Fitness and Experience

FITNESS AND EXPERIENCE

Having the correct level of fitness and experience for your trip will make your time with Sharpe Guides more productive, safer and more enjoyable. 

We don’t do off the shelf, one-size-fits-all mountain guiding, because there’s no such thing as an off-the-shelf client. That means trips to each of our four locations can be custom built to your level, within certain boundaries. 

The information below is meant as a guide only. The easiest way to check if you are at the required level for a trip is to contact us directly using info@sharpeguides.com and we will reply ASAP to answer any questions you might have.

Chamonix and the Alps 
The terrain for both climbing and skiing in Chamonix and the Alps is second to none so whether you are looking for a weekend tick of a lifetime or aiming to skill-up for bigger objectives, the Alps has it all. With it’s excellent lift systems and hut network it is easy to focus in on your trip objectives, whatever they may be. This also makes it very easy to build courses for almost any levels of fitness and experience. 

Alps Climbing
Key Points

  • 5kg+ rucksack

  • Average ascent from 250m-1000m+ / day

  • Average length of day 5-10 hours

Alps Skiing
Key Points

  • 5kg+ rucksack

  • 0m ascent for lift accessed off-piste!

  • Average ascent on backcountry days 300m-1000m (1-4 hours skinning)

  • Average length of day 5-8 hours

  • Ability to ski linked turns in all snow types

Scotland Winter Climbing 
Scotland’s wild and remote landscape with its changeable weather demand above all a certain level of determination and endurance to be able to experience to the full. Smaller mountains that deliver big mountain days out, that’s how best to describe the Scottish Winter Climbing experience.

99% of our days out climbing in Scotland begin with an early start and an on-foot approach to a coire or crag for the day. This could be between 15 minutes to several hours, although is typically a couple of hours. You will be carrying a rucksack of around 10kg containing kit for the day. From this point we will look to climb for the day and walk out again. You will be climbing with your rucksack. This could all be in variable weather and conditions!

Key Points

  • 10kg rucksack

  • 15 min – several hours approach (typically a couple of hours walk-in)

  • Average ascent of between 500m-1200m / day

  • Average length of days between 6-10 hours / day

  • Prior climbing experience of V.Diff / F4a or above and / or Scottish grade III / WI2 / M2 mixed or above

  • Prior experience of using crampons and an ice axe although no winter climbing experience is necessary

Arctic Circle
Our guided climbing and skiing trips to Arctic Norway and Senja Island are an experience not to be missed and are the perfect opportunity for winter climbers to gain more experience moving on from Scotland or the Alps, or for skiers looking to get off the beaten track and chase some arctic powder. As there are no lifts on Senja all ascent throughout the week will be human-powered. 

Senja Climbing 
A normal day on Senja will begin with a drive of up to an hour to our starting point. From here we will approach our climbing location for the day (normally using snow shoes). We will then aim to climb for the day before descending (either by abseil or walking off the top), before walking back to the road.

Key Points 

  • 10kg rucksack 

  • Average ascent between 500-1000m / day

  • Average length of day 6-8 hours

  • Open to winter climbers with past winter climbing experience at Scottish grade III / WI2 / M2 or above

Senja Skiing 
A normal day on Senja will begin with a drive of up to an hour to our starting location. We will start touring from the roadside and will aim to be out the whole day to make the most of your trip and the winter daylight.

Key Points 

  • 5kg rucksack

  • Average ascent of 700-1000m (3-4 hours skinning) / day

  • Average length of day 6-8 hours

  • Ability to ski linked turns in all snow types

  • Open to those with past ski-touring experience

Expeditions 
Our expeditions to the world’s Greater Ranges take all the fitness and experience gained on the journey so far and aim to combine it all to give the experience of a lifetime. Needless to say those looking to join us on our expedition experiences need to arrive as physically and mentally prepared as possible, in order to give us the best possible chances on your trip objectives. 

Our expeditions are open to those with prior alpine climbing experience. The points listed below are the bare minimum we at Sharpe Guides would expect of our clients on a non-technical expedition, to attempt a snowy 5000m -6000m Himalayan peak. Such a trip would be between 3-4 weeks in duration with 2-3 weeks of this time spent on the hill. During this time you must be capable of back-to-back long days out carrying packs of up to 20kg at altitude and over rough ground, and to be mentally resilient in your attitude and outlook to be able to endure expedition life. 

Key Points 

  • Up to 20kg rucksack 

  • Prior alpine climbing experience at PD or above

  • Experience using axe and crampons

For more technical expeditions the standards will be considerably higher.

If you have any other questions that you feel are not answered here or you would like more info regarding fitness and experience then please don’t hesitate to get in touch using info@sharpeguides.com.