Winter Skills Course Weekend - Aviemore

Learn new skills to keep you safe in the mountains this winter!

Winter Skills Courses in the Cairngorms National Park

About this course

Learn the skills required for safe winter hill walking Scotland; the use of ice axe and crampons, winter navigation, and avalanche awareness too.

We will give advice on getting prepared for winter walking, weather forecasts, decision making and kit.

The skills are coached each day in the context of a mountain journey. The course structure will be fairly flexible dependent on individual aims, weather and underfoot conditions. We aim to provide you with a base of knowledge to go out to practice and consolidate.

Prerequisites

This course is aimed as an introduction to winter and ideally you should have summer hill walking experience. Walking in winter requires a good level of fitness.

What we will cover depending on conditions:

  • Choosing the right kit for winter

  • Personal movement skills on snow

  • Use of ice axe whilst walking and how to prevent and stop slips and trips

  • Use of crampons

  • Winter navigation techniques

  • Avalanche awareness, safe route planning

  • Emergency procedures

**If the dates don’t work or it’s not quite the right thing for you then hire a Private Guide and we can tailor an experience to suit you!

Winter kit provided

Use of our crampons, ice axe, and helmet are included in the cost

Starting time

Sat: 08:30 Sun: tbc on Sat

Location

Meet in Aviemore first, walk departs from the Cairngorm Mountain Upper Car Park

Group size

Limited to 6 participants

A person wearing a yellow helmet, orange jacket, and snow boots climbing snowy mountain terrain with ice axes, carrying a large backpack.

Additional information

Meet Time & Location

Please meet at the Tiso carpark for 08:30 on day one, before enjoying a coffee in the cafe where we’ll discuss a plan for the course.

The training location will be dependent on weather and underfoot conditions but usually we will start from Cairngorm Mountain Upper Car Park.

If you're looking for accommodation then click here to view our recommendations.

Joining Details & Kit

Joining details and participation forms will be sent out before the course.

We can provide ice axe, crampons and a helmet but you are welcome to bring your own (if you’re unsure about your own kit, then please ask prior). You will need winter boots capable of taking a crampon, these can be hired from Tiso and collected in the morning.

Click here to see our full kit list.

Please contact us for any additional information.

Terms and Conditions apply.

Screenshot of a TripAdvisor review for a guided trip to Lochnagar in winter, mentioning snow, Hillgoers, navigation, and winter skills, with a five-star rating.