A few years ago Becca and I did our first mountain marathon together. We learned things and enjoyed it enough to do it again, and then again… Three years in and we may well have found the appropriate balance between challenge and enjoyment, but we still spent the journey home discussing successes, mistakes and what…
The clocks have gone back and suddenly the outdoors feels 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 with careful planning and packing we can continue to safely enjoy the moors, hills and mountains right…
Your meals and food on your Mountain Leader expeditions both for training and assessment expedition have a lot of boxes to tick: lightweight, portable, nutritious, easy to cook when the weather is poor and on a small stove, tasty and hopefully inspiring. Planning and preparing these meals is part of the process, and we really…
Yes, another ‘warming up for climbing’ article. No, we’re not going to give you a prescriptive list of all the things you must absolutely do to warm up for the best climbing session ever, but hopefully you will finish reading this with a few ideas on what a climbing warm up might look like for…
The South Yorkshire Moors Book Review A hand drawn guide to walking and exploring the moorlands of South Yorkshire and Northern Derbyshire, covering large parts of the Dark peak. Books are great resources for all trainee Lowland and Hill and Moorland leaders. Over the years we have recommended various titles and some have now become…
Winter climbing partners never move fast enough! From my perspective I have just completed a lightning fast accent on a thin runout smear of ice then undertook the cleaning of iced up cracks with poise and precision to build a structurally satisfying anchor. All this done in record breaking time. Why then, is my partner…
Top Ten Gear and Equipment Reviews of 2022 We all love our outdoor gear and equipment; It keeps us warm, helps us enjoy the hills and mountains with increased safety and enables us to feed and fuel ourselves. Looking back through the stats these are our most popular kit blogs of the year and our…
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…
Having completed her RCI assessment just after lockdown no. 1, Hati shares her tips for blowing away the cobwebs and getting back into the habit of consolidation. Is this how hedgehogs feel come Spring? Do they groan with irritation at their 7am alarms and stumble round their nests in search of distractions, procrastinations, and anything…
These days the only navigational decisions I make are in my local supermarket and the only time I’ve found myself at altitude has been on a stepladder in my attic (dizzying!). How do you consolidate for a Mountain Training assessment under these conditions? Whilst there’s no substitute for immersing yourself in your activity when preparing…