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…
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…
In over 20 years of adventure photojournalism, Alex has accumulated a wealth of experience and a fair few stories from behind the camera. In this series of blog posts, Alex will be sharing his experience documenting people and places around the world from Indian Creek to Everest Base Camp and Hindu Holy Men. If you’re…
Preparing for Less Daylight Autumn is a fantastic time to be in the mountains. Colours erupt and flame across the landscape, light softens and shadows lengthen giving contrast and counterpoint to valleys and hollows brimming with mist. The onset of winter makes fleeting, shorter days like this seem all the more precious and an urgency…
Climbers get all the glory. They stand on the podiums, feature in the climbing films and get the sponsorship deals. But don’t be fooled; the true art worth mastering is not climbing, it’s belaying. You know a good belayer when you climb with one. A good belayer is the kind of person who fills you…
Part 1: Couch to crag Rock Climbing outdoors is incredibly exciting and rewarding, and logistically-speaking there’s a little more to it than climbing at a purpose-built climbing wall. Working out where you’re going and how you’re getting there are good starting points, but there are loads of extra things you can do to ensure a…
As the nights start to draw in, the chances of having to do some navigation in the dark increase. Far from being something to fear, night navigation can be great fun. Compass navigation at night can be a challenge as sighting on objects to keep on bearing has to occur over shorter distances and features…
Scrambling In Snowdonia Cicerone have just released an updated version of their classic guidebook Scrambles in Snowdonia. Being honest, it was desperately needed as guidebooks have moved on and The Gary Smith North Wales Scrambles was far superior to the old version. Both ourselves and our clients have been enjoying the amazing scrambles in these…
I’m instructing winter mountaineering in Scotland at the moment and I’ve been getting out into the snowy mountains on most days throughout January and February. Those long walk-ins have given me plenty of time to think about what I’m wearing and what I’m carrying. Here are my musings. Boots Possibly your most important items…