Autumn vibes

12th November 2020

As is often the case at this time of year, winter comes and goes from the summits.

Some mornings you open the curtains to snow sprinkled mountains, others it's lashing rain.

A few personal Munro bagging days recently have been a sharp reminder of how unpredictable and variable conditions are in the Scottish Mountains.

On Aonach Beag last week, from 900m we found knee deep snow drifts and unforgiving temperatures. Goggles were sorely missed as we were pelted with spindrift. It felt like a January day. Although crampons were not needed this time, winter boots were essential for warm, dry feet.

It is also now dark by about 5pm. It can be very easy to underestimate how long a hill day will take you so a headtorch is now an essential piece of kit to have in your bag...and make sure you have spare batteries!

Every day the car park outside gets a little frostier. Winter is creeping towards us and here at CAG we are getting really excited to get into the mountains to share experiences, teach and encourage folk to get out there and explore.

Courses are filling up so please visit our course pages or get in touch to book your adventure.

Winter 2021

Check out our great range of winter skills, ski touring and winter climbing courses.

Winter courses

5 day intro to winter climbing course We had a great experience with Cairngorm Adventure guides! From the first contact with Liam, we enjoyed his flexible and friendly attitude, and whilst it is not an all-inclusive course like some of the others on offer, he gave us all the information we needed to organize accommodation and gear hire. That said, the only piece of technical gear that wasn't provided were boots, so that made it pretty easy and not too expensive. The course itself is very flexible (especially if you are doing it with a friend/partners, since the client:instructor ratio for this one is 2:1), so can cater to any experience level. Jon, our instructor, was very knowledgeable and friendly and tailored the course to what we wanted to do (remembering that it's Scotland in winter, so the weather is always going to be a factor). We had a physically tough first couple of days, but it was clear Jon was using his knowledge of the area and experience of the weather and forecasts to make the most of the time we had. We got in a decent amount of climbing (although I find I always wish I'd been able to do a little more, whatever climbing situation I'm in!), lots of skills practice and a good amount of theory; as well as experiencing the full range of winter weather, from the crispest of winter days with great snowpack and ice, to horizontal snow and 90mph gusts. For beginning or improving your skills in a variety of outdoor activities, I would 100% recommend these guys. Thanks Jon and Liam!
pinkhippy Cusco, Peru, Jan 2018

10% Discount

from Hostelling Scotland Aviemore when booking with Cairngorm Adventure Guides.