Earlier on this week I went on a Conville Trust Course in Scotland. The Conville Trust was set up by Jonathon Conville's family after he died in an accident on the Matterhorn in 1979. The trust aims to educate young aspiring mountaineers, (18-30), with the skills they need to look after themselves in the mountains in winter conditions. The course does not require you to have any previous winter experience, just a good summer mountain walking background.
The week preceding my course I had my first taste of Winter Climbing with some friends, (see previous blog post), however it was nice to consolidate what I had picked up from them into a set of skills that would allow me to move around the hills effectively and safely. Making dynamic risk assessments and reading the conditions as they changed throughout the day.

We arrived the day before to Ardenbeg Bunkhouse ready to have a briefing before the following two days in the mountains. Arriving the day before also allowed you to meet the other people on the course. It was a mixed group with people from all sorts of different backgrounds and experiences.
The following morning we met our instructors Johnathon Preston and Diane. The Group was split on half 6 going with Johnathon, and 6 with Diane. We had a quick talk about weather forecasts and how they correlate to conditions actually experienced, before heading out up to the Ski Centre Car Park.
The conditions weren't brilliant on the first day, but we made the most of it. Walking up the snow under the ski lifts we talked about navigation, using your boots as tools and the importance of constantly making decisions as the conditions change, be it the snow/ice, the weather or the group. 
Heading over to some older snow we got out the axe, going through how to cut steps, edge our boots, ascend, descend and traverse an icy slope.
With the following day looking even more miserable we took the opportunity to head up onto the Cairngorm plateau to go bag Cairn Gorm via the Fiacaill a Choire Chais. Up on the plateau we did some poor vis. navigation, walking on bearings and pacing. With the wind around 40mph and sleety rain we did not say on the top for long. Heading into a Corrie on the North aspect of Cairn Gorm, we had our lunch in a snow hole, before heading back out into the sleet to practice ice axe arrests, which aren't as hard as they look!
That evening we had a slideshow presentation from Johnathon, the course director, showing some of his wide wintery travels over the years, with the pictures all still film, it required a slide projector and screen.

The following days forecast looked like a proper Scottish day, with 70mph wind forecast and snow for most of the day, we arrived at the car park to this time find it covered from the previous nights snow. Walking up the truck track that ran between the slopes in the strong winds we headed to the same place we had been the previous morning. Here we looked at the bucket seat and its improvement with a buried axe as an anchor. As a demo to prove how strong this method was we all hung off the end of the rope while Diane held the end. With the cold wind, (-24°C wind chill), we moved back down the slope to continue our rope work and look at using crampons. Further down we covered the Stomper belay, body belaying, South African Abseils' and snow bollards. Moving on to crampon work, we looked at the best way of walking in them, how to make use of all the points and walking up and down slopes.
After an interesting trip back down the ski road in the snow we headed back to the bunkhouse for our final meal. The food throughout the course was brilliant, lots of carbs and 3 courses in an evening. Looking back on the two days the instructors where excellent, really knowledgable in what they where delivering and I now feel I have the basic skills I need to walk around in winter conditions in the mountains.
The Conville Trust helps make this course affordable with it costing only £85 its very good value for money. Anyone under the age of 30 that is looking to get out in the winter mountains should defiantly look at doing it!

Follow my progress on Instagram: @climbing_weldon
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Conville Trust Website: http://www.jcmt.org.uk

Thanks to Alice Ormrod for supplying the pictures!

Everyone will do it at some point in their life, get to the crag and realise that they forgot to pick up their harness when they were packing their climbing stuff in the morning. Most people would just give up at this point, go home to fetch it or change their plans for the day, but if you have 1, (ideally 2), 120cm slings to hand why not make a sling harness!

1 Sling Harness
Simple and easy to make, however can slip down if theres not a continuous pull upwards making it ineffective. If you have a small waist like mine a 120cm will work perfectly. To make pass the sling around your back and bring both ends to the front. While holding these reach between your legs and grab the lower loop, bring this between your legs and clip everything together with a screwgate 'biner.
If you have a slightly wider waist use a bigger sling, but when you pull the loop through your legs tie an isolating knot, (overhand will do), to make it tight and shove the excess away down the side of the waist loops. Because this has to be weighted upwards to work it only really works for abseiling or seconding.

2 Sling Harness
This one works much better than the other one and a friend has actually used this one when he's forgot his harness. To make take one 120 sling and find the centre, to do this double up and shuffle the two ends until the sown part is in the middle. Tie a overhand each side of the sown part and try on your legs. I find that tying another overhand on each side makes it fit my legs perfectly.
Next take the other 120 sling and pass it around your back above your hip bones, as you would with a normal harness. Tie both ends together with half a reef knot, passing one end through to other to finish it off. This allows you to pull it tighter and still easy to remove. Then tie another overhand to make a loop. Pass a 'biner through this loop and the leg loop and there you go a harness. It's not the most comfortable thing in the world and you wouldn't really want to fall on it!

Tie in to the screwgate for both these harness.
Both of these would be more comfortable with thicker slings, I just used what I had to hand. I would not suggest falling off wearing one of these but if you had nothing else to hand they'll work.
You'll never have to abandon a day's climbing again!