June Parker

In the early 1980s June Parker, together with her second husband, Alan, made the first of her many visits to Mallorca. An experienced mountaineer and hill-walker in Britain and Europe, she was entranced by the island's rugged beauty, but bemoaned the lack of a comprehensive walking book.

Challenged by her friends to write one, by 1986 June had produced her classic guide. With Alan's unstinting support, she had succeeded by virtue of a typical combination of self-belief, dedication and dogged determination to overcome all obstacles. Her egalitarian philosophy underpinned her belief that the world's wild, remote and beautiful areas should be open to all.

Encouraged by her success, June went on to write walking guides to the Algarve and to the Western Isles of Scotland, as well as co-editing the Fell and Rock Climbing Club's The Lakeland Fells.

Clive Griffiths and Jane Ridings, 2005
(June's son-in-law and daughter)