Walking navigation & mountaineering courses in Scotland
| country: | Scotland |
| location: | Cairngorms, Scottish Highlands |
| trip type: | Moderate walking holidays |
| departures: | 2010: 8 Jan, 11 Apr, 17 Apr, 22 May, 12 Jul, 29 Aug |
| price: | From £183 - £477 (2-8 days) excluding flights. Price depends on course and duration. Please state which trip you are interested in when submitting your enquiry |
| offers: | We are offering an early booking discount of 5% on any of our courses/holidays departing on or after 24th October 2009. The booking must be made a minimum of 3 months prior to departure in order to qualify for this discount. |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
read 3 travellers reviews
the amazing things you'll be doing
Navigation Courses
From the low level moorland to the test piece high plateau, whatever your level, the variety of terrain in the Cairngorms makes them an ideal practice ground. We keep it simple. There’s no long-winded mental arithmetic when it comes to timing & pacing - our low tech navigation aids see to that. You quickly gain the right approach for ultimate navigational skill & through our clear & concise approach you rapidly gain proficiency. You won’t find better training than with us. After all, when it comes to mountain navigation, if you can navigate in the Cairngorms, you can navigate anywhere.
Advanced Winter Mountain Navigation Weekend
From £226 (3 days) ex flights, 09 Jan
Should the winter mountains dish-up their worst, you’ll have the skills and proficiency to deal them. This weekend is ideal for the experienced summer navigator wanting to make the transition to winter conditions as well as those needing a skills boost to deal with white-outs.
The course contains loads of winter navigating tips & concentrates on establishing the right tactical approach for ultimate navigational skill. We cover a varied set of tactical techniques plus there’s opportunity to improve your timing & pacing across snowy terrain - with our acclaimed Distance Estimation Matrix, learn how to use slope aspect, recognise & make best use of subtle contour features, etc. You will need a good level of fitness, have acquired basic navigation skills and have a working knowledge of the use of Crampons and Ice Axe. * Combining this course with our Introduction to Winter Skills gives you the full winter skills training.
Mountain Navigation Weekend
From £225 (2 days) ex flights, 13 Nov 2009 (£183), 17 Apr, 22 May 2010
This course is ideal for those with limited time yet looking for an introduction to navigation, as well as for those wishing to update their skills in the Scottish mountains. The course provides a firm grounding in an array of navigation techniques - a keystone to good navigational practise.
Mountain Skills & Navigation
From £539 (7 days) ex flights, 11 Apr, 12 Jul, 29 Sep 2010
You plan to go out in the mountains today. What will the weather be like? How long will the route take? What do I need to take? Learn how to use a map and compass, know about timing and pacing... This comprehensive course provides the answers to all the above and much more.
Early on you’re given ‘the big navigational picture’. All the techniques are related to this overview with adequate time to practise. You don’t get bogged down and you’re able to progress easily to a high level of proficiency. Towards the end there’s the opportunity to bring it all together by planning & walking your own routes on the high peaks like Ben Macdui. You’ll come away feeling confident, with a complete array of skills & techniques at your finger tips.
From the low level moorland to the test piece high plateau, whatever your level, the variety of terrain in the Cairngorms makes them an ideal practice ground. We keep it simple. There’s no long-winded mental arithmetic when it comes to timing & pacing - our low tech navigation aids see to that. You quickly gain the right approach for ultimate navigational skill & through our clear & concise approach you rapidly gain proficiency. You won’t find better training than with us. After all, when it comes to mountain navigation, if you can navigate in the Cairngorms, you can navigate anywhere.
Advanced Winter Mountain Navigation Weekend
From £226 (3 days) ex flights, 09 Jan
Should the winter mountains dish-up their worst, you’ll have the skills and proficiency to deal them. This weekend is ideal for the experienced summer navigator wanting to make the transition to winter conditions as well as those needing a skills boost to deal with white-outs.
The course contains loads of winter navigating tips & concentrates on establishing the right tactical approach for ultimate navigational skill. We cover a varied set of tactical techniques plus there’s opportunity to improve your timing & pacing across snowy terrain - with our acclaimed Distance Estimation Matrix, learn how to use slope aspect, recognise & make best use of subtle contour features, etc. You will need a good level of fitness, have acquired basic navigation skills and have a working knowledge of the use of Crampons and Ice Axe. * Combining this course with our Introduction to Winter Skills gives you the full winter skills training.
Mountain Navigation Weekend
From £225 (2 days) ex flights, 13 Nov 2009 (£183), 17 Apr, 22 May 2010
This course is ideal for those with limited time yet looking for an introduction to navigation, as well as for those wishing to update their skills in the Scottish mountains. The course provides a firm grounding in an array of navigation techniques - a keystone to good navigational practise.
Mountain Skills & Navigation
From £539 (7 days) ex flights, 11 Apr, 12 Jul, 29 Sep 2010
You plan to go out in the mountains today. What will the weather be like? How long will the route take? What do I need to take? Learn how to use a map and compass, know about timing and pacing... This comprehensive course provides the answers to all the above and much more.
Early on you’re given ‘the big navigational picture’. All the techniques are related to this overview with adequate time to practise. You don’t get bogged down and you’re able to progress easily to a high level of proficiency. Towards the end there’s the opportunity to bring it all together by planning & walking your own routes on the high peaks like Ben Macdui. You’ll come away feeling confident, with a complete array of skills & techniques at your finger tips.
travellers' tales
The highlight was seeing scotland for the first time, learning new skills, enjoying the company. The satisfaction of getting to the top of 2 munros. (more)
green travel discount
In direct response to growing Climate Change concerns and reports of Methane (a severe greenhouse gas) being released from Siberia's melting permafrost during the summer, we are offering those who travel up to us by train or bus to Aviemore a £15 discount on the price of their holiday or course. Travel plans must be notified to us by the time balance of payment is due (min 28 days before departure).departure guarantee
We are proud to continue to offer our unique departure guarantee*. If your booking is confirmed by us you can be assured that your holiday will run. We can offer this guarantee as we are unique amongst walking holiday operators in Scotland by providing all the parts of your holiday (guiding, accommodation and catering) in-house. * We reserve the right to alter the venue and itinerary of holidays advertised as based away from our lodge.how this holiday makes a difference
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Although the Highland scenery is stunning, it's one of the less affluent areas of Britain. Our operation is entirely Highland based, both as a company and whilst delivering the holidays. With all our walking holidays & mountaineering courses we employ qualified local guides who live and operate in the Scottish Highlands. They're an integral part of the local community and they know the intricacies of the local mountains, about the wildlife, the local environmental issues, etc. Through employing local guides we maximise both your holiday experience and the benefit to the local economy, often at a time of the year when visitor numbers are low. We source as much produce as we can locally and we support a number of local business', both directly and indirectly.
Boat of Garten (our location) has an energetic and vibrant community putting on a good number of lively social events through out the year including comedy plays, ceilidhs and both festivals. We encourage our guests to support these by scheduling, where possible, courses to coincide with them. During the winter months we maximise the use a wood Burning Stove to supplement the heating - the overall efficiency of these stoves is superb, particularly when you consider the energy used in production of other fuels. Wood is a renewable fuel and doesn't introduce any further carbon into the carbon cycle as fossil fuels do. As part of our continuing commitment to environmentally responsible holidays we are currently in the process of installing a wood pellet boiler here at the lodge (our main base for our walking holidays) here in Scotland. May of our navigation courses take place during the spring - an especially important time of year for the wildlife. On all our holidays we have a 'leave nothing, take only photographs' policy. Our guides are asked to explain and encourage this policy. For Example, leaving an apple core or feeding a seagull on a mountain summit may seem innocuous but it detracts from the 'untouched wilderness' aspect and can have a detrimental knock-on effect e.g. on the indigenous wildlife. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |