A proper International Mountain Leader!

The Mountain House Team have spent the last 2 weeks in the French Alps, snowshoeing, practising winter micro navigation and generally getting a better understanding of the snow conditions.  All this has been in preparation for the final hurdle of Mike's International Mountain Leader Award.  All the hard work (and dieting!) has paid off, and Mike now proudly boasts that he is a 'proper' IML, as the current scheme has involved an extra 2 weeks of training and assessment.

Cutting a snow bollard belay.

We are now planning to add winter snowshoeing to our intineraries - watch the website for those of you who would like to join us for this great way of experiencing the mountains in winter.

Snowshoeing in the Sierra Nevada

After a 'washout' Christmas, we returned to the Sierra Nevada last week for some winter snow.  We were not disappointed, as the snow had been falling for the previous 2 weeks!  We managed 3 great days in the mountains, including one at the Ragua pass on the eastern side of the range, with Martin Riley.  Although we had mixed weather, this proved to be real 'back country' terrain, and we will definitely be back next year.