So, winter mountaineering skills, it is clear that novice folks that want to join our winter mountaineering courses have preconceived ideas of what they need to learn, and those ideas are wrong.

Sometimes they are wrong because the novice who wants to enjoy the mountains in winter, doesn’t have the foundations skills that we wish they had before joining a winter course, so it’s a very big step up and learning curve

Other times it is because course providers have focused an advertising image or short strapline of sliding head first down a slope as a cool and exciting part of the course. The mountains in winter and the amazing environment they present, does not need jazzing.

So some of the preconceived ideas are our own making, lots however are due to the amount of videos on various platforms showing ice axe self arrest techniques, after all who wants to watch a video about basic weather forecasting for mountains, where the lee slopes are, how windy was it, why is there no snow there? etc etc because thats not cool like sliding down a slope head first.

 
The essential skills for winter mountain travel anywhere in the world where there is snow and slopes are, in order of importance:
  • Weather, past, present and forecast
  • Forecast and observed snow conditions and avalanche forecasts
  • Group, what is your experience and capability as this decides your objective
  • Objective/Route choices:
Being able to pre plan a route based on the above 3 criteria; using traditional map or digital mapping and also being able to follow the map accurately in the mountains ie navigate using map and compass in poor visibility and know which slope to go on or not to go on, and what slope angles are not safe.
  • Good confident safe footwork skills without crampons across a variety of terrain and softer snow conditions
  • Good confident safe crampon techniques across a variety of terrain and firmer snow/neve and mixed ice/turf/rock
  • Safe efficient use of a mountaineering axe (not a technical climbing axe for novices)for balance, support, slashing and cutting steps, through to use in steeper terrain.
 
This is a basic outline, but you can see that 7 bullet points also have a multitude of learning criteria within each one.
 
Oops, sorry I have missed the one thing everyone one thinks is the number 1 thing to know:
  • Ice axe arrest techniques, the very last resort of possibly saving your life.
In reality a slide happens extremely quickly, and the real world reality is that self arrest techniques probably wont work – ( that is why we all teach them on a slope with no objective danger and flat ground at the bottom, because self arrest isn’t really that great!)
But hey this is the one thing everyone thinks is the essential skill.
Enjoy the mountains safely this winter, get the correct formal instruction from qualified coaches/instructors ie winter mountain leaders (WML) or winter mountaineering & climbing instructor (WMC used to called MIC) 
Mark Handford, winter mountain leader & rock climbing instructor