INTRO TO WINTER CLIMBING
PERFORMANCE WINTER CLIMBING
WINTER MOUNTAINEERING

WINTER CLIMBING

Synergy Guides pride ourselves on our enthusiasm for Scottish winter climbing. This is our bread and butter, a huge part of why we work in the mountains and the reason we count down the days to the first ice climb of each season. It isn’t just about teaching climbing, learning how to build winter belays or avalanche avoidance. It’s about surviving the elements, embracing the battle to remain warm and gaining confidence to dream big in adverse conditions. If our tagline was ever introduced for one climbing discipline, then Scottish Winter Climbing would be it.

DARE TO EXPERIENCE ADVENTURE

Intro To Winter Climbing

Ben Nevis, Stob Coire nan Lochan, Aonach Mor and Stob Ban are all excellent venues to climb Scottish ice or mixed. Each mountain is within easy reach of Fort William where we live and instruct year-round; take advantage of our local knowledge and allow us to share our extensive experience with you.

Synergy Guides have no set course agenda; we can discuss, develop and instigate the correct itinerary for you. From learning how to lead your first-grade II ridge to the correct technique to climb difficult mixed routes. If you have some previous climbing experience our intro to winter climbing is for you.

Number of People	Rate Per Day
1	£280
2	£330

INTRO TO WINTER CLIMBING

WHAT IS INCLUDED

Amazing 2 days with Steve on Black Cuillin. I was meant to do the traverse, but because of the weather we decided to split it into 2 days, 8 + 3, which we did. Can't recommend enough. Steve knows every rock, every route, every path, every hold. I felt very safe and sound and every my question was answered. Honestly, wonderful time on Skye.

paweł powszek
5/08/2023
Massive thanks to Steve and Synergy Guides for the wonderful winter climb adventure on Tower Ridge, Ben Nevis. It was an unforgettable experience and I felt in very safe hands from start to finish. Steve is a superb guide and has all the right human qualities to make sure you get the very best out of the day. It was challenging, fun, action packed and rewarding. Looking forward to the next adventure with Synergy Guides.

Lucy Gilchrist
4/09/2023
Amazing 4 days with Tom, who was unbelievably patient, professional, encouraging and great fun to be with. Whilst the weather could have been better, I thoroughly enjoyed my first ever winter mountain adventures. Would recommend Synergy Guides to anyone who fancies a tough but exhilarating challenge.

Karen Galvin
3/09/2023
Myself and my friend had our first proper winter climbing experience with Steve and this has given us the confidence to climb the mountains in the winter safely. He was fantastic and full of knowledge, we learned everything About the basics of winter climbing into every fine detail. We were made aware about the seriousness of avalanche risk and what to look out for and how to check the condition of the snow and also how to decide beforehand what mountains are safest. We then got roped up and climbed the Dorsal arête and I’ve never had such a buzz from the mountains so far. We were also provided with every piece of equipment required! On top of everything, he’s a class guy which obviously made the 6-7 hours trip even better that we were able to enjoy every moment of the day.

Jack Allan
2/09/2023
Went on a winter climbing trip in januari 2023. Communication on where to go and when and where to meet was verry clear. With verry tricky, avalance prone conditions we were still able to do some great technical routes that were in good condition. The guides have extensive knowledge on the routes and the conditions so even if weather was quite bad we still had great days of climbing. I would highly recomend hireing a guide for winter alpinism as weather is tricky with changing conditions on routes and verry bad visibility most of the time. I would defenatly book with synergy guides again when i have the possibility to go climbing in Schotland.

Bart S
2/09/2023
Fantastic experience. We booked 3 days with synergy guides and both guides were fantastic. They were well experienced and got us out onto some great routes in a safe and fun way. They knew which routes were in condition and were able to quickly switch options to suit the weather and avalanche risks. we will be booking with them again!

Claire Bear
2/09/2023
We had a great day climbing Sgurr Dearg and The In Pinn with Steve on a wet and windy day. Communication and information before the trip was excellent. Steve has a quiet calmness about him which makes you feel safe at all times. It was like walking with a good friend. He was friendly and chatty and has years of experience in the hills. He inspired confidence in us and was very patient with 2 climbing novices. We are already planning future trips and hope Steve will be available to guide us.

Fiona Dickson
9/28/2022
Highly recommend Synergy Guides for anyone needing a guide. Steve was very accommodating and allowed us to pick another date when our original date was really wet. On the day, Iain was very knowledgeable and taught us a lot along the way.

Selina Jia
9/05/2022
Great experience climbing Inn Pinn with Steve. He made us all feel immediately comfortable with the trek ahead of us and took us via a route which included some fantastic scrambling to help us get used to the rocks prior to attempting the Pinn. The highlight of the trek was Steve allowing me to climb back up Inn Pinn after the first abseil.... and do it all again. Brilliant! Very calm and encouraging throughout and wouldn't hesitate to book another climb with him. Thank you Steve.

Daljit
9/05/2022
Awesome ! We had Steve guiding us for the day tackling In Pinn . Steve was first class - informative, helpful, attentive and on top of all that just a really nice guy. Made for a terrific day out. Would definitely recommend Synergy Guides.

Allan Sumner
9/05/2022
Andy was a fantastic guide and allowed us to make the most of the day despite the weather! Would recommend 👍

Hayaat Karim
9/05/2022
Superb guidance and leadership from Steve on the Inaccessible Pinnacle in Skye. Clear and concise instructions provided. Really helped to allay any anxiety that I did have beforehand. An all round epic day.

H Phull
9/05/2022
Can’t thank Steve enough for taking me and my friend out to complete the 11 Munro’s along the Cuillin Ridge last week. Had an amazing experience and it was a very educative experience as well! I’ll definitely use synergy again in the future 🤩

Emma Franks
9/05/2022
Steve was great at teaching and showing us all we needed for getting through our climbs! Would highly recommend for anyone to check him out if needing a guide as he can do it all from showing you your equipment to how to traverse terrain and navigate. Would use for future climbs again!

markforsythhh
9/05/2022
I recently completed the Cuillin ridge traverse with Steve from Synergy Guides as my guide. Absolutely fantastic experience! From beginning to end, Steve looked after me and did a great job keeping me safe. Throughout the trip I was regularly updated with useful information, and given helpful tips and tricks to maximise the journey experience. Steve is about as sound as it gets, and has a wealth of experience to draw on. Would 100% use Synergy again. Thanks for a great traverse!

Alex Stamford
8/05/2022

Performance Winter Climbing

Perform at your best this winter. Learn how we train, what we eat, and how we look after our bodies in what can be a very testing environment. Performance winter climbing is not just about pulling harder and improving technique; you also need more resilient muscles, better core stability and more than anything a strong psychological approach to climbing.

Synergy Guides pride ourselves on being active and keen climbers. Your time with us will send you on a journey and encourage the progression of your climbing. Let us pass on the tips and tricks, guide you on your first grade V and help you on the way to becoming a safe and successful winter climber. Learn what to pack here!

Number of People	Rate Per Day
1	£280
2	£330

PERFORMANCE WINTER CLIMBING

WHAT IS INCLUDED

Winter Climbing is often seen as a progression from summer climbing and is a great way to train for the Alps or a Himalayan Expedition. Many of our guests who have experienced Skye’s Cuillin Ridge progress to winter in search of the next level adventure.

Winter Mountaineering

Avid winter walkers who want to learn the required ropework to attempt graded winter climbing will be in the hands of one of our friendly and enthusiastic instructors. Our Scottish winter mountaineering course will ensure steady progression in learning how and when to use a rope in snow-filled gullies or rocky ridges and how to use ice axes and ice screws for both ice and mixed conditions. Each day a huge emphasis is placed on understanding avalanche avoidance and good route selection within the limitations of prevailing conditions.

Number of People	Rate Per Day
1	£280
2	£330
3	£380

WINTER MOUNTAINEERING

WHAT IS INCLUDED