Words: Katy Whittaker
The Arc’teryx Lakeland Revival and Big Mountain Weekend are back. The Arc’teryx Big Mountain Weekend will kick things off with two days of clinics, climbing, BBQ, films and live music on the 4th and 5th May at the Sticklebarn, Lake District.
“Events like the Arc’teryx Big Mountain Weekend are so important for our climbing community. They are are great way to meet new people, discover new areas and get outdoors. Not only that, they also educate, helping climbers to build and develop their skill set which leads to safe crags for all of us.” – Arc’teryx athlete Mina Leslie Wujastyk
The event aims to educate, share and improve skills necessary for enjoying the mountains and crags safely. This year we’ve added in a number of new mountain based clinics alongside our core climbing clinics. These include navigation, wild swimming, trail running development and mountain & sky running skills.
All the clinics are run by guides who are extremely passionate and knowledgable about what they do, it is rooted deep within them. The majority are British Mountain Guides working for the International School of Mountaineering and bring a wealth and depth of information.
Max Cole who will be teaching the trail running clinics has 35 years of experience competing in mountain sports alongside being a British Mountain Guide.
“Running trail is exhilarating, exiting and adventurous, so whats not to love. It takes me to new places and I really get an awesome sense of freedom when i’m in the wild. I love being outside and exploring the countryside and the mountains. I am really psyched with the addition of trail running to the program this year. Participants can expect to cover many core skills to help them stay safe whilst running in the mountains, including; planning your route, navigation, safety, skills in ascent and descent, looking at equipment and mountain nutrition.” –Max Cole, British Mountain Guide
Wild Swimming has become increasingly popular in the UK the last few years, with many keen swimmers taking to it all year round and actually having to break the surface ice to enter the lake. Suzanna Cruickshank has been running guided wild swimming for the past few years and will be joining the Arc’teryx Big Mountain Weekend to share her knowledge.
“During the 3 hour workshop participants can expect to learn some of the core skills to carry out wild swimming safely. Such as, how to identify appropriate entry and exit points for wild water, what pack in your backpack, how water varies across Cumbria, environmental issues and the best bit… get a whole new perspective on the landscape from a unique and peaceful position in the middle of a tarn.” – Suzanna Cruickshank, Wild Swimming Guide
We have also included some yoga sessions this year in the Sticklebarn Hayloft with Mina Leslie Wujastyk, Arc’teryx athlete and qualified yoga instructor, one of which will include a part theory session on why yoga has so many benefits for climbing.
“Yoga is a wonderful adjunct to climbing; it offers a gentle way to develop and maintain mobility and strength as well as a mindful experience connecting with your body and your breath. The overlaps between climbing and yoga and immense, there are so many ways they can help each other along. I hope to delve into some of these ideas in the workshop as well as giving you a taste of a gentle, mindful practice to start your day.” – Mina Leslie Wujastyk, Arc’teryx athlete.
If these new clinics haven’t wet your whistle we still have all the climbing clinics available with sessions suitable for beginners to advanced, including new clinics such as Introduction to Outdoor Bouldering and Women’s Introduction to Trad Climbing. Find out more details here https://www.arcteryxlakelandrevival.com/big-mountain-weekend/about/and see you there.