Just over a year ago I decided I was going to get my Mountain Leader Summer Award as it was part of the direction I wanted to take to spend more time outdoors.
Most UK organisations require it as a minimum to lead in the mountains.
You are also required to have a minimum of an Outdoor First Aid qualification, which I already have (and more).
The ML qualification is more than just being able to navigate and walk round a route.
Navigation – this must be very good, well actually more than very good. You are expected to find a small dent in a contour line from 800m away in the dark in fog. If you can navigate in those conditions to that accuracy you should be able to lead a group along a path whilst also talking to them.
Flora and Fauna – you need to have a good basic knowledge of plants and animals in the mountains. from Moss, Lichen and grasses through to flowers and birds. Understanding the wildlife will help you educate groups and keep them interested. you don’t have to be David Attenbourough but knowing the names and types of a few things will help you look like you know what you are doing and make your time in the mountains more enjoyable.
Access and Rights of use of Land – You need to understand what legislation and rights you have on land in various parts of the UK.
Rope Work – You need to know basic rope techniques in case of an emergency and you need to use a rope to get a group over an unplanned obstacle or down a dangerous bit of terrain to safety. Sometimes you need to give a walker a bit of confidence on some technical terrain so may support them with a rope.
Water crossings – How to cross water safely and even cross rivers in an emergency.
Steep ground safety – How to negotiate very steep and technical ground with a group safely.
Group management – How to manage groups with various leadership styles and when they are appropriate.
Emergency procedures – Various emergency procedures and things like using kit you are carrying to help with rescues and safety.
Weather – Understanding how weather affects activities and conditions in the mountains and being able to read weather charts and predict and plan around weather conditions.
Geology – Understanding how the mountain and landscape we will be leading in has been formed is again great for education of your groups and even helps with navigation and route choice.
Kit and Equipment – As and ML you need to be able to advise other about the appropriate equipment needed for a trip so there was lots of discussion about that though obviously there is a huge can of worms to open as everyone has very different ideas.
Obviously you are not learning all this in just the 6 days of the course but rather the course gives you the very basics and the detail about what they expect as a minimum then you are expected to go away and really work at the knowledge and self study required. You need a further 20 QMD’s and this must include lots of practice and study as well.
The course was very interesting and I learned a lot in the 6 days.
I decided to get as much time practising over the next 6 weeks or so then decide if I was confident enough to book the training this year.
I worked hard over the next 6 weeks getting as much time away and into the mountains as possible. This sometimes meant disappearing up to wales for 3 days at a time and spending a night or two out in the mountains either with the roof tent (luxury) or my small 1 person tent on the actual mountain practising all the skills I needed for assessment and gaining valuable experience. It was hard work and some days were better than others, most days were wet and cold and I had a nightmare in bad weather finding my way. But those are exactly the days I needed to test and practice my skills, after all if I can look after myself in a storm and still find my way comfortably I should manage a group ok in fairer weather.
After 6 weeks I reviewed my progress and decided I could get the assessment done only 3 months it after the training course, I had enough days logged and felt with a little more time on the hill before the assessment I could pass. Even if I failed after December there few opportunities for summer assessment till after March and as a failure means a 3 month minimum wait before retesting I had little but some money to lose.
I looked at available courses at the beginning of December and there were three providers all in wales, I knew the lake district better than wales but as that was what was available I needed to book one in wales and after all I should be able be up to standard anywhere. I spoke to a few people who all recommended one of the providers, Phil George. I decided to book with him and as I had no experience of him I decided to do a refresher course with him 3 weeks before the assessment. One thing I have realised is there are many different schools of thought and even methods of teaching and learning between instructors so I thought it prudent to do the 2 day refresher and see how he expected things to be done. That way I would be as well prepared as I could be and give myself the best chance of a pass first time.
The assessment is a 5 day course and I booked it for the 4th – 8th of December and the refresher course for the 21st and 22nd of November. I would take the caravan up to Wales on the 19th and then spend all the time in Wales consolidating what I learnt on the refresher before the Assessment.
It turned out that the Refresher was a really useful thing and even though my training was very recent I found it very useful as this provider had very different ideas on some things than where I had done the training. This meant I was better prepared for the assessment. The 2 day refresher was excellent and I spend the next two weeks really getting to know the area and working on where I thought my skills needed improvement. The weather was mostly really wet or very cold with plenty of snow high up, this was great for training as I got to test out my best kit and seee what worked well and what did not. I had recently bought a fair bit of Paramo kit and it really showed its worth in the mountains.
Maxine spent about a week of this time with me but a lot of the time I was on my own and I learnt a lot about the local area and looked at plants and trees etc.
I was still very nervous as I know the assessment is full on and you are tested properly and need to be on the ball especially with your navigation all the time. But I was a ready as I could be in the limited time around work I had. Weather forecast was looking a bit fruity too, lots of rain and snow forecast with high winds. It was going to be interesting.
Day 1
Cwm Ffynnon, Moel Berfedd area – We all met early in the morning in Llanberis, it turns out there are 11 on the course and we were split into 3 groups for the week. I was in a group of 4 with Umberto, Caroline and Morton. I am sure all the groups would say the same but we had a very good group and got on pretty well. We gelled and nobody had an ego or attitude and it was a very competent and supportive group to be in.
We did all the introductions and then discussed who our instructors would be for the first two days. We had a guy called Simon who was excellent. We went off out onto the hill and spent the day on micro nav along with group management and some steep ground stuff. We discussed access issues and did some flora and fauna stuff too. This was a busy day but also a good day settling into the team and finding your feet. We each navigated a number of legs and had to relocate each time others were navigating. Weather was good with a bit of wind and the odd short shower and very wet ground.
In the evening we had discussion around various topics and planning for the next day.
Day 2
Llanberis pass, Craig Ddu – Carreg Wasted traverse area – Again more detailed navigation with flora and fauna and discussions on kit and group management. This day was concentrated on steep ground and difficult terrain including the use of ropes. This day is where the refresher days really paid off as I was more confident with the rope than some members of the group. We had some rain and wind as we got higher but not too bad weather for the time of year. We finished with a 14m abseil and recovery of ropes then a very steep descent walk back to the cars.
In the evening we did a group question and answer session around the pre learning test paper we all had to do before the course. 50 questions on varied topics from who first climbed the Matterhorn to what kind of clouds were shown in pictures. Its a really good tool to make you research lots of info and build a good basic knowedge.
Day 3
Yr Arran & Cwm Tregalan from Nant Gwynant area – This was now day one of the expedition, the weather had taken a turn for the worse and it was to be predicted as the worst storm in the area for 21 years! High winds, potential for lots of snow and ice high up and torrential rain lower down! There was debate between the instructors as to whether we should be out in it and whether we should camp out high up in it. The decision was taken that we would not camp out in it as the winds were predicted at 80+mph on the tops and 40-50 lower down. We would walk out and do a long day and walk late into the night to include all the night nav in the same session. It was going to be a tough long day in some challenging weather.
We also swapped instructors for the last 3 expedition days. A guy called Sam was to be our assessor for the rest of the course, again he was a top guy with a laid back but informative style.
Cwm Tregalan, traverse Lliwedd to copper mines, Cwm Merch area – again it was navigation and leadership as it is every day but this time using 1:50k maps so you can be tested to a high standard on a different scale. The switch in your head for distance calculation is harder than you think and judging sizes of features with less info on the map is fun and challenging. Today was cold and windy but relatively dry compared to yesterday. We were camping out tonight so had fully laden packs to lug around. I had a relatively easy day today as I must have done ok during the week on nav and rope work and I got few legs to navigate (only 1 actually) and the other three had a second chance to re do some rope work that was not quite perfect on the second day so the pressure was off a little which was nice. I still was navigating and relocating myself but not really being checked. We got to our campsite at a sheepfold by a river/stream just before dusk and we set up camp quickly and quietly. Everyone in our group is fairly experienced and the camp was up and everyone had eaten in no time. I had a lovely freeze dried bolognese pasta washed down with a snickers for pudding! I was quickly undressed and in my bag and nice and toasty. With no night nav tonight it was a long night in the tent till first light. I read a little and watched a couple of things on my phone.
Return to Nant Gwynant – Final day of assessment and we woke to about 6 inches of snow and cold temperatures. Camp was packed a way pretty quickly though I had acquired a second tent I had rescued from some bushes. Some inconsiderate idiot had just left it there probably after it blew away. So I folded it up and put it and the poles in my pack to bin later. Leave no trace and all that.
