Stag Events in The Lake District. Saturday July 23rd, 2016. Stickle Ghyll & Coniston Water.

Last Saturday, we were out in The Lake District providing a Stag Day for Tom Evans & his mates.

Many Stag groups these days are looking for a Stag Event with a difference and Stag Events involving outdoor activities have become increasingly popular in the UK.

Groups can browse our comprehensive list of outdoor activity sessions in The Lake District. This group chose Ghyll Scrambling and Raft Building as the two activities for their Stag Event

So what is Ghyll Scrambling? Well, it is definitely one of our most popular Summer Outdoor Activities. It involves getting clad in a wet-suit and cagoule, you are also provided with walking boots to give you good grip in the bed of the stream, a helmet to protect your head and a harness to allow you to be roped up those tricky & slippery sections where a slip could turn into something more serious.

Photos one & two see Tom & his mates enjoying  the fun that Ghyll Scrambling has to offer - immersion in a mountain stream (a Ghyll), walking upstream - wading & swimming through pools and climbing up waterfalls.

This particular Stag Group were very able and took to Ghyll Scrambling well. We used Stickle Ghyll in Langdale as the venue and made rapid progress upstream climbing up waterfalls and swimming through as well as jumping into pools.

We finished off with a final "new" waterfall that Iain hasn't climbed before where everyone had to get right into the flow and climb up (photo three). This was challenging and exhilarating, but made safe by use of a tight rope. Everyone definitely got a face-full  of Stickle Ghyll here!

Our Ghyll Scrambling Sessions start at £45 per person for a half day (four hour) session, but the larger your group, the less you'll pay per head. These sessions are great fun for a Stag or Hen Event, but just as much fun with the family and we do provide addition discounts for family groups as we know how  expensive an activity session become when you have the whole family to pay for! Contact us at the foot of this post to get a quote for one of our Fantastic Ghyll Scrambling Sessions in The Lake District.

After the Stag Group's  Ghyll Scrambling Session, we travelled to Coniston for lunch before beginning the group's second Stag Activity - Raft Building.

As there were only six persons, this was not quite enough to justify two rafts, so we brought along six wooden spars, four barrels and enough lashings (lengths of rope) to allow the guys to build one raft - significantly large enough to fit everyone one though.

We allowed the group to design their own raft (photo four) on the east shore of Coniston water where there is free parking and plenty of beach space to build a raft on.

Eventually, the group came up with a design and started to build their raft. We decided to stand back  and see what the group came up with and how well they built it.

The penalty for a poor raft design is usually a ducking when the raft falls apart, but this is safe and all part of the fun when everyone falls in! Iain's biggest concern about this Stag Group's design was that they chose to group all of the barrels together in the centre of the raft - when the length of the spars would have allowed them to put a barrel at "either corner" making it much more stable. However, as can be seen in photo five, the guys were not only able to get on their raft , but they also managed to keep it upright and paddle it too!Good effort!

Our final photo from this post about a Stag Event in The Lake District sees Tom's team back on dry land, with their raft - still intact!

They had enjoyed designing and building the raft and then of course, they had all shared in the success of paddling it a short distance around Coniston Water. It wasn't the most manoeuvrable craft and worked better this way up (initially it had been paddled with the framework at the bottom).

All that remained now was for the raft to be stripped down & packed away!

Tom Evan's Stag Group enjoyed a very satisfying Stag Event with us in The Lake District and you can too. This group paid only £70 per person for a full day of exhilarating fun with all of the equipment needed for each activity provide by us. Contact us here to book your Stag or Hen Event in The Lake District and be assured that you'll receive a fun and value for money day out that you will never forget! We look forward to working with you!

Navigation Skills Training Courses in The Lake District. July 18th & 19th 2016.

Yesterday & Monday, Iain was out in the Lake District fells with Nicola & Richard Penfold who had travelled up to the area for a weeks walking holiday from London.

The couple's friends Rob & Evita Evans also from London, had booked a two day bespoke Navigation Skills Training Course in The Lake District  for them as a wedding present. Rob & Evita attended one of our bespoke Navigation Skills Training Courses in The Lake District in May 2012 and had also recently paid for a one day course for their daughter Mieke and son in law Adam.

Clearly, we are perceived to be doing something right with our Lake District based Navigation Skills Training Courses and we would like to extend a big thank you! to Rob & Evita for all of the business you have put our way!

Anyway, we started day one as usual with Nicola & Richard (photo one) by walking up Hall Lane near Staveley beginning with basic skills such as map orientation, measuring distance on the map and pacing it on the ground.

We used these skills to locate tick off features along our route and the pair became quite adept at reading the map and identifying features on the ground as well as accurately finding them- exactly what we wanted to achieve today!

As usual on these courses, we supplied the maps - 1:50 and 1:25'000 scales in handy A4 Laminated versions. The compass also featured in photo two is the one we recommend for these courses - the Silva Type 4 Expedition - ideal for our courses, but you'd be surprised at how many people choose to ignore our advice!

After lunch on day one, Iain gave Nicola & Richard the skills to find and give grid references  to be able to determine locations on the map; and with an eight figure grid reference we were able to get our accuracy down to the nearest ten metres. We followed this by learning how to use the compass to take a bearing between grid references and then using it to walk on a bearing. We would spend the rest of the afternoon of day one walking between grid references - using the compass, before finishing off talking about Naismith's Rule and calculating timings between grid references as well - all good navigation skills!

On day two, we travelled further up the Kentmere Valley with the intention being to further put into practice the skills learnt on day one  and learn some new ones too!

We started off by identifying unknown features from a known location using the compass before setting off on a fairly long walk up the upper Kentmere Valley to find the sheepfold in photo three.

Nicola & Richard were most enthusiastic about pacing and identifying tick off features along the way and  were able to accurately identify exactly where they were on our walk at any time; and they also found the sheepfold no problem.

Once on the "open fell" things became  a little harder to find and this really relied on the pairs ability to accurately pace and walk on a bearing as well as "time" using Naismith's Rule.

We visited some harder to find locations such as a bridleway/stream junction and a stream junction in the middle of nowhere - all of which the couple managed to find.  By this time it was mid afternoon and getting very hot, so we returned via the Kentmere Reservoir (photo four) and Kentmere Valley to the vehicle before going off to the Hawkshead Brewery in Staveley for a well earned beer with Nicola and Richard very pleased with what they had learnt over the two days.

Rob & Evita Evans paid £160 per day for Nicola & Richard's "one on two" Bespoke Navigation Skills Training Weekend. This may sound like a lot but obviously the benefits of a couple of people working with an instructor were perceived to outweigh the cost - which they most definitely do!

The other benefit of a bespoke Navigation Skills Training Course in The Lake District is that you can book one at any time you fancy. For those people who think £160 per day sounds too much then consider our Navigation Skills Training Weekends priced at £80 per person for the two day course - but expect to be part of a much larger group.

To book your bespoke Navigation Skills Training Course or Navigation Skills Training Weekend in The Lake District - contact us here. We look forward to working with you!

Learning to Lead Rock Climbing Skills Training Courses in The Lake District. July 5th & 6th 2016.

Last Tuesday & Wednesday, Iain was out on Lake District Rock with Stuart Freeman & his partner Dee. The couple were in the area on a holiday from the South East and had booked two days of "Trad" Rock Climbing Skills Training with us as part of their stay.

Fortunately, despite having been rather unsettled of late, the Lake District weather smiled on us all providing  two largely fine, dry days - just what you need when rock climbing!

We started Stuart & Dee's Rock Climbing Skills Training Course at Upper Scout Crag in Langdale where "Route One" proved to be a good choice of climbing terrain with three fine pitches of V-Diff with good stances and good anchor placements.

In photo one, Dee Joins Stuart at the first stance of the route after he had led the first pitch placing good running belays along the way and employing correct techniques throughout at the first stance. Good stuff!

Stuart & Dee climbed fast and with competence - so much so in fact that  the usual plan of climbing all of Route One & half of Route Two before executing an abseil retreat would have seen us finish dayone several hours early. So, instead, we continued all the way up to the top of Route Two before finishing.

Photo two sees Stuart just coming over "the crux" (the hardest part) of Route Two which is a polished an awkward move into the base of a chimney. Dee looks on  from the Oak Tree which forms the stance and the place of our usual "abseil retreat" from this rock climb.

Stuart is lead climbing, but at the place where he is now, a lead fall would have serious consequences if it were not for the fact that he has just clipped in to a running belay pre-placed  by Iain. Iain had protected Stuart up to that point by means of a long sling attached between himself and Stuart's harness. Learning the skills and getting on with rock climbing are all important parts of a Mountaineering Instructor's remit - however, the student's safety has to be our top priority at all times!

Day two would see us a little further up Langdale; and climbing  the easy multi-pitch classic rock climb of Middlefell Buttress (Diff). This great route has the feel of a big  mountain route, again, with great protection and up to six pitches to be done - depending on how you want to climb it.

The base of the route has three possible variants; and as the pair had climbed so well the previous day, Iain chose the severe chimney crack as their start with Stu leading - again protected by Iain en route. Above here, the route is easier & less sustained, so Dee led up two pitches and then Stuart finished off up the final super easy pitch to the top (photo three)

The weather was now looking like it was going to break with clouds lowering over Crinkle Crags and light showers breaking out all around us. It was decided to finish early after an abseil retreat from the Rowan tree into the gully forming the western boundary of the buttress just opposite the top of the climb.

Firstly, we untied from the rope and then Iain threaded it through the anchor (a Maillon attached to a rope sling) to the rope's mid point before dropping either side down the crag. Then we each attached a cowstail to our harnesses with a larksfoot and an overhand knot mid sling before attaching a karabiner to the end of the sling, clipping to the anchor and then suspending ourselves from that.  Below the overhand knot - mid sling, we attached our belay devices and then attached the belay devices to the rope allowing us to safely set up for a "stacked abseil" whilst still being attached to the anchor.

Once we were all attached by our belay plates to both sides of the climbing rope, we then disconnected our cowstails from the anchor and then abseiled in order of attachment (photo four) to the base of the chimney and then scrambled back to the rucksacks for some well earned lunch before departing the crag.

Stuart & Dee learnt a lot on their two day Learning to Lead Trad Rock Climbing Skills Training Course in The Lake District with Iain and paid just £80 each per day for their course (less for day two as we finished early!).The fee includes the provision of helmets, harnesses, ropes and climbing rack as well as tuition  from an experienced Mountaineering Instructor.

Contact us here to book your Learning To lead Rock Climbing or Guided Rock Climbing Course in The Lake District with Iain who looks forward to working with you.

Corporate Events in The Lake District with Kendal Mountaineering Services. Seco Tools. July 7th & 8th 2016.

During last Thursday & Friday, we ran another Corporate Team Building Event for Seco Tools based in Alcester, Warwickshire.

This company came to us three years ago looking for a Team Building Event and following the success of that decided to return again.  There has recently been a restructuring of the sales team within the business and a number of new employees have been engaged. It was felt that another Corporate Team Building event with us would help to "bond" the new sales team with the ultimate aim of improving efficiency and sales.

As with the last Corporate Event we ran for Seco Tools, we started off with a competitive Team Task - Product Assembly in which the group is split four ways, given a brief and then asked to build a structure, correctly, in as short a time a possible.

In order to do this, the groups each had to devise a plan based around the brief and its constraints, discuss ideas, trial them an implement the solution.  The task ended with two "timed" assemblies against the other sub-groups. The winning team got from stacked components to assembled product in 17 seconds!

The second phase of the first afternoon was to go Canyoning in nearby Church Beck. Canyoning, for this group was intended to involve an element of challenge. For many of the sales personnel here the idea of climbing across exposed ground, jumping from height into pools of water or climbing up waterfalls whilst getting a face-full and being thoroughly soaked was something that none of them would normally entertain.

However, the group did all of these things; and with enthusiasm too as well as support & encouragement for each other. Above all, they had great fun that will be remembered - just as this activity was by those who had attended three years ago!

Having completed the afternoon's tasks, our next job was to get the group into their overnight accommodation.

As with the previous Corporate Team Building Event we ran for Seco Tools, the company had asked for something "rustic" and basic accommodation-wise. As it happened, the same climbing club hut that we used last time was available again and the company was happy to return there.

We had been asked to provide the group with ingredients to make their own evening meal  of Chilli Con Carne, however, whilst we had been Canyoning one of out staff team had prepared this for them. Photo three sees the group in the hut kitchen getting stuck into the hors d' oeuvres and beer prior to settling down to supper and a good evening in together in the remote location that the hut provided.

The next morning, we arrived early to prepare a good breakfast for the group. Cereals, tea coffee, toast & jam were followed by a "full English  Breakfast" of bacon eggs, sausage, baked beans and scrambled egg.

The group were up when we arrived, having enjoyed the evening in each others company and we had a considerable amount of help from them with preparing breakfast and then doing the dishes and cleaning the hut from top to bottom afterwards. Good stuff!

At Kendal Mountaineering Services, we offer a great deal more than the name suggests and for the Seco Tools Team-building Event, we arranged & staffed appropriate activities & tasks, arranged the accommodation and food; and provided transport for the group's baggage from the car park to the hut and back.

Our company slogan is "Giving you what you want"and this approach is applied to any aspect of our product whether it be a corporate course, Stag or Hen event, Skills Training Course or Outdoor Activity Session. Let us know what your requirements are and we will design a course or event to suit your needs!

And to finish off on Friday morning, we had decided to offer something completely different to the last group's Canadian Canoeing Session on Windermere but instead, give the group another task which again required teamwork, communication & planning - Strategy Orienteering.

Strategy Orienteering involved dividing into sub-groups again with each group being required to locate 35 different orienteering markers all located within 1 kilometre of Tranearth, with each marker being worth points.

The idea was to find all 35 markers during three separate collection phases and gain all of the points. However, there were penalties if a marker was not collected and if the group didn't arrive back before the end of each collection phase.  Again, a brief was provided and the group had to plan who was going where to collect which markers during each phase.

This was physically demanding work for each group but the planning done by each team worked well. All three subgroups gained high scores and few penalties; and it proved to be another useful exercise in getting all team members working together.

By the time we finished this task it was almost mid-day and the group needed to be gone as some were driving as far as the south coast to get back home that evening.The feedback we have had so far is that the sales-force and sales managers were very pleased with what we provided and that we can expect to see another group from Seco Tools in the Autumn - we look forward to that.

If you would like a corporate Team Building Event organising in The Lake District utilising all that the area has to offer then  we would be very pleased to design a package for you, so please contact us to discuss your requirements. We look forward to working with you!

Guided Walking Days in The Lake District. Scafell pike via the Corridor Route. July 9th 2016.

Last Saturday, Iain was working for Ambleside Adventures providing a Guided Fell Walking Day in The Lake District for Jon Sanderson, his son Alfie and friend Andy who had driven up from South Lincolnshire for the weekend.

The forecast for the day was poor, low cloud, heavy rain and winds gusting up to 40 mph on the summits, however, a walk is a walk and  provided one has good waterproofs - you can still go out!

Photo one sees the three at the confluence of  Ruddy Gill and Styhead Gill in upper Borrowdale. Seathwaite Fell (in the background- left) is reputed to be the wettest place in England! Today, it certainly felt like it!
                                                                                      

Several hours later, we found ourselves at the scene in photo two where the footpath up to the col at the head of Piers Gill branches off from the main "Corridor Route" footpath.

The Corridor  Route is one of the nicest ways up Scafell Pike from Styhead Pass (a little over an hours walk from Seathwaite in Borrowdale) and follows a gradually rising line from there to the summit.  Today, we saw little, but certainly all of the streams in spate were very impressive.

However, when we got to  the point where photo two was taken it really looked as though the weather might clear up. The clouds lifted and we got a clear view to the summit of Great End. However, this was only a brief interlude before the cloud closed in and the rain started again!

Photo three was taken by some kind chap at the summit of Scafell Pike at around 1pm (we had left Seathwaite at 09:40) and shows us all fairly drenched. Given the conditions, it was really surprising how many people were around, but there was some corporate orienteering event going on involving a lot of young people  from BMW. We can only hope that they all got off the mountain safely.

On our Guided Scafell Pike days, we will ideally do a circular route and today, Iain would have like to return to Borrowdale via the summits to the north of Scafell  - Broad Crag, Ill Crag & Great End  before dropping back to Seathwaite by way of Esk Hause & Ruddy Gill. However, with the wind picking up and conditions already poor, Iain decided that the most prudent plan was to return via our relatively sheltered ascent route.

Our final photo from this post about Guided  Fell Walking in The Lake District sees Jon, Alfie & Andy about ten minutes from Seathwaite walking alongside a considerably swollen Rover Derwent.

After we left Scafell Pike Summit, the weather worsened considerably, yet we still met people walking towards us, many ill-equipped for the conditions, all intent on reaching the summit and many clearly did not know exactly where they were as Iain was asked this question on a a number of occasions. This is typical, but really very poor!

If you are going to go hill walking in the UK's  mountains, then you should know how to read a map and use a compass. You should also be able to read and interpret a weather forecast and know when to "turn back". You should also be aware of what to take with you when going out in conditions which, in the mountains, can become very hostile in a very short space of time. We can advise you on all aspects of Hill Walking & Mountaineering in the UK and provide courses in Map Reading & Navigation Skills.

Or- you can hire the services of  an experienced Mountaineering Instructor to guide you & keep you safe in the hills. Iain has been walking the mountains of the Lake District for 47 years and knows all the routes, no matter what the weather!

Contact us here to book your guided  Lake District Fell Walk or Navigation Skills Training Course. We look forward to working with you!

Working backwards - when we can! Navigation Skills Training Weekend, June 25th & 26th 2016.

Sorry Folks. Our last Blog Post was April 29th, but we've not been out of business since - just too busy to put it all up on here! In the coming weeks, we will attempt to keep moving forward with our reporting as well as trying to work back and report on what has already gone on in May & June.

You can read about our adventures over the last two months by visiting the Kendal Mountaineering Services Facebook page and there - you'll find everything we've been up to!

Most recently, we were out last weekend with James & Christina Stevens who are on holiday in The Lake District from Hertfordshire and local lasses - Sandra & Janet from Kendal. All four had signed up to one of our Navigation Skills Training Weekends in The Lake District.

So what are these courses about? Well, the idea is to show you how to use a map to identify what  you can see around you - of course you have to make sure that you have the right map for the area first!

We make sure that you do have the right maps for the course by supplying then too you FOC as part of the course fee. All you need to bring is a compass (and we recommend the Silva Type 4 Expedition Compass as being the best one for the course), everything you would need for going out for a day into the mountains in all weather conditions; and a willingness to learn.....

Sound's pretty simple doesn't it!

And all these things were what our four turned up with last Saturday morning as we set off to venture into the fells to the north of Staveley in the southern Lake District.

We started the course by emphasizing how important it is to orientate the map (ie align it with the landscape around you) to aid identification. We discussed the various map scales on offer and their pros and cons before measuring distance on the map and then pacing it out on the ground. By the time we got int the middle of nowhere in photo three, the group could also find and give grid references and were using a compass bearing to walk in a straight line between grid references - all textbook stuff!

We spent the afternoon of day one taking more compass bearings between grid references, measuring the distance and then walking on the bearings and pacing them out. The afternoon disappeared very quickly indeed!

The next morning saw us all meet at Staveley again, but this time we drove further up the valley to begin day two of the group's Navigation Skills Training Weekend in The Lake District at a point about 2/3rds of the way up the Kentmere Valley.

The day started out sunny & quite hot (photo four). We began our day by using our compasses to identify features from our known location before setting off on our route for the day which included another short section of "hand-railing" the bye-way leading to Long Sleddale before heading off up the fell to look for something more interesting; and harder to find.

Marked on our 1:25'000 scale maps in one location on the east side of Shipman Knotts are three very small squares with a footpath leading to them.

We decided to try to locate these squares to see what they were and this meant following the rather indistinct footpath through thick bracken lower on the fell. We were able to measure our pacings per 100 metres on the first part of this path and then the group missed the route and headed off, unaware, on a different path. It took a prompting from Iain before they realised their mistake and finally headed along the right route. Eventually, we found our three squares which turned out to be 3 small walled enclosures hidden in bracken  - an ideal place for lunch (photo five).

Our final photo from this post about our most recent Navigation Skills Training Weekend in The Lake District, sees the four "hot footing it" off the hill as the forecast weather arrives (later than forecast we are pleased to say!).

After finding our three "squares", we made our way to a "ring contour" (high point) on the ridge above, which we then verified by walking on another 100 m to a wall junction (which was just where it should have been according to the map!) Then, with the wind rising  and the temperature dropping, we returned to the valley as a wall of rain moved west from Windermere towards us - fortunately not quite reaching us before we reached the Land Rover.

Christina & James and Sandra & Janet thoroughly enjoyed attending our Navigation Skills Training Weekend in The Lake District and all leave with a much better understanding or Map Reading & Navigation Skills. Our next "scheduled" Weekend Navigation Skills Training Course will be on October 8th & 9th and there are ten places available at the bargain price of £80 per person. Contact us here to book your place, We look forward to working with you!

Winter Mountaineering half day Sessions in The Lake District. Tarn Crag, Langdale. 29th April 2016.

Last Friday dawned looking rather ominous here in Kendal. From our home, Iain could see that the cloud was down to 300 metres on Potter Fell; and the snow that had been put down the previous day was still there to a lower level.  Also, it was raining. Not really a day for rock climbing then!

However, we had a Rock Climbing Session booked and so Iain set off to Langdale to meet Jon Calthrop. This was the view in Langdale  at 09:00!!

Jon turned up rather later than expected having experienced difficulties in getting over Kirkstone Pass (he was staying in Penrith). As Iain pointed out - today wasn't a day for a Rock Climbing Session in The Lake District, but if Jon was interested then a Winter Mountaineering (Winter Scrambling) Session was an option?? He was keen, so we got packed up & ready to go with our sights, initially on a winter ascent of Jack's Rake!

Jon had been in the area for a week on Holiday and had been out the previous day on Cam Crag in Langstrath with another Mountaineering Instructor. They would have undoubtedly encountered some snow on that route as we were also in Borrowdale that afternoon and you can see how snowy it was if you look at the post. Today in Langdale, there was noticeably more snow as we trudged up through it towards Stickle Tarn. (photo two).

For a 67 year old, Jon was going very well, but it  became apparent at around the time photo two was taken, that doing Jacks Rake was going to be a bit ambitious for a four hour (half day) session.

So, Iain offered Jon the option of doing two routes on Tarn Crag which was very much closer than Jack's Rake. In photo three, we were making our way up the easier South West Buttress of Tarn Crag - only grade 1 ground and one of our favourite locations for teaching scrambling. The good thing about this place is that there are a number of options for picking one's way up ground of different grades of difficulty - Jon was quite happy to be on the easier stuff; and also very happy to be on a rope as well!

The terrain proved to be ok on the rock which was dry and not too snowed up. The bits of grassy terrain between proved to be treacherous - wet grass overlain with wet snow meant it was very slippery indeed!

We got to the top of the lower buttress of Tarn Crag with time to do another route, so Iain suggested a winter ascent of The Spur (grade 2) - another of our favourite teaching scrambling routes.

This scramble starts at the foot of a rocky rib towards the south side of the main buttress of Tarn Crag and takes a line that weaves out right before moving back up on to the crest of the rib - finishing  up a few steep walls before arriving on the summit of Tarn Crag.

It was certainly a bit more exciting today with a covering of snow and the initial move across the exposed slab was interesting, but ok. Jon found it quite exciting though - he looks quite pleased with himself as he moves up to join Iain at the stance at the top of the first pitch  (photo four). That's the summit of Harrison Stickle in the background which had recently put in an appearance as the blizzard had temporarily ceased!

The second pitch of the route was much more snowed up and time was rapidly moving on, so Iain deviated  from the line of the route into an interesting gully that would soon bring us out on to an easy grassy slope from where we could escape the crag.

We descended a gully to the south which brought us out near to a ruined building on easier ground near to a footpath which descended to join the main route between the valley floor and Stickle Tarn (photo five).

The ground was extremely slippery with its covering of wet snow; and despite his Scarpa Mantas, Jon was struggling to keep his footing so, Iain kept him on the rope all the way to the main path; and a good idea it was too!

We got back to the vehicles at 13:45 and Jon was very grateful for what he reckoned, had been a much better session than he had experienced the previous day - that was nice to hear!

The session had been much more challenging than that originally planned - Rock Climbing to Winter Mountaineering, but Iain had looked after Jon well and pitched the session at just the right level for him. As an experienced Mountaineering Instructor, Iain will always attempt to give you the best possible experience regardless of the conditions; and exceed your expectations every time!

We'd like to think that's it for Winter now - but who knows! However, if you are looking for a Rock Climbing Course or Scrambling Course in The Lake District, Wales or Scotland then contact Iain here. We look forward to working with you!