March 2016 was a very busy month. Early in the month, I accompanied Tim Chandler on a recce visit to the Gran Paradiso National Park in Italy to plan the summer expedition for Norton Hill School. We spent several days in Cogne and Rheims Notre Dame planning the visit and even managed some ski touring and snowshoeing.

On return, I drove to the North York Moors to run a HML Training course for David Adams of River Mountain Experience. It was the first time I had worked in the area and it proved to be a perfect location for the course. On the way home, I stopped off to run a climbing wall course for Alderwasley Hall School in Derbyshire. We even managed a morning on the crag taking advantage of the fine but cold weather

Two days later, I was on the way to Scotland for Giggleswick School’s annual training exercise at Kinlochleven. The weather started well and we took advantage with two great winter days in Glencoe and the Mamores. The expedition was a long one through the Ben Alder Forest and back through Glen Nevis. It was great to work again with the staff and students at the school