Alan Richardson - Freedom Photographs

Alpine mountaineering in conjunction with Jagged Globe

Alun works closely with Jagged Globe who are widely recognised as the best British organiser of expeditions to the Greater Ranges and runs an extensive range of specialist alpine mountaineering courses. There are challenges to suit everyone’s ambitions, experience and abilities; glacial walking, non-technical and technical routes on low or high altitude mountains. The courses and dates Alun is working on are outlined below (the links will take you to the Jagged Globe Website)

1 day FREE!

This familiarisation day in the Peak District is for you if you have never been to the Alps before to make sure you know what to expect. the course is free if you have booked on an Alpine Course with Jagged Globe.

Date 30th May 2009

For more information and to book click here (this link will open in a new window)

Jagged Globe Alpine Introduction - 6 days £895.00

The Alpine Introduction course provides a solid foundation for newcomers to mountaineering. The course teaches the skills necessary for safe, successful and enjoyable Alpine mountain adventures. It is also a lot of fun and on most weeks throughout the season, you can expect to take part in a course with eleven other participants. After an initial day of glacier instruction, covering the essential basics of ice axe and crampon technique, we climb to a mountain hut and learn ropework for glacier travel, before an ascent to an Alpine summit. Typically, we have a valley-based day on Wednesday, when we will rock climb and work on more advanced rope skills, such as crevasse rescue, abseiling and fixed rope technique. Then we are back into the high mountains for another alpine ascent. the course is also excellent preparation for an overseas expedition.

The course is based is Arolla in Switzerland, which we have chosen as being an ideal location for an introductory course. There is a superb variety of peaks in the area with suitable grade F and PD routes on them.

Many course participants also choose to make an attempt of Mont Blanc, Western Europe's highest mountain, after their week in Arolla.

2009 Dates:

For a detailed information on the Alpine Introduction course, booking and travel information click here (this page will open in a new window)

Jagged Globe Haute Route - 9 days £1,195

The Chamonix to Zermatt Haute Route is one of the world's great mountaineering journeys. It traverses the crest of the Western Alps and passes through some of the most stunning mountain scenery in Europe.

The Haute Route is the easiest of our courses in the Alps, and is suitable for fit walkers, as well as those with some previous winter or alpine experience. Training in ice axe and crampon use and safe glacier travel is taught on the first day of the course, as we will be walking on glaciers for much of the seven days that we spend in the mountains.

Starting from the Chamonix Valley, we cross the northern end of the Mont Blanc Massif into Switzerland. Then we go around the Grand Combin to reach the Arolla Region. Here we will climb to the summit of the Pigne d'Arolla, before descending to our hotel base in Arolla for a night.

After a welcome night in the valley, we cross a high mountain ridge and then descend past the North Face of the Matterhorn to Zermatt, perhaps taking in the summit of Tête Blanche or Tête de Valpelline along the way. The exact route taken depends on the prevailing weather conditions and the strength of the team, as there are many variations along the way.

For 2009, we have extended our itinerary so that we are out of step with those who follow a shorter, 7-day itinerary, which inevitably means staying in huts on the same nights of the week. We aim to avoid the crowds by having a full glacier training day prior to beginning the journey, as well as having more flexibility on the route itself. After arriving in Zermatt, we will also climb the Breithorn (4,164m).

2009 dates

For a detailed information on the The Haute Route, booking and travel information click here (this page will open in a new window)