @royalbank £5 note. ⠀
Know the name of this adventurer? P.S. The artwork is by @amyjpeg for The Woman Who Rode a Shark 📚. Isn't it stunning?
“Wild is a word like ‘soul’. Such a thing may not exist, but we want it, and we know what we mean when we talk about it.” — Scottish poet and essayist Kathleen Jamie. ⠀ P.S. Her books, especially Sightlines and Findings, are so beautiful, and so full of joy.⠀ .⠀ #quoteoftheday #quotes #quotesdaily #quotation #WomenAdventurers #Wildness #adventure #childrensbooks #bookoftheday #kathleenjamiepoetry

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