Gwen Mary Moffat (née Goddard; born 3 July 1924) is a British mountaineer and writer.

Climbing career

Moffat was an Army driver in the Auxiliary Territorial Service, stationed in North Wales after the end of the Second World War, when she met a climber who introduced her to climbing and a bohemian lifestyle. During the 1940s and 1950s she lived rough, climbing in Snowdonia, the Lakes, Scotland and the Alps, supporting herself by working in several roles including as a domestic service, a farmer, a forester, an artist's model and the driver of a travelling shop. In 1953 she became the first female British certificated mountain guide, and for ten years she was closely associated with the RAF Mountain Rescue Service, making a living from climbing. Moffatt was known for often climbing barefoot, claiming that it was better because there was more contact with the rock and no constriction of the toes. She is an honorary member of the women-only Pinnacle Club and the British Mountaineering Council.

Media

Moffat featured in the BBC film Eye to Eye, broadcast in 1958. Joe Brown did the hard amateur climbing and Moffat, the professional, took her husband up a route on Idwal Slabs. In 2015 Jen Randall and Claire Carter made a film, Operation Moffat, based on Moffat's autobiographical book Space below my Feet . The film was premiered during Banff Mountain Film Festival's UK tour, and has won over 20 international film awards. Moffat is included in Herrington's photographic work The Climbers featuring 60 climbers considered legends of the 20th century. In 2017 she contributed to a documentary Give Me Space Below My Feet, for BBC Radio 3.

Writing career

Moffat began her writing career in the 1950s, working for BBC radio, and published her autobiography in 1961. In the 1970s, she started writing crime fiction, in particular the Miss Pink series featuring Melinda Pink, a middle aged climber and magistrate. Following a commission by Victor Gollancz Ltd to follow the California Trail and produce a book, she subsequently wrote 11 mysteries set in the American West. She wrote her last novel, Gone Feral, when she was in her 80s. She currently reviews for the crime magazine Shots.

Personal life

Moffat married Gordon Moffat with whom she had a daughter, Sheena, born in 1949. In 1955, she married Flight Sergeant John Lees, GM, BEM. They divorced in 1970. Moffat turned 100 on 3 July 2024.

Works