This short video records the ascent of Curved Ridge in the Scottish Highlands by members of TMC on September 28, 2017. It’s a good idea to log all your walks (lowland and mountain) or climbs (rock climbing outdoors and the wall indoors), especially if you are considering submitting for an award like the Lowland Leader Award or the Mountain Leader Award (better known as the M.L.), the Single Pitch Award (in rock climbing), and the Climbing Wall Award etc.
Recording a walk
It has never been easier to record your walks and climbs. Back in the day all walks were written up in the club’s log book, but, surprise surprise, things have moved on. Mike Slattery’s watch, yes watch, gives a good impression of the approach, climb, and walk out on the day we climbed Curved Ridge. View Ranger is a great way of recording actual routes on the OSI 1:50.000 maps that we use. Most members will be familiar with the maps Bertie Hickey puts up on Facebook:
This is the route of Andrew Kelliher’s recce for the Level 1 walk tomorrow, Sun 11 Feb, 2017, the long awaited return to the Reeks. Interactive maps like this are taking over from the traditional route card, but two points need to be made on this.
- The first point is that you still need to be able to navigate from a map and interpret the terrain that you are walking in. We recommend that you have a ‘paper’ map (laminated) and compass with you and that you apply the navigation skills that you learned in Mountain Skills 1 & 2.
- The second is that you will need to carry your phone, or whatever device you are using to access View Ranger, in a weather proof pouch and have a backup power source in case the battery fails. These are widely available but remember, they need to be weather proof as well. Water and electric circuits don’t mix.
The next step is to keep a record of the walk, not just the route.
- You will need to decide on the type of walk, whether it was a walk amongst equals, a group walk with a leader, or a walk that you led.
- You will also need to decide if it qualifies for a Quality Mountain Day (QMD).
- You will need to describe the weather, including wind speed, direction, precipitation, and temperature.
- Finally you will need to include all details of your route, including map sheet number, start and end points, peaks summited, total height gain, and notable events.
- You should have a screen grab of the route, if you are using View Ranger, and photos that show the conditions and/or challenges encountered during the walk.
- It is also recommended that leaders record the name of everyone on the walk.
Writing up the log
Then you need to write up the log. This can be done online on the Mountaineering Ireland website. Every member of Mountaineering Ireland has access to an online digital log. Simply log on and access the Digital Log menu on your Homepage.
Then fill in the details.
It’s as easy as that!
We recommend that you collect the information as you go, getting a weather forecast, making a route card and/or tracking your actual route, taking photographs of conditions etc. It is handy to write up each section in Text Edit, Notepad or something similar and cut and paste the information into the online log.
That’s it.
Next post: what makes a Quality Mountain Day?
The Mountaineering Collective 