La Sportiva TX4 Review Approach shoes are part of the Outdoor Instructor uniform along with brightly coloured trousers, gilets and VW vans. I’ve worn, and worn through, half a dozen pairs of various sorts over the last decade, mostly to the point where they become more hole than shoe. For the less fashion conscious instructors…
Figure of Eight Knot with Follow Through In the late 80’s there was a fashion for poking and threading the tail of a Figure of Eight knot back through the body of the knot. It looked neat and myself and few other young climbers and instructors starting using this variation. Then word got around that…
The first thing I noticed about the Signal is how much the Leatherman designs have evolved since I bought my first one in the mid 1990’s. It was a Leatherman Mini Tool which I carried for Ice Climbing, Scottish winter and Alpine mountaineering and expeditions. It was small, very strong, simple, a bit crude but…
A Review of the Blue Ice Octopus 45L Climbing Pack How many packs does one person need? The answer of course is that it depends! You could probably get away with just one if you just went hill walking, maybe a 40L, big enough for a bit of extra stuff in the colder months. But…
I’d longed for a Patagonia R1 Techface Hoody for a while, but it was hard to work out whether I actually ‘needed’ one or whether it was all down to the R1s reputation and its rather catchy advert. But now I come to reflect on it, this has become my go-to do-all jacket. A bit…
Opinel N°08 One of our most popular (and most controversial) blog posts (how-to-choose-a-knife-for-walking-climbing-mountaineering-and-expeditions) was about how we believed that for walking, trekking and climbing in the UK outdoors you really only needed to carry a Swiss Army Knife or maybe a Opinel. Swiss Army Knifes are great but if you’re out overnight and need to…
A review of the Leatherman Skeletool CX. One of our most popular blogs of 2021 was How to Choose a Knife for Walking, Climbing and Mountaineering. In this article we recommended carrying a multitool for Scottish winter mountaineering. The ability to quickly repair a crampon is essential so a tool with pliers and screwdrivers is very…
These are my best Items of Gear in 2021. This was another year in which I didn’t end buying a huge amount of kit, but what I did acquire was all excellent and these items of equipment definitely stand out. Mountain Equipment Guide Gloves These have been a really versatile glove and they now live…
The clocks have gone back and suddenly the hills feel a little bit more intimidating. It’s colder, the winds bite more fiercely and of course it gets dark earlier and earlier as we approach the winter solstice. But careful planning and packing can enable us to safely enjoy the hills right through the winter months….
Luke recently attended our Adventure Travel and Expedition Photography course. He has kindly written an extended review with his thoughts on what led him to book the course… Do I enrol on the Adventure Travel and Expedition Photography course or not? Hmmmm…… When your only decisions for a year have been something like: ‘Do I…
Joe shares advice on how to choose the right nuts, cams, slings and karabiners for your first trad lead rack. First Trad Rack With the enormous range of climbing equipment being manufactured today knowing where to begin with your first trad rack can seem a bewildering task. A huge amount of information is available online…
In preparation for the climbing season ahead, Hati talks us through how to clean your cams for rock climbing. Pumped out of your mind, slightly regretting your choice of warmup and acutely aware that your last runner is closer to the ground than you are, you fumble around your harness for the right piece. The…
