Barbara James Author

Barbara James grew up in Willaston, Wirral where her parents enjoyed gardening and golf. They were surprised that her introduction to the Snowdonia hills led her to a life of climbing, travelling and exploring. As a young woman in the 1960s, her second-hand 90cc scooter would frequently break down, until one day she could afford a minivan. She worked as a mountaineering instructor in the then all male environment, where an introduction to Ron James led not only to a demolition of her sheltered innocence but also to the discovery and enjoyment of many first ascents of 500-metre Grade V & VI rock climbs in the Dolomites with Ron. Joining the MOD, with the infantry, Barbara had a new language to learn - DAOR (Discharge As Of Right). The one-week courses were Theory of Weapons, and to learn more about the subject she became competent firing the 7.62mm self-loading rifle, and Deployment, when she was driven through Checkpoint Charlie before the fall of the Berlin Wall. Since retirement, Barbara has travelled extensively, spending Christmas in the Falklands shortly after the conflict, and later, after training to become a pilot, flying solo around Florida in a Cessna. She lives in North Wales and Itching to Climb, first published in 2009, is her first book.