Summer Mountain Leader Assessment - Day 6

It was a good nights sleep and I was glad to get a good rest after the long day yesterday and the day before. We packed up quickly and were ready to leave just before 9:30am. We had a short walk down the hill to Kilfinnan. We were all much more relaxed and we had some banter as we strolled along in the fine morning air. As we descended, we spotted Richard's car down at the farm where he was waiting to pick us up.
A few hundred metres from the car, Steve turned to us and told us that it had been a pleasure and that we had all done very well. He sent the others on ahead and turned to me to say that we were going to have a bit of a chat. I had a pretty good idea about what he was about to say; I immediately thought of my logbook. Steve said that he and Richard had noticed that my logbook was a little 'light'. I suddenly felt a thick lump in my throat. Last week I had made sure that my logbook was up to date and it had details of absolutely everything related that I had ever done. However, when I looked over what a quality mountain day was, I knew that a few of the entries just didn't cut it. But I wanted to give the assessment a go anyway and if I failed then so be it. Steve was very nice about it and he asked me if there were any more quality mountain days that I hadn't entered in my log. I said that I didn't think so. He reminded me that, during the SML training, he had stressed the importance of lots of experience and a more than adequate log book. We joined the others and Richard greeted us warmly. I was a little deflated after that chat but I was glad it was over and I was pleased with how I had performed. Now all I could do was wait for the verdict; but I wasn't holding my breath.
Richard was in good spirits; he chatted away to us as he drove us back to Calluna. He wanted to hear all about our expedition and I got the impression that he was a bit gutted not to have gone with us. He dropped us off and asked us to meet him and Steve at a cafe in Fort William in an hour. We were glad of the hot shower and a brew. After packing up our gear we had a quick chat and a brew. James was pleased with how it had gone and we agreed that the whole week had been like a 24hr constant driving test; mentally draining and with no feedback... for 5 days straight. Certainly not something we would forget in a hurry. I told James what Steve had talked to me about on the way off the hill this morning. I told him that I reckoned I had done pretty well throughout the week but I didn't think I would pass on my logbook. All of a sudden James started worrying about his logbook and whether he had enough days too. This made me chuckle to myself, as I knew how experienced James was. I was relieved it was over and my real concern was that I hadn't done enough and I would have to come back and do the whole week again.
We loaded up James' car and headed into the centre to meet the others. Everyone was already there; Steve and Richard were sitting at a table at the front of the cafe and they directed us to sit at a table at the back with Darren and Mike while they talked things over. James and I were straight in with the order of coffee, orange juice and bacon rolls; definitely feeling the need to rehydrate and replenish our broken bodies. We were called up individually to be debriefed by Steve and Richard. Darren went first and wasn't away very long; he came back grinning and said that he was really pleased with the positive comments he had been given. I was pleased for him, as he seemed like a really good guy and it was a pleasure to be on the same assessment as him - great company. James also came back beaming, as I expected - I knew he had done really well, despite his own concerns. Mike was gone for quite some time and I took the opportunity to order another coffee. Mike came back looking rather sheepish but said that he had passed. I was up last. I grabbed my coffee mug and sat down opposite Richard and Steve.
Richard kicked things off by going through my logbook and, taking each entry in turn, explained if it qualified as a quality mountain day or not. He said that my experience was really quite weak but he had been quite generous in counting 17 of the entries as quality mountain days. Richard said that I seemed to lack a bit of confidence managing the group on steep ground and I told him that I agreed. Steve then went through the expedition and said that he could tell that I was quite nervous - I said that I had been very nervous throughout the week - but he thought it was a bit more than that. He thought that I had lacked some decisiveness in my decision making and route finding. He knew that this was down to my lack of experience. They told me that due to my lack of experience and the fact that I had only done the training a few months ago that I would usually have to come back and repeat the entire week of assessment. I suddenly felt nauseous and my heart started to sink, but then everything became a torrent of praise and positives. I was told that what I had achieved this week was "amazing" and that my navigation and rope work was excellent. Richard said that if I had the required logged experience, then I would probably have a pass! Instead, they had deferred me and they were going to make come back for a single day of reassessment with a small group on steep ground. I was told not to take this as a kick in the teeth and not to be disappointed as they had been very impressed with my technical skills on the hill. They told me that I would be a great leader in the hills with a little more experience.
I was overwhelmed with their positive comments and kind words and I agreed with everything they said. I told them that I had a feeling that I wasn't quite ready for the assessment coming into this week - I thought my logbook and experience was a little lacking. But I also told them that I knew I had the technical skills and was comfortable with my navigation and rope work - but I wanted to give it my best and now I was happy with the outcome. I told Steve and Richard that I had the utmost respect for them and that their comments meant the world to me and I would take their advice onboard about what to do next. Steve said that I needed to go and get 'lost' in the bigger hills on my own and have some adventures. He knew that I did a lot with GWC and that was great but I needed to have more solo epics and expeditions. He recommended that I should go down to the Lake District over the Christmas period and do some walking in easy winter conditions. Richard said that I shouldn't come back for reassessment for at least 12 months, that the deferral was valid for 5 years and I needed at least 20 more quality mountain days. I felt like hugging both of them but instead we shock hands warmly and I thanked them for a great week. The others came over and we all shook hands and went our separate ways.
As James and I headed back to Edinburgh, we were absolutely over the moon and buzzing with the outcome. Looking back I really couldn't have imagined just how well the week had gone - I really didn't think I could have pulled it off. My advice to anyone would be: don't put in for your assessment until you're more than ready for it. It's one of the hardest things I have ever done; like a constant driving test for 5 days with no feedback - a large amount of mental pressure. I'm glad to have done it and it's a great feeling knowing that I'll never have to complete the full week again.
A fantastic outcome.

Summer Mountain Leader Assessment - Day 5

We started walking again just after 9:30am and I was glad of the long lie, as I was quite stiff from the yesterday. Steve told me that it was my task to make a plan for getting us across the river and up to the top of Meall Odhar. The Abhainn Chai-aig was right in front of us and was wide, deep and rather fast-flowing. I also saw that there was a huge deer fence on the other side that we would also have to negotiate. There was no other option but to head upstream and look for a place to cross. We followed the river for what seemed like an eternity until we found a suitable narrowing through some boulders and a steep bank on the other side. Once safely across I headed downstream towards a gate that I had spotted almost directly opposite last night's campsite. On reaching the gate we found it padlocked; there was no option but to climb it. Once over safely, I started heading steadily up and around the West slopes that lead to the top of Meall Odhar.

It was another cracking day - a good few degrees warmer than yesterday. At first, the steep slopes were covering in heather so our progress was quite slow. But as we climbed to around 600 metres, the heather ceased and there was only bright scorched grass in front of us. We were soon at the top and admiring the view North into Coire Odhar Mor. Our route continued on to Meall na Teanga; each taking it in turns to lead. We had some amazing views over Coire Odhar Beag on such a clear day.

We started the descent down to the bealach between Meall Dubh and the South slopes of Sron a' Choire Ghairbh. On reaching the bealach, Steve suggested that we take a rest for around an hour and a half and take some time to chill out; maybe have some food. We all got a brew going while we hung out our tents and sleeping bags to air and dry a little. We had an amazing view of the sun going down through Gleann Cia-aig. As the sun disappeared, Steve said that we were to push on.

After packing up, we headed off again with Mike leading the way up the zigzags. It seemed to get dark very quickly and as I looked around I realised that it was a combination of the sun going down and the thick cloud that was surrounding us. Mike was too busy chatting and had a bit of a faff taking us to the col above the end of the path in the thick mist. With our head torches now on I took us to the summit of Sron a' Choire Ghairbh. We didn't hang around here; James then set off heading along the Eastern spur, retracing our steps at first and then continuing on to bealach between Sean Mheall. The mist was now very thick and the rain had also started. This meant that I had to rely heavily on my pacing - I had to concentrate hard. After the bealach, Darren tried to find the small lochan that was on the plateaux just to the West of the summit of Sean Mheall, but all that we could find was bog where it should have been. We then pressed on to the top and took a breather, as Steve planned my next mission.

Steve came over and asked me to take us to the other small lochan that was slightly less than a kilometre directly East of the summit. I took a moment to study the map and I told him that the only way I had a chance of finding it was to take a bearing directly to it. He nodded in agreement so I took a bearing and set off down the steep slope. What I found, soon after leaving the summit cairn, was that we were now entering a large boulder field that seemed to be quite gnarly. It meant that the going was slow, as I had to look at my compass and choose a fixed point that I could see in front of me that was in line with the bearing, navigate around the boulders and arrive at the fixed point, then repeat the process. This was slow but made sure that I didn't deviate from the original bearing. The boulder field ended and the ground turned into peat hag with many ups and downs, but I could see that the overall lie of the land was much flatter; I knew we were getting close. I came across a large section of peat bog that was more or less where I expected the lochan to be but I wasn't certain. Was this it? Was I even still on the right bearing? The only thing I knew was that I hadn't gone too far and overshot the lochan yet so I pushed on through the bog and up the steep bank on the other side. As I went up over the small mound, I could see the water rippling in the moonlight - we were there!

The others led a few short legs to the ring contours to the Northeast of the lochan before Steve said that we would head North down the slope towards the Allt a' Choire Ghlais. On reaching the river we followed it East down to the trees around the Kilfinnan Fall. Here, we set up camp under some trees. Steve left us and headed to his tent after telling us that we didn't have to leave until 9:30am tomorrow morning. I thought this was great news because it was now after 2am and I really wanted to get my head down. I chatted with James a little as we had a brew and cooked some food but I soon started to shiver and I knew I was tired, so I headed for bed; too tired to even reflect on the day that had just passed.

Summer Mountain Leader Assessment - Day 4

I was awake early and so was James. We had a good breakfast and laughed about how heavy each others rucksacks were - we were much more relaxed; as we knew the worst had to be over. We were actually looking forward to the expedition over the next few days and were keen at the opportunity to bag a few more hills in the process.

Richard and Steve arrived shortly after 9am and Darren and Mike followed closely behind. James and I loaded our gear into Richard's car, while Darren and Mike went with Steve. We headed out of Fort William and towards Spean Bridge. There, we turned off and headed to Gairlochy. Richard seemed far more relaxed and was very chatty in the car with James and I - this really helped us relax even more; it was a good feeling. We took the road around the North side of Loch Lochy to Clunes and stopped a bit further West at the farm at Achnasaul. We said goodbye to Richard (knowing we would see him in a few days at the end) and Steve gave us our briefing. We were told that the format would be much the same as our micro nav day; someone would lead a leg and the others would follow but not know the destination, and would have to show him where we where on the map, individually. James was given the first mission and we set off, following him North up the track towards the hills.

It was a fine day; bright and sunny with only a slight chill in the air. The blue skies made a very welcomed change from the torrential rain of the previous few days. The ground was very wet underfoot but we made good progress on the track. Looking at my map I could see that we had turned off the main track and were now heading East following the Allt Achadh nan Sabhal. We were chatting away as we made our way further upstream and Steve commented that we should still try to concentrate on where we were, despite the bright sunny weather. James stopped at a fork in the river to check his map and while we were patiently waiting, Steve asked us where we were. I pointed to the fork on the map and I was confident I was bang on, but Steve was pokerfaced as usual. I suddenly realised that this wasn't going to just be a pleasant walk in the hills after all - this was the real thing. James was still looking at his map and looking worried. He pointed to the map and Steve just chucked and said that we were actually somewhere else. James was disappointed and flustered but Steve did a very good job of reassuring him and getting him back focused again. Steve told him to get us back on course and James bounded off over the river, this time heading North back towards the main track. Steve turned to the rest of us and said, "Don't be fooled by the sunshine!" as he chuckled. I was now very nervous - this was the first mistake I had know James to make... ever! I was going to have to stay on my toes.

James lead us to the end of the track at the source of the Allt Dubh between Glas Bheinn and Beinn Mheadhoin. He was still apologising and everyone felt for him. Darren then took us West up a gentle slope to the bealach between Beinn Mheadhoin and Geal Charn. Then I lead us to the shoulder Southeast shoulder of Geal Charn and then Steve just said, "Let's go to the top". Here, we paused and had some food and some warm tea. The air was getting chilly, as the sun was almost down but there was not a breath of wind.

Mike then led us down the steep slopes to the East to Bealach Carn na h-Urchaire and stood next to the small lochan. My turn again and I headed up to the shoulder of Meall Coire nan Saobhaidh to the summit. It was now quite dark and we all took the opportunity to strap on our head torches before we continued any further. Our route then took us down to Bealach Choire a' Ghuirein, back up to Meall na h-Eilde and then down again to Bealach an Easain. It wasn't too difficult to follow where we were, as the route was pretty straightforward and the conditions were good - it was a perfect night. Steve then said to us that he wanted us each to plan a way down to Fedden (ruin) from where we where. I told him that it looked better to descend down to the North of the bealach, as the slope was less steep. The others had the same idea but Steve laughed and said that he agreed but there were no features on the map for us to find so he said we would head down the steeper South slopes. After a few more shorter nav legs each, we were almost down at the river. Steve asked Darren to find a campsite and he chose a great spot down by the river at an obvious dog leg (or kink) at NN194932.

After putting our tents up and having a brew, Steve came over to talk to James and I about how the day had gone. Steve was in great spirits and seemed quite relaxed. He gave us great encouragement and made us feel at ease - something he has a real knack for. We were told that we had done really well today and that we had been spot on with our nav on every leg. This was really good to hear and it was great to finally get some feedback.

Before bed, James and I confirmed with each other about where we had been and what the precise points on the map we had been asked to find. We both agreed on every one. Both knackered, we slept well.

Summer Mountain Leader Assessment - Day 3

When I woke, my first thought was that the rain hadn't stopped all night. My second, was that I remembered we were meant to be doing a river crossing today - brilliant.

We put on our old clothes, old boots and old waterproofs and waited nervously whilst sipping a brew. We could still hear the rain hammering down against the flat, as we flicked through the pages of Classic Rock. Richard soon arrived with Darren and Mike and they all came in and sat down. Richard said that we would go through the home papers first and hopefully the weather would clear up a bit, so I got up and put on another brew. We sat around and went through the home papers and discussed the answers together. It was clear that we all had good knowledge of the outdoors, the laws, regulations and best practice. The rain hadn't eased at all but Richard was still keen to cross a river so we jumped into his car and headed along the minor road towards Blarmachfoldach once again.

We parked at the roadside just above the river to our right. Down at the riverbank, Richard gave us a quick briefing. We were standing at a corner of the river and to our right the river looked deep and fast-flowing. To our left the river was wider, slower, more shallow and a lot more inviting. We were asked to get ourselves across safely using whatever method we liked. We all grabbed our walking poles and set off to the other side. The water was rather chilly to say the least and was fast flowing but only shin-deep and none of us had any problems getting across to the other side. Richard then asked us to move down the bank a little where the river was a little deeper and faster. We then each took it in turns to be in charge and get us all safely to the other side; this involved either the wedge or the single file technique. Then Richard got the rope out and it was time to get serious... and very wet. Richard took us  around the corner of the river where it looked deep and fast. We were asked to try out the 'V' technique with the rope and try to get us all across. James sat down behind a large rock on the bank that looked like a good belay spot. Darren went in first, holding onto the rope and doing his best to fight the strong current. He was making steady progress until he got closer to the other bank; where the river seemed to get deeper. As I looked on, Darren was really struggling and I could see that the water was rushing over his thighs and around his waist. I turned around and saw Richard had moved downstream and was on standby with a throw line. Darren made a lunge for the other side and rolled onto the high grassy bank. I was up next.

The rope came back over and in I went. Up to halfway the going was good, but then the water got deeper, stronger and faster. Wobbling a little I pressed on; using the tension of the rope for balance. To make things worse: the rocks underfoot became large boulders and they were smooth, slippery and hard to avoid. The water was now at the height of my waist and the water was gushing up into my chest. I couldn't keep my balance or fight the force of the current for much longer so I made a sideways lunge for the bank. I grabbed a handful of grass, swung my leg up and rolled onto the grass - I had made it... just! James came over next and he struggled to the other side the same as I did. Maybe I was just being a bit soft, but as James rolled up onto the bank he looked at me and I could tell he was thinking the same thing; that was a close call and I knew he had been right on the edge too. Mike then came over last with Darren belaying him. At around halfway, Mike became quite unsteady and as he went deeper, even more so. We all looked on but could do nothing; he lost his footing in the deep water. He tried to hold onto the rope and right himself but he couldn't as the current was too strong and was keeping his feet from under him. He was fighting a loosing battle and soon he had let go of the rope and was heading downstream. Richard had been watching and had thrown his line in for Mike to grab. Richard hauled Mike towards him and out of the deeper water until he could stand again and he stumbled to the other side. Richard shouted across to us and said that we were going to head back.

Mike was obviously soaked but he probably wasn't much wetter than then rest of us; the rain was still hammering down and hadn't stopped. I couldn't feel my hands as we crossed back to the other side, further up the river this time. As we headed back to Calluna to have hot showers and get warm again, I reflected on what just happened. Speaking to a few folk about their SML assessment, all of them told me that they never even did a river crossing on their assessment; their assessors talked it over with them and suggested that you would never attempt crossing a big river with a group. Clearly this assessment was of a much higher standard and that river crossing was certainly an experience!
After we were warm and dry again back in the flat, we sat around with a brew and laughed about what had just happened. After lunch, Steve Spalding arrived from Pitlochry. Steve was going to take over from Richard as our assessor for our expedition over the next 3 days. As usual, he was in fine spirits and we chatted about what each of us wanted to do for the expedition. James and I said that we weren't too bothered, while Darren and Mike fancied heading into the Mamores. Steve said that he had been looking at the weather closely over the last few days and he was concerned about the snow line and said that we had to try and stay below it. For this reason, he wanted to head to the West and fancied heading into the Glengarry Forest. Everyone seemed happy with that idea so it was settled.
After the others left, James and I couldn't wait to talk about the epic river crossing earlier and how we hadn't expected that at all. Apart from the experience being a little 'out there', we were both pleased with how the day had gone and felt we had coped well with all that was asked of us. We were well organised with our gear and supplies so it didn't take us long to pack our larger expedition rucksacks. Then we both fell into bed totally wiped from the last few days of activity and relentless concentration.
I was very much looking forward to the expedition.