A perfect day?

An early-ish start and i was whizzing down the M6 to pick up Sam en route to North Wales, destination Plas Y Brenin.

A rainbow shines across the Llanberis Pass.

Our close ties with Plas Y Brenin, means that North Wales sometimes feels like a second home and our aim for later that day was a variety of meetings and formal feedback sessions with the instructors and staff.

But the early start was to give us enough time for a quick blast up some hopefully dry rock and as we veered off the A55 and headed down towards Betws Y Coed, things were looking promising, sure there was a bit of hill-fog but nothing too threatening.

As we parked up at the Cromlech boulders it was feeling a little gloomy but the rock looked dry and so with a couple of hours to spare we opted to head across to Dinas Mot and climb Western Slabs.

Looking up towards Dinas Mot

It had been a while since Sam had been on a multi pitch route, especially in the gloom of a Welsh Autumn and so this was the perfect route to get back into the groove of leading again. For anyone who has climbed this will know its a great little route with decent belays and plenty of gear that weaves its way up the right hand side of Dinas Mot.

Looking down Pitch 2 of Western Slabs. VS4c.

By the time we got to the last pitch, the clouds had lowered and a fine drizzly mist was settling in, adding a little spice to the afternoon and ensuring a thoroughly damp abseil retreat from the top. If proof were needed that hooded softshells are a good idea on mixed weather days this was it.

Rain approaches Llanberis.

Rich rigging the abseil for a hasty retreat

An hour later we were sat in the bar at Plas Y Brenin, chatting about our impending Winter 2010 sales launch over a warm cup of tea before heading off to bag more tea and cake in the staff room. The following few hours were spent chatting with the instructors, gleaning feedback on existing products, discussing new products, new hoods and generally listening to their opinions. That is afterall the whole point of why we work with them.

Sam retreating from Dinas Mot

Two hours later and it was all over and we were heading back across to Llanberis for some much needed food and a pint. The perfect day? Well it certainly wasnt bad.

Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival starts this weekend

The 7th Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival kicks off this Friday - 16th October'09

Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival is an independent film festival which aims to inspire, enlighten and entertain outdoor enthusiasts, whether they are climbers, skiers or snowboarders, kayakers, BASE jumpers or explorers.

Mountain Equipment will proudly be supporting the festival again this year and our Pro Partners Dave Macleod, Kev Shields, Tarka L'Herpiniere and Katie Jane Cooper will all be presenting at this years event.

For more info on tickets and the festival programme go too

http://www.edinburghmountainff.com/

Check out the Festival trailer here

A cure for morning lethargy

Saturday morning dawned distinctly damp. Thank-god for that I thought, the perfect excuse for a lie-in.

Rich Bailey sent me a text, he was running late. The lingering hill-fog and autumn dampness was having the same effect on him.

Somewhere quick to get to and that would be dry limited our choice to only a few crags and Castle Rock won the vote. This bastion of rock has two very contrasting sides. Its north side consisting of brooding serrated rock and overhangs and its south side with its compact steep slabs.

Autumn colours from Castle Rock, St Johns in the Vale, Lake District

At this time of year, when the sunlight is shorter lived and the dampness lingering, the south side is the only really viable option.

Wandering up the hill, I was having an extended lie-in, mentally speaking, staying cozy in my microtherm jacket. Rich B was doing his best not to look like my twin and was hunkered down in his Astron Hoody.

Rich B using an Altus LS Zip T - a great next-to-skin baselayer

Once we got to the crag, I was in no hurry to de-layer. The Microtherm was off, only to be replaced by my Compressor Vest. The short walk might have warmed me up but it was certainly not warm as sunlight occasionally filtered through the grey cloud. Rich was feeling braver or is just less stick-like than I, and was straight down to his Altus base-layer. A quick blast up Kleine Rinne (VS 4c) helped to persuade some of the morning lethargy out of the body. After some truly amateurish communication issues, the day was settling down. The rock was a little greasy but was drying slowly and it was not too busy.

Rich Bailey nearing the top of Kleine Rinne

It was then onto the classic Gazebo - a brilliant HVS that follows a logical and direct line straight up the steep slab with holds where you need them and good gear.

The afternoon ended with a blast up the not so popular line of Failed Romantic. This E1 doesnt even make it into the selective FRCC guide but its actually really good. Only in its middle third does it ever feel slightly contrived and easy to escape, the rest is solid climbing with an athletic start to pull through an initial overhang and get established on the face proper and the the final sting in the tail. A delightful right to left traverse, with reasonable gear once you have fiddled about a bit, and generally good holds, but mess your feet up and that finger crack begins to open up enough to make you double check those wires.

Rich beginning the traverse on Failed Romantic - E1 5a

Training: Macleod & Shields style

Well Autumn is well and truly here - as anyone living in the North of England and Scotland will have vouched for on Saturday. If you dont - 60 to 70mph winds and driving rain was the order of the day. So if you need some inspiration on how to occupy those blustery days or long evenings, sit back and watch two of our Pro Partners train for the cold months ahead.

Making recommended retailers

As thoughts turn to the Autumn and Winter ahead, planning for our forthcoming retailer mountain skills courses are well advanced. We dont just design and manufacture clothing, we also put a considerable amount of time and resource into training the retail staff who will hopefully serve you in stores across the country.

Cloud inversion on Aonach Mor, Scotland

Essentially these courses are about giving the people who work in our recommended stockists up and down the country the chance to learn more about our products, speak with the people who develop and design them and gain new skills and experiences, seeing at first hand some of the environments and conditions our products are designed to work in. There is no substitute for personal hands-on experience and this Autumn alone some 40 retail staff will be lucky enough to join us on one of our training courses.

Murky conditions on Crib Goch, Snowdonia

And with our close links to Plas Y Brenin, the British Mountain Guides and the Association of Mountaineering Instructors we are well placed to provide some of the most comprehensive training available. Its also a great opportunity to hear feedback from the frontline of retail and of course from the professional instructors.

Nearing the top of No.4 gully, Ben Nevis

This coming Autumn and winter we'll be running courses in conjunction with Plas Y Brenin and GORE-TEX in North Wales and the Scottish Highlands. In the past we have even gone as far as the French Alps.

Ellis Brigham staff at the end of the Cosmiques Arete, French Alps

Keep an eye on the blog over the coming months for reports from some of the training programmes we are running over the Autumn and Winter.

Highland driving skills are optional

Walks in the park they are not. Tough conditions on Buachaille Etive Beag

Dawn Patrol

Inspired by tales of back country ski fanatics in places like SLC, Utah, getting up in the dark for a dawn decent before work, I set my alarm early on Sunday morning. Too much to do to go climbing, but with a fantastic forecast, it seemed the perfect opportunity for my own Dawn Patrol.

I got up at 5.45 had coffee and toast and set off in the dark to the Roaches. By the time I was there it was light, and dry. Getting out of the car at 7 am to total tranquility was wonderful.

I spent a couple of very happy hours bouldering at the Lower Tier Boulders with only a sheep for company. Then I had coffee and fruit bar second breakfast overlooking the quiet mist wreathed landscape, before heading down to the Spring Boulders for a quick slab session.

Then I was on my way home having seen just one pair of early birds heading up to the crag, just before I left.
FANTASTIC!

Climbed some great problems with the crag all to myself, and was back home by 10.15. I will definitely do this again...

Sunrise over New Mills, on route.

Self timer shot. Problem solved after working out the undercling hand swap sequence.

A polished performance in Bavaria

Just back from four days in Germany.

Some 40 minutes south of Munich and nestling in the foothills of the Bavarian Alps lies Eurasburg, where our German distributors are based. Yes it sounds idyllic...and yes it is!

After months of seemingly endless rain in North-West England, it was utter indulgence to arrive in Bavaria to warm Autumnal sunshine. It could not be more different than our offices on the edge of Manchester. A small village of some 4000 people, surrounded by meadows and the backdrop of Bavarian Alps with the Austrian Alps in the far distance. Cool fresh alpine air, no noise (other than the odd Cow mooing) and not a traffic jam in sight.

The A-Team ready their packs

In addition to trade launches we usually head out to Germany a number of times during the year, as our biggest export market we take what goes on their very seriously and so we have spent the past few days visiting retailers in Munich and Garmisch as well as going through detailed plans for our Spring / Summer 2011 collection. Yes its that time of year again, starting work on another collection which seems so far away!

The tongue is out....must be pulling hard

But you can't work all of the time so as soon as we had lost the will to talk about new products any longer it was off, in the A-Team inspired Mountain Equipment van (it just needs a spoiler and some rotating leather seats) to a nearby crag for a spot of climbing. A quick hour or so of bolt clipping and teetering up blank slabs in the fading light capped off a great first day.

Watch out for car-sized chunks landing on your head

The following evening and we decided to head to a nearby bouldering venue as time was short. Lying some 30 minutes south of Munich, this venue despite initial appearance is worth a visit and even without a car easily reached via the S-bahn with the station only a short walk from the bouldering. Yes, the glaciated conglomerate looks like a loose shale bank about to collapse and yes, it does bring a new meaning to the word polished but there are plenty of nice traverse lines and a quiet forest to soak up.

Bringing a new meaning to the word 'Polished'

And just as were settling into the Alpine mood, it was time to come home. Another great Salami sandwich courtesy of Lufthansa and an unexpected meeting with James Pearson and it was back home. Perhaps that Autumn sun is infectious, it seems to have followed us home.