Snowhole expedition, Scotland
| country: | Scotland |
| location: | Cairngorms, Scottish Highlands |
| trip type: | Strenuous walking holidays |
| departures: | 2009: 31 Jan, 25 Feb, 7 Mar, 28 Mar |
| price: | From £321 (5 days) excluding flights, including full board accommodation, provision of snowholing & cooking equipment & transfers from Inverness airport/Aviemore rail station |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Challenging! Rewarding! Remarkable! This will be one of the most memorable experiences of your life. Help construct a roomy communal snowhole lit by the reflected light of candles! Wake up to the absolute silence of a pristine winter wonderland bathed in the soft light of a Cairngorm dawn.
Protected from Gulf Stream warmth, the Cairngorms provide our most consistent snow and ice conditions. They're Britain's highest mountain range, Scotland's high arctic and home to our most permanent snow beds. To experience them in their full winter garb is to see them at their finest.
Once you've undergone a day of essential skills training we embark on a two-day expedition to head deep into the snowy wilderness. The route takes us across the Cairngorm (4085ft) - Ben Macdui (4295ft) plateau to spend a night in a communal snowhole. You learn the essentials of good snow hole design and efficient construction. The challenges are unique and the rewards unrivalled - this is Britain's ultimate winter mountain experience & one not to be missed.
Clients should have plenty of stamina and a good level of fitness to cope with three physically demanding days in the winter mountains. The 2 expedition days will involve about 4-5 hours walking with a heavy rucksack, in what could be difficult conditions. On the 1st expedition day the walk-in is followed by 2-3hrs digging. Previous winter hillwalking experience is not obligatory but clients should make sure they fully appreciate what is involved before signing up. If you take part in competitive sport regularly or train hard at least once a week you should be plenty fit enough.
Protected from Gulf Stream warmth, the Cairngorms provide our most consistent snow and ice conditions. They're Britain's highest mountain range, Scotland's high arctic and home to our most permanent snow beds. To experience them in their full winter garb is to see them at their finest.
Once you've undergone a day of essential skills training we embark on a two-day expedition to head deep into the snowy wilderness. The route takes us across the Cairngorm (4085ft) - Ben Macdui (4295ft) plateau to spend a night in a communal snowhole. You learn the essentials of good snow hole design and efficient construction. The challenges are unique and the rewards unrivalled - this is Britain's ultimate winter mountain experience & one not to be missed.
Clients should have plenty of stamina and a good level of fitness to cope with three physically demanding days in the winter mountains. The 2 expedition days will involve about 4-5 hours walking with a heavy rucksack, in what could be difficult conditions. On the 1st expedition day the walk-in is followed by 2-3hrs digging. Previous winter hillwalking experience is not obligatory but clients should make sure they fully appreciate what is involved before signing up. If you take part in competitive sport regularly or train hard at least once a week you should be plenty fit enough.
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
|
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 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. By taking a winter holiday you're very much helping the year round sustainability of the local economy.
During the winter months we maximise the use a wood Burning Stove to supplement the heating at our lodge - 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. |
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. |