Summer Mountain Leader Training

Training the next generation of Summer Mountain Leaders who will, no doubt, go on to be great mountaineering instructors, is a very good job. On our training course this week we have five young and enthusiastic new leaders who are keen to learn and passionate about being in the mountains. In Cecile, Isla, Luke, Ellie and Rowan we have a range of previous experience and backgrounds, as well as knowledge, which we are all sharing and learning from. I'm sure I learn as much as the trainees on these courses and it's brilliant to be able to share some of the experience I have gaimned through the last 25 years of mountain leading.

Yesterday was the first day of the course and we set it up by looking at the scope of the award, what kind of work you can do with it and what the work entails. We did some core navigation training using a stepped approach to teaching navigation, learnt about the weather, leadership styles and models and what kit to carry. Today it was all about lweadership and we went to Ben Nevis North Face to look into the corries here.

There are still a few snow patches and we had hail down to 900m today. It's pretty chilly right now! On the summit in the cloud it must have been quite uncomfortable for Sally and Hiran who walked up the mountain track today as well. Most of the day was dry though with the cloud sitting just on the summit. On the training course we looked at leading people on all sorts of terrain from easy paths to steep scree, rocky sections and slippery grass. We also looked at lots of plants and flowers, geology and geography, land use and designations designed to protect it as well as the heritage and ethos of walking and climbing in the Brittish hills. It was quite a full day!