MOUNTAIN SKILLS

Whether working toward your next mountain award, or just looking to learn a new skill in the mountains, our courses can be tailored to suit your needs.

Mountain Skills courses can be run year round.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Our Mountain Skills courses are aimed at those looking to gain confidence in the outdoors.

These sessions can be tailored for anywhere from complete beginners looking to learn the basics, to advanced skill progression for those looking to complete Mountain Training awards and beyond.

These courses are full day activities. They require a good level of fitness as you will be in the mountains for around 6 hours.

Locations will vary, as they will be chosen based on the groups requirements, and current conditions in the mountains.

One-off and recurring private skills courses can also be booked for those with specific requirements - get in touch to find out more.

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Hikes enjoying the views

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SKILLS COURSES

INTRODUCTION TO LAKE DISTRICT SCRAMBLING

Time: Full Day Activity (~6 hours)

Grade: Beginner

Cost: £280 1-3 people

Minimum Age: 8 years+

Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Our full day Introduction to Lake District Scrambling aims to get you experiencing some classic Lake District routes in a safe, educational environment.

Escape the crowds by taking the fun way up to your favourite summits, learning how to safely navigate steep using careful footwork and simple rock-climbing skills.

You should have experience of hill walking, have a good head for heights and steeper terrain and a reasonable level of fitness. The severity of the scrambles undertaken will be tailored to the group's present ability.

Scrambling can be undertaken in most weather conditions. Our instructors will endeavour to make the best use of the conditions to give you an enjoyable and rewarding day out.

MOUNTAIN NAVIGATION
LEVEL 1

Time: Full Day Activity (~6 hours)

Grade: Beginner

Cost: £240 1-4 people

Minimum Age: 8 years+

Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Our Level 1 Mountain Navigation course is designed for those who have little or no experience of navigating in the great outdoors. It is ideal for those who want a little more confidence to be able to follow footpaths and other features to get around walks in upland or lowland areas.

The course is practical and outdoors based in order to learn and practice skills in the environment they are designed to be used in.

We will aim to cover: - Common types of maps and scales - Map symbols and how they aid navigation - 6 figure grid references - Orientating a map using physical features and whilst using a compass - Using contour lines to identify physical features - Using features to confirm a location - Confirming direction of travel only using an orientated map - Measuring distance on the map - Using distance to create timings for a route - Route planning at home before heading into the hills

MOUNTAIN NAVIGATION
LEVEL 2

Time: Full Day Activity (~6 hours)

Grade: Intermediate to Advanced

Cost: £240 1-4 people

Minimum Age: 14 years+.

Children must be accompanied by an adult unless previously agreed.

Our Level 2 Mountain Navigation course is designed for those who have completed Level 1 or other training in the skills and who want to have the skills, knowledge, and strategies to be able to navigate accurately across featureless terrain in poor visibility and conditions.

This course will take place in an upland environment with as much time as possible spent off obvious footpaths and trails in order to allow you to gain the confidence to navigate using the compass and contour features on the map. Whilst many of the skills are designed for poor visibility, we can teach the necessary strategies whatever the weather.

We will work on: - Identifying small features using contours - Taking accurate bearings - Utilising navigation strategies such as aiming off and attack features - Identifying areas of potential hazard and danger from the map Using back-bearings to check accuracy - Learning to deviate slightly from a compass bearing to avoid obstacles - Pacing and timing to accurately measure distance Using contour-only navigation - Identify strategies that will help with accurate navigation in low visibility (eg. poor weather/darkness) - Be able to micro navigate to small or unidentifiable features - Identify potential escape routes both during planning and whilst out in the hills