UKC

Hi all,

As I'm in the middle of my exam period, I was procrastinating by checking my units for next year. Imagine my delight when I saw that it appears that I don't have any exams in the first semester, leaving me with 8 weeks to go play, all of June and July next year.

I'd love to learn alpine stuff. I currently live in Australia, so apart from a few snowboarding trips to Japan, I have no knowledge or experience in snow. I am a relatively strong sport climber (high 7's), with small amounts of trad experience.

Any recommendations on where I can go that will be cheap and safe? Is it worth doing a course? Can I just find my own Mr. Miagi?

Thanks.

In reply to Thelongcon:


If I were you, wherever you go, I'd think about doing a course. It's probably the quickest (albeit with a cost) way to start getting a handle on the big range of skills required to make Alpine mountaineering reasonably safe. And I say reasonably. There's some ok deals around for 5 day courses and the like if you hunt around.

Austria is not a bad bet for venues that are a wee bit 'Alpine Lite' and not too expensive. Zermatt, Chamonix and Cortina are some place that'll hurt your pocket unless you're a wizard at the thrift. A guy I met said "it's a good day in Switzerland when you haven't spent £100." And that was years ago!

All the best,
Rich.

In reply to Thelongcon:

I guess New Zealand would be your closest bet. Great alpine climbing, awesome guides and courses although not the easiest time of year for alpine climbing. Other possibilities would include the US or Canada.
If travelling to Europe and you have some spare money then, as Murko says, a course would be a fast and relatively safe way to start. A general introduction course, for example through ISM or Jagged Globe, could be followed up by a few weeks getting your own climbing done in different areas of the European alps. Not usually too challenging to find other partners through this site or once in the Alps.

Have fun!

In reply to Thelongcon:

I doubt you will find an Alpine course in June. At the beginning of June, the Alps usually still have a huge amount of snow, and huts are closed except for winter rooms. The main summer season doesn't really start until late in the month or July, depending on the year and when (if at all) the Azores high moves in. June is generally a chancy time - it can be brilliant, especially for ice and mixed routes, but it would be unwise to plan too far ahead. And you might needs skis or snowshoes to get around in the higher massifs.

However, it is often a great time in the mountain areas of Britain, especially Scotland. You could come to the UK, do some rock climbing, and move over to the Alps when the weather and conditions looked promising.

In reply to Thelongcon:

Hi,

If you head out to the European Alps in the Summer then you do have a couple of options really, pretty much as you have eluded to.

There will be people who will climb with you and take you under their wing so to speak! You will find people after partners on these forums and elsewhere. You will also find people mooching about in the "first timer" areas - Chamonix is usually where people head straight to and there are always people wandering about looking for partners for any level of stuff, Zermatt is another popular spot and also places like Arolla and the Saastal. Hooking up like this can be a little hit and miss if you haven't done any alpine climbing before - you could either get someone who is super experienced and up-to-date, maybe even someone looking to get on the guides scheme. On the other hand you could get the opposite and not learn the best that you could and ultimately either be scared so shitless you don't want to Alpine climb ever again or be so scared shitless that you do!

Of course the best thing to do would be to book onto a course and then if you have the time left hook up with someone off that course or someone else and consolidate what you have learnt.
There are of course a lot of companies out there but I would suggest dropping Adrian Nelhams an email on ism@alpin-ism.com - and talk through what you are after.

Dez

In reply to Thelongcon:

So I have been climbing about 13 years having started life as a indoor climber . I went on a number of courses each time I moved into either winter climbing or alpine climbing.

If I was to go back 13 years and start again I would join a mountaineering club ( or finding mr miagi) . You will just learn a great deal more in a more realistic fashion than going on a course and its more sustainable (cash wise) . However if you are just going to give it a bash and see if you like that style of climbing a course will probably tick the box .

When choosing a club make sure on the meets schedule they cater for new joiners or have scheduled meets in the mountains. Size of the club is often quite important)IMHO) as well,in my experience mountaineers tend to be pickier about partners as its a far more committing exercise so larger clubs will tend too have larger groups that can accommodate newbies better .

In reply to Thelongcon:

I would join the NZ Alpine Club (Australia Section) then look into doing their subsidised courses in order: Snow 1, Snow 2, then High Alpine Skills. You may find that only the first 2 are running in your time period. Supplement this with the 2 or 3 day Mountain Safety Council Avalanche course for climbers/walkers for a good grounding.
The NZAC courses are very good value, but if you can't get on them, or they're at the wrong times for you, then the various guiding companies here do similar, but more expensive courses.
If you get at least Snow 1 and 2, you could look to do some of the easier NZAC trips, but be honest about your ability and experience.
If you can squeeze some time off in Aug, consider the Remarkeables Mixed and Ice Festival: there are good skills clinics there.

NZ mountaineering is difficult, has long walk ins and very variable conditions, but learning here gives a good grounding for anywhere else.