Its winter then!

I have been out with regular client and friend Mark today for a day of private guiding in the snow. We headed up the North Ridge of Tryfan (II) which gave a brilliant day out in the current conditions. We have had a reasonable dump of snow overnight and it has been snowing on and off all day down to about 500m. As we reached about 700m we hit the freezing level and where the route had been wind scoured it was quite icy. The turf was frozen above about 800m and we wore crampons for the upper third of the route. These are typical early season conditions the best sport is to be had on the ridge lines, the iced up cracks and unconsolidated snow make for good fun!
My friend and fellow instructor Huw Gilbert was also out today and climbed the Clogwyn Y Person Arete (III, 4). He reports similar conditions with crampons necessary for the entire route and plenty of good hooking action. 

Skye Grounded

I was out with the Search Dogs yesterday training in the Llanberis Pass. Unfortunately Skye took a slip and has injured her leg, you can read more here. I have been climbing with Baggy this morning and then Christmas tree shopping this afternoon which combined with the snow that is falling on the mountains has meant we are all feeling Christmasy in the Johnson household!
The forecast for the week ahead is looking good with snow down to 500m for the next three days at least, I am out every day this week (and every evening) so will report back with photos each day. 

Only a dusting at the moment

I have been up the Cneifion Arete today with John & Laurence for the second day of our advanced scrambling course. Much of yesterday evenings snow had disappeared by this morning but it was a cold day with a fresh wind and so the true was freezing on the tops. As we reached the car it was sleeting again and more snow is forecast for tomorrow evening so fingers crossed for the next few days! The boys and I had a great day out, good training for winter with cold toes and hot aches! 

Snow on the mountains

I have been running an advanced scrambling course today with Laurence and John. It has been dry, bright and sunny all day but as I drove home down the Ogwen Valley it was hammering with rain, the temperature had dropped and there was a nice dusting of snow above about 800m with snow still falling. We climbed the East Ridge of Y Garn (2/3) which gave a great day out looking at the skills involved in using a rope for protection on this type of ground and some stunning views in crystal clear skies. We certainly got the timing right with the weather! 

Major Incident Exercise with LLMRT

I have been out with the rescue team today for our annual major incident exercise. The day was held in varying locations in the quarries around Llanberis and gave a great opportunity to work Skye, practice some First Aid and enjoy some nice winter sunshine. 

Mountain Leader Training in Snowdonia

For the last two days of our Mountain Leader Training course here in Snowdonia we have been out on a wild camping expedition in the Carneddau. Our planned route involved several of the Welsh 3000 summits but winds in excess of 65 mph put paid to that and made for  a pretty wild night. Nonetheless we did gain some smaller summits and had a cracking couple of days exploring the beautiful Carneddau. Highlights included dinner in a bothy before several hours of night nav to our overnight wild camp and watching the clouds tearing across the higher summits. We finished the day off today with a session on river crossings before debriefs and farewells. The boys and girls have had a tough week of weather which is ideal for training and I wish them all well in their preparations for assessment. 

ML Training Day Four

I have been joined by friend and colleague Paul Poole today as we took the ML training team into Cwm Idwal to look at the use of the rope within the ML syllabus. It was pretty breezy but stayed dry until the last hour of the day. We looked at use of the rope in ascent and descent including abseiling, confidence roping and group management. This evenings session is preparation for our two day expedition where we will be wild camping tomorrow night in the wild weather Snowdonia has in store for us! 

Security on steep ground

For our third day of the Mountain Leader training course that I am running this week we were looking at security on steep ground on the North Ridge of Tryfan. We were also joined by Bryn from MLTW who was out as part of the training boards commitment to quality assurance and standardisation between providers. The day started off overcast and cloudy but brightened up nicely as we spent the day looking at the skills that are necessary to look after clients in this type of ground in ascent and descent. We got down without needing head torches today and for our evening session had a tour of the Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team base and a look at the sort of equipment that an ML might be able to assist a rescue team with in the event of a rescue. We also had a look at some basic ropework in preparation for tomorrow. 

Mountain Leader Training Day 2

For our second day of the ML training course we have been out to undertake a quality mountain day as defined by the scheme. Along the way we looked at access and the environment and emergency procedures in the mountains. We based ourselves on the South side of the Glyderau from Pen Y Pass and it stayed dry for much of the day. This evenings lecture was on the legal and moral aspects of working as a Mountain Leader. 

Mountain Leader Training Course

I have been joined for six days by Marianne, Nik, Will, Simon, Luke and Steve for a Mountain Leader Training Course here in Snowdonia. Each of the guys and girls have been out with me before and we will be spending the week following the syllabus of the MLT scheme with today being a micro nav day. We are based at Plas Curig Hostel for the week and headed out the back door onto the Crimpiau today, spending the last hour or so of the day doing some night nav. The mountain training is supplemented by evening lectures with tonights topic being mountain weather. A full week ahead so the blog might get a bit shorter than normal! 

Winter Ethics

A bit of a giggle!

Scrambling on Tryfan

Today we headed up Little & North Gullies on Tryfan which gave some great grade 1 gully scrambling whilst being sheltered from the morning winds. After lunch on the summit the winds had dropped as forecast and we descended the North Ridge (1). Towards the lower end of the ridge we played with the rope for a bit looking at how to give protection to a nervous second and how to retreat from a difficult section. It was wet this morning but brightened up and we all had a great day. 

Intro to Scrambling course

I have been joined for two days by Charlie, Laurence, Nik and Peter for an intro to scrambling course here in Snowdonia. I have also had Jim along observing the course. We have had a dry day but with 55-60mph Southerly winds whistling over the mountains. We managed to avoid them by scrambling up Seniors Gully (1) and Seniors Ridge (1) but got hammered on the summit of Glyder Fawr. A hasty descent of the Devils Kitchen ensued! A great day out to blow away any cobwebs. 

Video from Toubkal 2011

Here is a short video that Paul Poole put together on our recent trip to Morocco. I hope you enjoy it and if you fancy coming next year, have a look here.

Micro Nav & Night Nav

I have been out with Katrina again today looking at micro navigation skills. We spent the day on the North East end of the Glyderau looking at off the path contour interpretation, bearings, pacing and timing and strategies for poor visibility navigation. We had a break for tea at Petes Eats and then went out in the Llanberis Pass once night had fallen for a couple of hours of night nav. Another great day out in the mountains and some more beautiful weather.