Mountain Weather and Decision Making for Climbers and Mountaineers with

Course Itinerary

Meet at The Old Inn, 08:30

We’ll start with a weather briefing from Garry at MWIS, covering what the weather is doing now, where it’s heading, and what to look out for on the hill. Bring your questions, it’s very much a conversation.

Out on the hill

After the briefing we’ll travel to the mountains, kit up and head out into grade 1 winter terrain. We’ll look at the conditions around us and what they mean for climbers, including:

• Choosing an objective: picking a sensible route in anything from lean conditions to deep snow.
• Frozen turf: how it freezes, what moisture and wind do to it, and how to judge its quality.
• Snowpack and avalanche safety: spotting weak layers and choosing safe routes.
• Rime and verglas: forecasting icing, spotting it from a distance, and judging whether it’s worth climbing.
• Weather in practice: humidity, the wet-bulb effect, reading the clouds, and getting your clothing system right.
• Technical skills: moving through avalanche terrain, and emergency rope work for when things don’t go to plan.

By the end of the day, we want you to really understand what makes good conditions and how to adapt when things aren’t quite what you expected. You’ll know the science behind good decisions, and you’ll have a clear sense of what makes a route properly fun to climb.

Back at The Old Inn, around 17:30

We’ll finish with a round-up and a chance to ask anything we haven’t covered.

We’ll shape the day around the conditions we find, so you get the most out of it.