“We live on an enchanted rock. Awareness of it changes everything.”
—Andrew Terrill, author of The Earth Beneath My Feet
An enchanted rock – that’s what we live on, and that’s what the Enchanted Rock Press has been founded to celebrate; the remarkable, fragile and enchanted planet we call home.
Enchanted Rock Press is a new independent book publishing imprint. Our focus is wild nature, and our mission is to share experiences of it that transport readers into the wild. We want to inspire people to step outdoors into our planet’s enchanted places, and we want to do it in a way that encourages a thoughtful, joyful, and above all respectful approach.
Our Books
NOW AVAILABLE on Amazon (and elsewhere) in hardback, paperback and ebook formats, our first book: The Earth Beneath My Feet.
Written by wilderness wanderer Andrew Terrill, The Earth Beneath My Feet begins an extraordinary true story about a 7,000-mile solo walk. Hiking from Calabria in Italy to the top of Norway, Terrill reveals the wild side of Europe that most people miss. A compelling travel narrative about a challenging physical journey, The Earth Beneath My Feet also explores ‘the journey within’ – a passionate search for belonging within the natural world. For US readers, find the book on Amazon: HERE For UK readers, find the book on Amazon: HERE
“There’s a classic of outdoor literature in the making here… If this and its not-yet-published sequel (On Sacred Ground) don’t cream off every outdoor writing award going, then there’s no justice.”
—Jim Perrin, two-time winner at the Banff Mountain Book Festival, and two-time winner of the Boardman Tasker prize for Mountain Literature.
“Twenty years ago when I published some of Andrew’s early articles in The Great Outdoors magazine I said he was going to become one of the truly great outdoor writers. The Earth Beneath My Feet has proved me correct.”
—Cameron McNeish, Author and television presenter.
“The writing is direct, descriptive, and subtle. There’s a great deal of depth to the words and many passages repay rereading. This is far more than the account of a long walk.”
—Chris Townsend, Author of The Backpacker’s Handbook and many other hiking books.
“It bursts onto the page with the freshness of youth, full of energy, excitement, anticipation and innocence.”
—Ian R. Mitchell, Winner of The Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature.
“The grinding lows and euphoric highs are recounted in an engaging and conversational style that puts the reader in the heart of the narrative. Anyone who recalls the wanderings of their own youth, the sense of limitless possibility, that glorious detachment, will find something to relate to here. The Earth Beneath My Feet is an engaging and inspiring read.”
—Dan Bailey, UKHillwalking.com.
“The more you read the more you don’t want it to end. It’s the first book in years that I’ve set 30 – 45 minutes aside for each evening, knowing that within a paragraph the worries of the everyday world would fadeaway.”
—Dave Mycroft, MyOutdoors.co.uk.
“The Earth Beneath My Feet is a multi-layered narrative of toil, landscape, history, and self-growth … a moreish book that makes you want to pick up your pack and boots and step out the front door.”
—Ash Routen, Outdoor Journal
“The finest account of a long distance walk I’ve read in decades.”
—John Manning, Lakeland Walker
NOW AVAILABLE on Amazon (and elsewhere) in hardback, paperback and ebook formats, the concluding part of Terrill’s remarkable wilderness journey: On Sacred Ground.
Facing a fierce winter that stretches through to July, Terrill continues walking from the dark forests of Central Europe to the rugged Norwegian Arctic, and along the way learns a great many lessons the hard way – lessons that have the power to change life profoundly.
For further details, please visit the author’s website:
“There are many epic books of epic journeys, but few that so eloquently meld a journey of geographical discovery with one of self-discovery, and even fewer that do it with such brutal honesty. On Sacred Ground takes the reader through the whole range of emotions as the author winds his way forwards on unknown paths. It has the power to make you laugh out loud, to cry, to recognise your own questioning and to genuinely feel the highs and lows of another’s journey. For me it’s up there with Harrer’s Seven Years in Tibet as a journey of enlightenment and Simpson’s Touching the Void in its self awareness. It’s a classic of our age.”
—Dave Mycroft, MyOutdoors.co.uk
“…a masterpiece of nature writing beyond anything I’ve ever encountered before. The journey is recounted with such honesty and detail that the reader is transported to another place and time, providing the true escapism that every reader hopes to achieve when delving into a new book. The journey is as much spiritual as physical, and the happiness Andrew achieves towards the end of The Walk is truly inspiring and uplifting. His descriptions of the natural environment (and the people he meets) are exceptional. A superb read worthy of the highest praise. Beware of the resulting wanderlust this book will bring forth!”
—Stephen Sexton, author of ‘A Long Walk in Spain’.
“It’s about rigour, human tenacity, resourcefulness, connection and perhaps above all good humour and forward-looking optimism. He recounts his impressions and emotions en-route in so straightforward and honest a manner that you can’t help but be charmed by his company and good-natured intent. He’s not out to impress. He simply wants to see for himself what’s out there in Europe’s few remaining truly wild places, and in turn to convey a vibrant sense of them to us, his armchair readers. In this he succeeds beyond all expectations I had of his story. Here, then, is the newest classic of our outdoor literature.”
—Jim Perrin, author, two-time winner at the Banff Mountain Book Festival, and two-time winner of the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature.
“Once in a generation, a writer distils the essence of backpacking into a book that enfolds the reader in the author’s mindset, transporting them to the very landscape through which they are travelling, conjuring up the sounds, smells and even the mud and snow through which they tramp. Colin Fletcher’s The Thousand Mile Summer once did it for me, planting the seed for my 2,650-mile walk along the Pacific Crest Trail. Years before, Eric Newby’s A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush lured me to the Himalaya, while Andrew Stephenson’s Kiwi Tracks helped fuel my desire to tramp some of New Zealand’s Great Walks. On Sacred Ground is in that league: a modern backpacking/travel classic. Like Fletcher before him, he intimately captures the spirit of the activity … Like acclaimed author and conservationist John Muir, Terrill never ceases to be amazed by the landscape: every day is filled with wonder and awe … I can’t recommend it highly enough.”
—John Manning, Lakeland Walker magazine.
“How lucky, surprised and amazed I was when I chanced on a mention of Andrew Terrill’s two books about his incredible trek north from the toe of Italy to Norway’s North Cape. Intrigued, I bought both books and wasn’t disappointed, far from it! In fact, I was captured from the start … and I’m still reading, now crossing the Arctic Circle, still enthralled by Andrew’s adventures, both the sought and the unexpected. But how many others, I wonder, have dared to conceive then trek 7,000 miles, keeping wherever possible to wild places and by the high ways, not the highways? These two books aren’t simply diaries of Andrew’s walk, they are carefully and thoughtfully written, sharing his hopes and fears – and there are many of both. The two books are, as it says on the back cover of the first book, an inspiring true story of a young man who chose to embrace life and live it to the full. Let Andrew take you in his footsteps. You won’t regret it.”
—Tony Howard, mountaineer, explorer, and author of ‘Troll Wall’ and ‘Quest Into The Unknown’.
AVAILABLE from November 1, 2024 on Amazon (and elsewhere) in paperback and ebook, a new edition of a backpacking classic, Chris Townsend’s High Summer: Backpacking the Canadian Rockies.
The full end-to-end traverse on foot of Canada’s Rocky Mountains is one of North America’s greatest hiking challenges. By the late 1980s, it had never been completed. When long-distance backpacker Chris Townsend heard about the route, he couldn’t resist it.
The Canadian Rockies offer everything a wilderness connoisseur could desire. There are glaciated peaks, forested valleys, remote tracts where solitude can be found, and abundant wildlife–grizzly bears, wolves, moose and wolverines among them. From celebrated national parks in the south, to vast undeveloped regions in the north, the range is filled with natural wonders… many only accessible to a lone traveller on foot.
In June 1988, Chris Townsend set out to discover this range for himself. With no set route to follow, he pioneered his own path, first linking established trails, then heading cross-country into a trackless land. He walked, not to be the first to complete the route, but instead to treasure the journey, and above all to spend long enough in the wild for it to come to feel like home. Challenged by rough weather and even rougher terrain, sometimes navigating from suggestions received in frontier settlements or by dead reckoning, his backpacking skills were pushed to the limit. He began the journey as a hiker, but over 1,600 miles had to evolve into something more: an explorer.
First published in 1989, this updated second edition of High Summer features a new introduction by the author, new footnotes, and over a hundred photos (many never before seen). Written by a passionate advocate for wild places, and told with honesty and authenticity, High Summer will take the reader on an engrossing journey into a wilderness that very few people will ever experience for themselves.
For further information, please visit Chris Townsend’s website:
“High Summer changed my life! It remains as powerful a call to adventure as it was when it first appeared in print.”
—Dustin Lynx, author of Hiking Canada’s Great Divide Trail.
“A bold and audacious first traverse of the Canadian Rockies, High Summer is humble, heartwarming, often witty and filled with trail wisdom. Townsend is one of a kind.”
—David Lintern, The Great Outdoors magazine.
“A gentle, wise and well informed devotee of outdoor life. Chris Townsend is the backpacker’s backpacker. For connoisseurs of long journeys on foot, Townsend’s words will strike a chord.”
—Cameron McNeish, author and television presenter.
“Chris Townsend has been a generational influence to countless people who love the outdoors, and High Summer is a perfect example of why. This book doesn’t only describe a pioneering outdoor experience that few others have had, but it does it with such unassuming authenticity. High Summer is a classic of backpacking literature, written by a true backpacking authority.”
—Dave Mycroft, MyOutdoors.co.uk.
“Chris Townsend is quite simply one of the most authoritative living writers on backpacking in wild places. His influence has been immense – and not just on the fields of outdoor writing, photography, and equipment, but on a personal level too. His stories and photographs have inspired so many people to take to the mountains. As a teenager, The Backpacker’s Handbook was my bible, and as an adult I continue to look up to Chris. Few others are as knowledgeable while also being relatable, honest, and generous with their time”
—Alex Roddie, author of The Farthest Shore and Gestalten’s Wanderlust books, and editor of Sidetracked Magazine.
Enchanted Rock Press is based in Golden, Colorado on the edge of the Rocky Mountains.
Founded in spring 2021, Enchanted Rock Press is supported by industry professionals with decades of writing, editing, and publishing experience.
For all enquiries, and to sign up for news and notifications, please fill out the contact form below. We are not looking for submissions at this time.