The sixth annual Arc'teryx Alpine Academy, which took place from June 29th to July 2nd, saw around 400 keen participants descend on Chamonix from all corners of the world. This one-of-a-kind event is like a festival of alpinism, where climbers of all abilities can hone their skills and just generally have fun, in a series of clinics run by a huge team of mountain guides and sponsored athletes.
Making use of a variety of local venues such as l'Aiguille du Midi, the Aiguilles Rouges, the Mer de Glace and the Grand Montets, the packed programme offered courses focused on mountaineering, rock climbing, rescue, ski alpinism and, for the first time, trail running.
New for this year, the Academy also took over the town centre for several days, with an 'Alpine Village' that turned the busy Place Balmat into a buzzing hot spot open to everyone. The town centre event included open-air master classes, movie nights, live music, athlete demos, a bouldering wall and of course plenty of beer.
A team from UKClimbing and UKHillwalking took part in the event, eating our body weight in cheese while filming a series of essential alpine skills videos that we'll be featuring on the site soon.
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