Pushing the door of the Vieux Campeur bookstore is already embarking on an adventure. The shelves overflow with mountain tales, clever guides, and climbing and hiking topos that instantly give you ants in your legs. This summer, set sail for must-have works to slip into your bag or to browse at the bivouac: from the Himalayas to the Alps, from the granite of Chamonix to the gravel roads, there’s enough to map out your next journey with a smile.
Want to make your summer a diary of ascents, starry bivouacs, and improvised gravel routes? The Vieux Campeur bookstore is your base camp: between breathtaking mountaineering stories, precise topos, and clever guides, here’s a selection of works tailored to outline your route, from the rooftop of the world to the trails of the Alps, with, on top of that, plenty to feed your legs… and your mind.
Must-Read Works to Explore This Summer in the Vieux Campeur Bookstore
Pushing the door is already a departure. The shelves are overflowing with travel companions to slip into your bag and browse at the bivouac. This selection brings together masterpieces of storytelling and concrete tools for an inspired and effective outdoor summer.
Stories and Legends That Take Your Breath Away
The Ice Burn – Cory Richards
Behind the image of a perfect photo report lies a tension between clarity and chaos. In The Ice Burn, Cory Richards recounts how mountaineering channeled a troubled adolescence, culminating in one of those acts that divide mortals from demigods: the Everest without oxygen. Here, we discover the behind-the-scenes of expeditions, the lights of the summits and their shadows, all served by the eye of a writer-photographer who has passed through National Geographic.
To extend the spirit of “masterpieces” and great inspiration, take a look at this selection dedicated to creation: World Art Day: masterpieces and inspirations.
My Life in Vertical – Lynn Hill
Lynn Hill rewrites the grammar of free climbing with insolent ease. From California to the big walls of Yosemite, she shatters the glass ceiling to deliver this cult phrase after her release of The Nose: “It works, boys.” A sparkling and lucid narrative about courage, freedom, and pure joy of climbing.
Routes, Topos, and Bivouacs on Demand
The Great Crossing of the Alps
The guide that connects Leman to the Mediterranean with a common thread. Stages, variants, water points, supplies, accommodations, markings: everything is there to master the sequences of GR5, GR55, and GR52, from Thonon-les-Bains to Nice. You can already hear the crunching of footsteps between high-altitude lakes, wild passes, and perched villages.
Want to extend your journey with some cultural and festive stops? Head for these ideas of charming villages and festivals in France, or discover must-sees in Belfort for an urban break.
Bivouac Hiking in the Alps
Prepare your nights under the stars without a headache: smart routes, checklists for equipment, security advice, and tips to stay light — this guide ticks all the boxes for a happy bivouac. The bonus: ideas for spots and timing to enjoy the sunrise as a privilege.
Women Hikers – The Guide
Women’s hiking designed for autonomy and serenity. Feedback experiences, bag management, route selection, pace, comfort, and confidence: a kind book that provides concrete keys to set off alone, with friends, or in a group, with that extra bit of freedom that changes everything.
50 Beautiful Climbing Routes Around Chamonix 6a max
Chamonix without pressure is possible. This topo brings together fifty lines chosen for their beauty, their ambiance, and their accessibility — 6a max. Perfect for discovering the valley, taming its granite, and collecting memories on character routes without blowing the stress altimeter.
Rock Climbing Guide Serbia
Want to get off the beaten path? This topo opens up the cliffs of a still discreet Serbia for climbing: approaches, grades, sectors, atmospheres… A passport to explore new walls, away from the queues of Western Europe.
If the call of the distant tempts you, these must-sees in Antananarivo will give you other horizon ideas to blend with your vertical desires.
Recto Verso – 100 Bike Adventures
A book-journal for going “a la carte.” One hundred micro-adventures by bicycle, presented like cards to pick according to your mood: gravel, road, family, solo… Ideal for a spur-of-the-moment departure or for preparing a long-haul trip. The bonus: you close the book already with the route for tomorrow in mind.
Prefer a city break on two wheels? Get inspired by these great addresses for a spring weekend in Berlin before heading out to explore parks and canals by bicycle.
Perform Without Tension
The Athlete’s Nutrition Guide
Fuel, recovery, hydration, errors to avoid… This guide puts simple words on sports nutrition. Whether you walk, climb, or bike, you’ll find concrete strategies to keep the pace, limit the lows, and optimize post-effort — without turning every picnic into an equation.
The Athlete’s Mental Preparation
The mind, this invisible string. Stress management, focus, routines, motivation in tough times: a pragmatic manual to unwind the thread, even when it bucks. A perfect addition between two topos, as a good mental strategy can weigh as much as a well-chosen pair of shoes on the big day.
