It’s a little hard writing about yourself, but here goes anyway… I’m a climbing instructor with a WMCI qualification, which covers just about everything from teaching basic hill walking skills through to winter climbing. Also, I reckon I’m easy to get on with and good at sharing what I know about climbing and walking in the hills.
I train people of all abilities and all levels of experience. If you’ve never been on a mountain before, that’s absolutely fine; the training I provide is tailor-made and arranged on request. This can be anything from a day learning mountain navigation through to a multi-day winter climbing course, just ask.
If you’re simply after a good day out, without any teaching, that’s fine too. I offer guided days in the mountains, for individuals and groups – I’d be happy to take you around the classic scrambles of the Ogwen Valley, accompany you to the top of a snowy Munro, or lead you up a mixed winter climb in the Cairngorms. I always make sure any guided day is as good as it can possibly be.
I’m pretty keen on anything to do with Scotland’s winter mountains and have worked 27 winter seasons north of the wall. I’m available to guide and teach in the Scottish mountains throughout Jan, Feb and March. Outside of the winter months I now limit the number of days I work as an instructor. This gives me time to concentrate on a small publishing venture, producing mountain guidebooks. There’s more about the books here.
In my own time, I love cragging and running in the hills whenever life and the weather allow. As for my experience in the bigger mountains, I’ve climbed alpine routes on over 150 peaks across the European Alps and the Southern Alps in New Zealand. Futher afield I’ve climbed in the Cordillera Blanca in Peru, the Central Andes in Chile and on Mt Kenya. I’ve also been on mountaineering trips to the Nepal Himalaya.
My home is in Dinorwig, North Wales, where I live with my partner Tan. I have family in Kincraig, near Aviemore, which makes it easy for me to be based in Scotland throughout the winter.