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Intro
4000m 'Summits & Skills' 2010
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Course
overview
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Client
feedback
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Your
first trip to the Alps is your most important
and most rewarding, as you begin your Alpine
climbing career, and learn safety skills that
you will use for the rest of your life in
the mountains. |
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To
join our Alpine Intro course you need no previous
experience of climbing or mountaineering.
This course is suitable for keen hill walkers,
indoor wall climbers, or ramblers, to introduce
you to the key technical aspects necessary
for mountaineering. |
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A
key feature of the Intro course is that you
attempt a 4000m peak, such as Gran Paradiso,
at the end of the week. This involves a day
ascending to a mountain hut for the night,
and an Alpine start the next morning to ascend
the peak. A great experience, and this will
confirm how much you have already learned
during the week. |
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Alpine
Introduction courses focus on the skills
that you will require for ascents on Alpine
rock, ice and snow; including ropework,
glacier travel, navigation, crampon &
ice axe use, avalanche prediction, and equipment
selection.
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I
must admit that I was a bit scared
about my first trip to the Alps,
but the Icicle hosts and Guides really
looked after us, and we were supported
loads, especially during our ascent
of our first 4000m Alpine peak
Lara
Glenn , Alpine Intro 2009
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A
really rewarding course. The climbs
were great, and taught loads too
Phil
Mason , Alpine Intro 2009
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Thank
you so much for a brilliant week.
We learnt more than we thought there
was to know, which is down to the
professionalism of the guides, &
the great set up you have in Chamonix
Peter
& Sue Thomas, Alpine Intro '08
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Even
if you have had no previous contact with ropes,
or any experience of ice or rock climbing, by the
end of the week you will have climbed vertical pitches
of ice, led a rock route and climbed an Alpine 4000m
mountain. |
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A
principal feature of this course are the evening
theory sessions, where you learn the background
theory, so that the daylight hours are optimised
for your climbing time. You can read more about
these instruction sessions, which cover ropework,
Alpine weather, avalanches, and crevasse rescue,
by clicking
here. |
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You
will also stay in a mountain hut and and
should gain your National Navigation Award Scheme
(NNAS, www.nnas.org.uk) Bronze or Silver level award
through learning advanced use of the map and compass,
as well as altimeters and GPS. |
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Dates: 13
- 19 June 2010, 27 June - 3 July 2010, 11 - 17 July
2010, 18 - 24 July 2010, 1 - 7 August 2010, 8 -
14 August 2010, 15 - 21 August 2010, 29 August -
4 September 2010, 12 - 18 September 2010, 19 - 25
September 2010.
For current availability on this course click
here. |
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The
course at a glance... |
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Week long course, run during summer. Price £799pp,
includes accommodation. |
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The focus of the week is to introduce you to rock,
ice and snow climbing in the Alps. |
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Top tip... consider this course if you want to learn
and have no climbing experience. |
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You could also consider week long... Alpine
Autonomy
or
Mont
Blanc Summit. |
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Brief
Course Itinerary
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| Sun |
Travel
to Chamonix to arrive for the 18:00 check-in followed
by and course safety and itinerary briefings. There
is time for kit checks or rental of equipment. Briefings
are over by 20:00 and the Chamonix hosts accompany
the group to
pre-dinner drinks to answer any queries.
Night in Chamonix. |
| Mon |
Alpine
skills, navigation, route planning and snow techniques
day. Climb an Alpine
summit via a steep ground,
practice hazard awareness, use of
GPS & altimeters.
Guiding ratio 1:6 (max). Night in Chamonix. |
| Tue |
Day
to learn using crampons and ice axes on the Mer
de Glace glacier (2000m). You also climb vertical
ice, create ice anchors, and learn glacier travel
skills. Guiding ratio 1:6 (max). Night in Chamonix. |
| Wed |
Glacier
travel skills, practicing building snow anchors,
crevasse rescue, and probing for crevasses, spent
on a journey across the massive Argentiere glacier
basin. Guiding ratio 1:6 (max). Night in Chamonix. |
| Thu |
A
morning of rock climbing skills, to learn / practice
belaying safely and how to lead / set up safe anchors
on rock climbs. After
lunch you go to the hut for Paradiso. Guiding
ratio 1:3 (max). Night in mountain hut. |
| Fri |
Summit
Gran Paradiso 4061m from an Alpine start from the
high hut, then descend and return drive to Chamonix.
Celebrations
in Chamonix in the evening. Guiding ratio 1:3 (max).
Night in Chamonix. |
| Sat |
Breakfast,
then course debrief, with feedback and questions
and answers session. Depart for home. |
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| ITINERARY
NOTES: Where possible we follow itineraries. Mountain
adventures are weather and conditions dependant,
so occasionaly we are forced to alter the plans.
If this is the case, suitable alternatives are offered.
Please use this outline itinerary as a guide to
the types of route / activity that you will attempt. |
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Course
Photo Gallery
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Why
choose this course?
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This
course is genuinely one of our favourites to run,
as those booking on it are declaring that they want
to learn as much as they can, and are seeking to
kick start their Alpine career by getting the key
skills and knowledge, before they attempt some of
the bigger and harder routes. This is a great attitude
with which to begin Alpine climbing, and is a very
sensible approach
if for example you have never worn crampons before. |
Alpine skills & knowledge test
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Try
to answer the questions below, and see how much
you already know. The answers are beneath. After
you complete one of our Alpine Intro courses, you
should be able to answer all these questions, and
much more with the greatest of ease.
Q1.
What is the minimum length rope two climbers should
take for a wet glacier crossing?
ANSWER: They should take a 30m rope, as a wet glacier
is snow covered, so crevasses could be hidden. Each
climber should tie on the end of the rope and take
in chest coild until 10 to 12 metres are tied off
between them.
Q2.
What is a foehn wind, and how is it generated?
ANSWER: A foehn wind is caused by the enforced uplift
of an airmass over a mountain, and as it cools with
altitude the humity condenses and precipitation
falls. On the descent the drier air mass is rapidy
compressed and warms quickly. The net effect is
that the air reaches the same altitude on the far
side of the mountain drier and warmer than on the
uplift side.
Q3.
How can you retreat from a multi-pitch ice / glacier
climb without leaving any ice screws behind?
ANSWER: By constructing Abalakov belay systems,
which are two inter-connecting holes drilled into
the ice, using ice screws, through which some abseil
tat is threaded and tied off.
Q4.
How do you tell a left and right crampon apart?
ANSWER: The buckles / strap attachments are always
on the outside of the crampon, to reduce the snagging
/ trip hazard. Also looking a the crampons from
above, a left boot crampon bends to the right, and
vice-versa. |
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Course
Prices
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Standard
course
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5
days guiding, 7 days holiday in total |
£799 |
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Premium
course
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7
days guiding, 8 days holiday in total
(Standard course plus Acclimatisation
weekend)
LINK |
£898 |
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Secure
online booking system |
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Course Inclusions: 1) UIMLA guide for 1 day
and IFMGA guide for four days, 2) Chamonix course hosts
for logistics & briefings, 3) B&B accommodation
in Chamonix (inc. beddings & towels), 4) One night
half board in mountain hut (inc. costs for guides), 5)
Pre course information booklet, 6) Equipment discount
voucher for UK shops, 7) Free 36 page technical Course
Instruction Booklet, 8) Road transport in Chamonix valley
including tunnel ticket and road transport to / from Gran
Paradiso, 9) Cable cars & uplift as specified in detailed
itinerary (Monday to Friday), worth up to 60 euros, 10)
Evening technical instruction. |
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| Exclusions:
1) Travel to and from Chamonix, 2) Equipment hire, 3)
Personal laundry, telephone calls, lunches, evening meals
in valley, & any purchases in mountain huts / hotels
/ restaurants, 4) Certificate for NNAS navigation award,
5) Activities insurance, & excess baggage charges. |
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| Upgrade
options |
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Acclimatisation
Weekend
£99
(throughout the season) |
To
get the most out your course, acclimatisation is
essential so that you minimise the chances of AMS
(altitude sickness) later on during your course,
details. |
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Half
Board Upgrade
£99
(throughout the season) |
For
every night that you are in town, you eat in a different
restaurant in the centre of Chamonix. Always three
courses, to power you for the next day. |
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Private
Room Upgrade
£120
(7-27 June & 6-26 Sept)
£150 (28 June - 5 Sept) |
The
course accommodation is usually in rooms of two
sharing. Two people booking / sending forms together
are guaranteed a room of two sharing. This upgrade
guarantees you a private room on
your own for your course. |
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