Summer news! Another amazing week in the mountains.

The Matterhorn in all its glory!

I'm just in from 6 perfect mountain days of a Haut Route, sunny skies and nice stable temps followed us on a perfect high mountain adventure from Chamonix to Zermatt finishing under the towering peak of the picturesque Matterhorn (seen above).

With a group of 6 regular summer clients from Cork, Ireland, I made the trip with fellow Guide Kathy Murphy on a 1 to 3 ratio. We started out from the Albert Premier refuge above La Tour, headed over to Champex, round to the Montvoison Dam from where we did an excellent new (secret) variant, 1200m straight up and over to the cabanne de Dix. From here we climbed the Pin d'Arolla before carrying on down to the newly refurbished Vignettes hut (very nice), another big day over the col de l'Eveque, then down and up to the airy perch of the Bertol refuge. Then a final big day up and over the Tete Blanche (on which we arrived for the sunrise) and onwards down the never ending Stokki glacier to Zermatt.

I now have a weeks holiday on the 'wet coast' of sunny Scotland with the family before three more weeks up the hill. Then one day off and the GPM10 bike ride from Chamonix to Nice for which I will be joined by Andy Cook (who some of you will know from winter courses) who is busy shaving his legs and training right now so that he can be in Nice days before me!

We had a great response to the new 2010 calendar of courses, Mel has all the dates and prices so if you need information don't hesitate to drop her an e-mail or give her a call.

As I mentioned in my last blog/news, we have cut down dramatically on the number of courses running as I want to maintain the personal level of service and attention to detail that I feel the courses require.

Anyway, the response has been very good, it seems this is a popular move and especially for this time of year the level of interest and early bookings for next winter is amazing and the hardest part is going to be fitting everything and everyone in as there are lots of 'custom groups' which is great!

I love it! So looking forwards to next winter already!!

However, the summer is great too and I've some biking to fit in today and tomorrow before I head off to Scotland so I'd better be off as (fellow Guide) Jonny Baird is no doubt waiting to take me up some horrendous steep hill he has scoped out, trained on and then will say, 'I wonder where this goes, lets have a look!'

Tosh has now finished the brochure, it looks very nice and we will soon have a new look to the web site too.

All good, all change, keep the progression.

Neil.