Here Paul is the mountain safety for Bear Grylls (seen here without the helmet) filming a commercial with MJZ in Cheddar Gorge.

 This project included a recce day followed by four days of filming in South Wales and Cheddar Gorge.

Paul was working with Jamie Edgell (Stunt Coordinator) and a team to ensure the safety of Bear and the crew.

Booking Conditions for schools and groups

Provisional bookings can be made by telephone but these cannot be guaranteed without a completed booking form and deposit. In the event of a further enquiry being made for the same dates, Ascent Training will offer the booking to the first provisional booing who will then need to confirm immediately if they still wish to reserve the dates.

To confirm a booking a completed booking form is required. All groups must send a deposit of 25% with the booking form. Please complete an online booking form.

Free staff places are based on a ratio of two places per ten paid group members. Additional staff places will be at 50% of the participant fee. There can be a maximum of 2 staff accompanying each group, unless otherwise agreed. This especially occurs when there are ten students in a group.

Final payment is due on receipt of the invoice which will be issued 3 months before the course. The invoice will be based on booked numbers as a minimum. If participant numbers increase (subject to available spaces) a supplementary invoice will be issued.

Cancellations: If a booking is cancelled within six weeks of the course start date the full amount is payable. If a replacement booking is made for the same dates a refund will be paid up to the value of the cancelled booking.

If Ascent Training in the very unlikely event cannot deliver this course then any money paid will be refunded in full.

Payment details: BACS and cheque are the only means of payment. Details of both can be found on the invoice. Please send details, including an email address, so we can forward an invoice to the correct person.

Paul Platt (AMI Chairman) chaired an extremely successful AMI AGM the weekend of 26th/27th January 2013. There were a number of excellent workshops for AMI members throughout the weekend as the photos show. The association is now Professional having adopted a policy of Professional Standards. This now means that AMI members have to adhere to the code of conduct which includes Mandatory Continual Professional Development and Professional Standards. This ensures our members are safer and more Professional so look out for the AMI badge.

There will also be a development of the AMI magazine in March. This is changing its title to 'The Professional Mountaineer' and will go to all members of the following associations - AMI, BAIML, BMG and MTA. Get your copy too.

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Winter is here!

Ascent Training staff are qualified and experienced to guide winter climbs (snow and ice and/or mixed climbs) in the Lake District, Scotland and North Wales.

Please Contact Us if you are interested in developing your winter climbing skills or undertaking a particular route.

For more information on private guiding please click here.

Ascent Training has just had it's busiest year of school bookings. There are images on the Facebook page and some testimonials on the schools page.

We have had a number of new bookings but all schools from 2011 rebooked bor 2012 and bookings coming in for 2013 which include more new schools.

There are ML courses and rock climbing courses running during the month of August.

Please see our new Facebook Page for Ascent Training and Apex Training.

This will be kept up to date with photos and news.

Having a fantastic time guiding for Paul Walker and Tangent in Greenland. Finished the first trip and start the next expedition on Saturday.

Very cold here today and the wind has picked up this evening.

Bookings can still be taken while i'm away and i'll get in touch after the 11th May

This last week Paul has been working with Adrian to improve his winter climbing. Adrian aproached Ascent Training earlier this year asking what the best route for himself would be. He had led Scottish grade 4 routes but wanted more Avalanche awareness, improve his navigation, ropework and some winter climbing coaching. We decided that four days of one to one coaching would be the way forward. Below are a few photographs and video clips from a truly fantastic week. As you can see the weather and conditions were perfect. We based ourselves on the west coast and winter climbed on Ben Nevis and in Glencoe, had a mountain skills day on Aonach Mor and a coaching workshop at the Ice Factor.

The Accommodation Base & Facilities

Both the training & assessment courses take place over 5/6 day periods and  will operate from a base in The Lake District. For this year the base all courses bar two will be Holly How YHA in Coniston.

YHA Coniston Holly How is a large Victorian slate country house, dating from the 1870s. It was built using slate from nearby Bannishead Quarry, just off the Walna Scar pass. The house was later extended to provide five bedrooms, a drawing room, dining room and library. The building is now a Visit Britain three-star 60-bed youth hostel run by YHA England & Wales Ltd., offering comfortable and reasonably priced accommodation and locally sourced food and drink.

Most guests choose Holly How as a base to climb Coniston Old Man or Wetherlam, or perhaps to climb on Dow Crag, or to explore further afield towards Langdale and the Central Fells. Other activities include watersports on Coniston Water and mountain biking on Walna Scar or Grizedale Forest. 

It has the benefit of being on the doorstep of the Coniston fells and therefore we are able to maximise training and assessment time. Less time spent in minibuses!! It has a number of dormitories and showering facilities, an efficient drying room, dining room, lounge/lecture room with an open fire and a games room/lectureroom. 

All courses, wherever the location include accommodation and all food. Courses based at Holly How provide all meals including breakfast, lunch and a three course evening meal. On courses away from Holly How external caterers will provide an evening meal on each of the evenings we are based in accommodation and a variety of options will also be provided for "help-yourself" breakfasts and packed lunches.

Please note that the full board facilities only coverYHA/other accommodation based training/assessment days. Course participants are required to provide for their own feeding arrangements when on overnight camps. This applies for one overnight on the training course & two overnights on the assessment course.

Comments from students on courses at Holly How 

• YHA Holly How a perfect venue. Phil and Chris do a superb job with the food
• Amazing food provided all week - great to have at the end of a hard day + good breakfasts to set us up for day ahead - couldn't have been better really.
• Really good. Catered extremely well for vegetarians
• Fantastic food! more than enough.
• Holly How very good location and grub top!