Learn to Lead Trad Climbing Course

Two days of learning new skills and refining existing ones to give you the confidence to tackle single pitch climbs completely independently.

ARRIVE AT THE ADVENTURE HUB
Your instructor will welcome you and discuss the aims of the course and you own aspirations over a great cup of fresh Italian coffee or tea.

COLLECT AND CHECK YOUR EQUIPMENT
You'll begin by checking through any equipment you have brought along with you and picking up anything else that is required from our stores as well as ensuring you are equipped for whatever the weather may throw at you.

TRAVEL TO COURSE LOCATION
The exact location will depend on the weather and the aims and abilities of the group. Most of the venues that we use are approximately 15 minutes drive from our office and when you arrive you can expect to walk for between 5 and 15 minutes to reach the rock itself.

PRACTICAL CLIMBING SESSION
You will spend the whole day working on practical, hands on activities. Initially the focus is on introducing, refreshing and refining the skills associated with seconding a climb including effective and safe belaying of a lead climber. Soon the emphasis moves to lead climbing itself where you will learn the effective placement of protection, develop rope management skills, options for building anchors as well as working on the mental aspects of being a leader. At each stage you will find yourself making progressively more decisions about how to approach a climb with your instructor always available to advise.

BACK TO THE ADVENTURE HUB
Once we are off the hill we will return to the Adventure Hub. With fresh coffee in hand, we summarise the key learning points from the days adventure, discuss your progress so far and set some personalised development targets for your ongoing climbing adventure.

• We can provide all technical equipment including harness, helmet and rock shoes but if you have any of your own gear please feel free to bring it along
• Clothing suited to the weather (waterproofs, warm tops, etc )
• Good comfortable footwear for walking to the crag
• A good supply of snacks and a drink
• Sun cream, hat and sunglasses (you just never know!)

• Our well-equipped training centre, The Adventure Hub, is Carbon Neutral.
• We encourage car sharing wherever feasible.
• We encourage the use of public transport on all our courses. Bamford Railway Station is 5 minutes' walk and we enjoy direct bus connections to Sheffield and nearby villages.
• We offer free camping kit for guests staying locally and looking to cut down on luggage.
• Our staff are trained to prolong the life of equipment used on this course, where it is possible to recycle equipment at the end of its life, we do so appropriately.
• We operate in small teams at low ratios to reduce our impact on the venues we use and other countryside users.

• The physical and mental benefits of outdoor activities are numerous and well documented, we firmly believe that those benefits should be available to as many people as possible.

• If you are interested in experiencing any of our activities but feel unable to do so then please contact us to discuss your specific needs, we will always try to find a solution that works for you.

• There are a range of simple adaptions we can make to our scheduled courses such as choosing venues with minimal walking or easy access to toilet facilities, providing cold storage facilities for temperature sensitive medications, allowing additional time or arranging for participants to be accompanied by a trusted aide.

• When participation as part of an open group isn't appropriate we can arrange private tuition. This allows for a more tailored approach and a much wider range of adaptions such as assisted climbing and abseiling techniques for participants with significant physical or mobility issues.

• If private tuition is unaffordable then we can sometimes offer subsidised places to bring the price back in line with our scheduled courses .These are provided by the Pure Outdoor Foundation whose goal is to bring as many people as possible into the outdoors, please enquire about availability.

• Clear communication before the activity is crucial so, as well as telephone and email conversations, we can also arrange to meet participants directly at a venue days or weeks beforehand to identify any specific barriers and begin addressing any anxieties.