Ski Touring
INTRODUCTION TO SKI TOURING:
You will need to be confident getting down a red run and have a decent level of fitness. These courses normally stay on the front side of the mountain and the climbing is kept to a maximum of 800 vertical metres. If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
The focus of the day is on the skills needed to go on a ski touring journey, rather than a journey itself (please see 'Journey days' if you prefer to learn the skills on the move).
Children aged 15-18 can attend if their parent attends with them.
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JOURNEY DAY:
You will need to be confident getting down a black run and have a good level of fitness. It is likley we will ascend around 1000vertical metres so imagine climbing a munro but with a bit more weight on your feet). It is hoped that the first ascent should not take more than two hours, although there will likely be at least two climbs in the day.
Both the ascent and descent will normally be less than 30 degrees, but the snow conditions may be variable.
You should be happy to ski in unpredictable and changeable snow, although tactics to help tackle this will be covered in the course.
Children aged 15-18 can attend if their parent attends with them
If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
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EXPLORER DAY:
You would need to be a confident black run and off piste skiing who has experience dealing with all the types of snow we might come across (ice, windslab, sustruggi, neve, powder). Some slopes may be up to 35 degrees but we will only venture onto steeper terrain in safe, grippy spring snow conditions.
You Should have a very good level of fitness (we may ascend over 1200metres ascent of vertical on skis). You need to be happy with long approaches on foot, carrying your equipment.
You should have all of your own equipment and know how to use it.
Under 18s should not attend this course. If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
For two day Explorer with overnight camp you need to be able to look after yourself on an overnight camp.
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EXPLORER DAY - BIKE AND SKI:
You would need to be a confident black run and off piste skiing who has experience dealing with all the types of snow we might come across (ice, windslab, sustruggi, neve, powder). Some slopes may be up to 35 degrees but we will only venture onto steeper terrain in safe, grippy spring snow conditions.
You should have a very good level of fitness (over 1000metres ascent of vertical on skis). You should have a good working mountain bike or similar and you should be able to bike for around 2hours on rough terrain, carrying your equipment. You would need to be familiar with ski touring equipment and ideally using it in Scottish conditions.
You should have all of your own equipment and know how to use it.
Under 18s should not attend this course. If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
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ADVENTURE:
We will be in touch to check you meet the prerequisites. We may ask for a reference from a guide or partner you have skied with.
You would need to be a very confident backcoountry skier who has experience ascending and descending with all the types of snow we might come across (ice, windslab, sustruggi, neve, powder). Some slopes may be up to 35 degrees, or 45 degrees for steeps courses, but we will only venture onto steeper terrain in safe, grippy spring snow conditions.
You Should have a very good level of fitness (over 2000 ascent of vertical on skis). You need to be happy with long approaches on foot, carrying your equipment and quick changeovers. The distance could be between 20 and 30km for some routes.
You would need to own your own equipment (including ice axe and crampons for the steeps days) and be able to use it efficiently on the mountian.
Under 18s cannot attend this course.
If you have had a long break from skiing this course is not for you!
Skills
NAVIGATION & AVALANCHE AWARENESS:
You will need to be confident getting down a black run and have a good level of fitness. It is likley we will ascend around 1000vertical metres per day so imagine climbing a munro but with a bit more weight on your feet). It is hoped that the first ascent should not take more than two hours, although there will likely be at least two climbs in the day.
Both the ascent and descent will normally be less than 30 degrees, but the snow conditions may be variable.
You should be happy to ski in unpredictable and changeable snow, although tactics to help tackle this will be covered in the course.
Children aged 15-18 can attend if their parent attends with them
If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
You should have completed approx 5 ski tours with people in groups.
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ROPEWORK & MOUNTAINEERING SKILLS:
You would need to be a confident black run and off piste skiing who has experience dealing with all the types of snow we might come across (ice, windslab, sustruggi, neve, powder). Some slopes may be up to 35 degrees but we will only venture onto steeper terrain in safe, grippy spring snow conditions.
You Should have a good level of fitness (around 1000metres ascent of vertical on skis).
Under 18s should not attend this course.
If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.
You should have completed approx 10 ski tours with people in groups and need to be familiar with ski touring equipment and ideally using it in Scottish conditions.
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GULLY SKIING:
You would need to be an experienced black run and off piste skiier who has experience dealing with all the types of snow we might come across (ice, windslab, sustruggi, neve, powder).
Some slopes may be around 40 degrees but we will only venture onto steeper terrain in safe, grippy spring snow conditions.
You Should have a very good level of fitness (over 1000metres ascent of vertical on skis). You should have experience using ice axe and crampons.
You should have all of your own equipment and know how to use it, including ice axe and boot crampons.
Under 18s should not attend this course. If you have had a long break from skiing please make sure you visit your local dry slope or try to get a day of uplift skiing before attending.