This week sees our first Winter Alpine Intro ‘Ice & Alpine’ course get underway in Chamonix. So far this week we have been lucky to have perfect weather, and the conditions are good. On Monday the group ascended a high pass above the Val Ferret, then on Tuesday focused on avalanche awareness, route planning in winter, and the use of ARVA’s (avalanche transceivers). Yesterday they summited the Aiguille du Toule, and today spent the day on the Mer de Glace ice climbing and learning about glacier travel. Tomorrow they plan to wrap up the week with a day of waterfall ice climbing at the famous Cremerie icefalls above Argentiere. It’s an action packed week, that really focuses on the key skills for entering the winter Alpine arena! It’s no small wonder that this is one of our most popular winter climbing courses. We still have a few dates with spaces later on this season, so check out the website for details; http://www.icicle-mountaineering.ltd.uk/winteralpineintro.shtml