West Lancashire Scouts - Snow & Ice

 

  Tuesday 14th Feb to
  Sunday 19th Feb 2012

Objective

This event is open to all Explorer Scouts (15+), Scout Network and Leaders from all Sections within the County.

For the younger members, they’ll get to learn the basic skills and experience Scottish Winters with overnights out in the wilds and the social crack on a residential. For older members, there’ll be opportunities to develop your skills to be self sufficient in the mountains, understand the risks and grow experience in a controlled environment. Those with more experience will be able to hone their skills further, obtain permits and in so doing benefit scouting within West Lancashire.

Once again we are using online applications. Any correspondance will be via email, sms and this website.

Note

Please note we are running a single phase, but this time from Tuesday evening to Sunday afternoon. Costs are still coming under pressure with fuel and food, but we’ve tried to keep these to a minimum. Hire of boots and waterproofs has been kept at last years prices.

To apply

Read through the details of Snow and Ice below, or speak to others that have been previous years to decide if this is for you.

Complete the online application, then within two weeks send the full payment. This should be in the form of two Cheques. (Cheque 1: £70 deposit. Cheque 2: £100 remainder, post dated 6th January 2012). Unsuccessful applicants will have these cheques returned.

Await confirmation. The closing date is 30th November, after this date it will be on a first come, first served basis. If we are full prior to the closing date, priority will be given to novices, whilst still keeping a reasonable balance of ages and experience. Confirmations will be going out in December.

If you have any questions, feel free to email us on snowice@landactivities.com

You can follow your application and using the Who's Applied link.

One Phase

Up in Minibuses, Tuesday Evening, 14th Feb; 4 mountain days, Wednesday to Saturday; Return by Minibuses, Sunday Morning, 19th Feb.

Venue

We will be based in the Cairngorm area of Scotland. Accommodation will be in Nethy House, Nethy Bridge, just north of Aviemore, with easy access to the Cairngorm Mountains and further a field. The House itself copes with a maximum of 67 in bunk style accommodation. Excluding staff, this allows us to have a maximum of 45 participants.

Participants

Anyone from the County wishing to develop their own skills, gain more experience or simply have four days of mountain activity will be very welcome. The Scottish Winters can be quite demanding and the distances that we generally are walking, means that any participant should be reasonably fit, at minimum is a regular walker, and is capable of four long physically demanding days in the hills.

Explorer Scouts (15+) will be VERY welcome, as long as they are mature, fit, self-reliant, and a good sense of humour. There are SOME exceptionally fit Scouts, but generally youngsters only develop stamina around 15. Because of this, we ask, Explorer Scouts to check with your Leaders to affirm that they are physically capable of taking part and benefiting from this experience.

There are opportunities for Explorer Scout Leaders with an interest in hill walking and particularly if they are aslo D1 MIDAS drivers, to join our Leader Team. Please contact Tim Stewart for further details.

Travel

The plan is for everyone to travel up in Minibuses - leaving the County by 17.00hrs on the Tuesday. This should get us to Nethy House just before midnight. Based on 67, we will be arranging for five minibuses – pick up points to be arranged once we know who’s coming. Everyone will return on Wednesday morning and be dropped off where they were picked up. All times & pick-ups will be confirmed two weeks before the event via email and the website.

We'll return by minibuses early Sunday morning and be dropped off at home. All times & pick-ups will be confirmed two weeks before the event via email and the website.

Equipment

You'll certainly need an ice axe and crampons. We have a good stock of spare axes and crampons - but anyone who has been on this programme for more than two years should really by now have their own. If your personal gear is designed for summer use you need to think about updating or borrowing… or getting for Xmas!

Bring expedition gear with you if you are considering this.

You will need a good pair of waterproof walking boots. Fabric/suede trainer-type or floppy boots are not acceptable, nor safe, nor suitable for the winter conditions expected. We have a stock of good quality Mountain Boots and Wind/Waterproof Jacket and Trousers. There will be a hire charge of £20 (Boots) and £15 (Wind/Waterproofs) . Please reserve these on your application. For safety reasons, those with inadequate gear will be expected to hire ours. A full equipment list is available online, you'll find the kitlist.

Activities

This is dependent upon the prevailing weather conditions. This is NOT a “formal” training course and participants can very much choose their activities, apart from the first day when, for safety purposes, everyone is given a winter skills technical refresher. Experienced Mountain Leaders are available to provide Leadership and Instruction for Groups venturing into the mountains, and can help develop snow and ice techniques and navigational skills. We cater for all levels of skills and experience including both low level and high level winter walking, through to gully and ice climbing.

There will be opportunities to build snow holes which the more adventurous may wish to sleep in up on the plateau overnight, or walk to a mountain bothy for an overnight stay, or on a two day expedition through the Lairig Ghru or Strath Nethy from Braemar to Glenmore In the evenings there will be opportunities for further discussion and training, or just to have a good crack in the Nethy House bar.

This event is about providing an all-round mountain experience and as such there will be an opportunity on the event for skiing. Whether that be on piste at either Cairngorm Mountain or the Lecht, back country in the Glenmore forests or ski mountaineering on the Cairngorm Plateau. All of these will be snow condition dependant.

Presentations on walking or climbing are held twice weekly at Glenmore Lodge: their fascinating lecture on avalanches is worth seeing! There will also be an opportunity for higher level Permit assessments with prior arrangement with Geoff, the County Land Activities Adviser. Over 18 Rules may be applied if required although, because you are participating in an organised event, we reserve the right to ask you to modify your intentions on the grounds of safety.

 

Leadership, Instructors & Safety

A team of experienced mountain leaders with backgrounds in Winter, Alpine mountaineering and Arctic Expeditions will be available for instruction, leadership and mountain supervision. Because of the potentially serious nature of some of the activities, everybody must agree to comply with any “recommendations” (instructions!) given. We again have Andy Brown MIC BASI, the County’s Technical Mountaineering Adviser, with us.

Catering

This event is an all-in package - bunk accommodation, transport and food (haute cuisine from the 3rd Foot and Mouth). We provide from the time you arrive at Nethy House, to when you depart. Nosh-stops will be made on the journey and we suggest you supplement our packed lunches with a few of your own hi-energy food, cereal bars, Mars bars, etc.

Cost

The cost of event is £170. These costs are inclusive of accommodation, transport, food and equipment (excluding boots & wind/waterproofs). There will also be an additional cost for some activities like skiing or mountain biking for hire of equipment. Full payment is expected at time of applying.

Polo Shirts

Participants will have the opportunity to purchase Dark Blue, West Lancashire Scouts Mountaineering Group Polo shirts, whilst on the scheme, with the SNOW & ICE logo as a souvenir. These will cost £15 and payment is expected at the time of your booking.