walking & adventure holidays

Hone your navigation skills under the sun

The perfect solution for improving your mountain skills in glorious surroundings.

Can you deal with all that the hill can throw at you? At the end of this week you will be far more confident to get out on the hill despite prevailing conditions – and we all know how they can effect our decisions!

Be happy that you can–

• ...Interpret your map confidently
• ...Use your compass to best advantage
• ...Micro navigate
• ...Choose the best routes off the beaten track
• ...Move with your companions over steep and broken ground
• ...Pack the right gear
• ...What's out there to eat?
• ...Survive with the minimal of gear
• ...Deal with emergencies
• ...Have a great day out no matter what the weather might bring!

Testimonials

We had a really super holiday.
Clive Warrington March 2006

Season

End March to end September

Departures to date

2010 - May 1; Aug 14; Oct 2

Pricing

Gite based - £385

Hotel or Chambre d'Hote B&B - £495

Hotel or Chambre d'Hote half board - £740

For non-standard periods and programmes, contact us to discuss the options. Read about our flexible way of working.

How to book...

Walking Grades

grade

Your Accommodation

Gîte

Enjoy the beautifully secluded situation of La Zourcière in the small hamlet of Berthemont les Bains in the Vésubie valley. The gîte sits on the ground floor of the house and is fully self contained. There are shops about 10 minutes drive from the hamlet, and an organic farm just 200m down the road from the house. Follow this link for more details.

Le Chalet or La Bonne Auberge are situated in the town of St Martin Vésubie, a thriving small community that has been the centre of life in the valley since the 12th century. There are plenty of local shops and restaurants to choose from, and the Bonne Auberge has its own restaurant.
Le Grand Chalet is a homely chambre d'hôte run by Christine and Luc and is situated overlooking the small village of St Dalmas Valdeblore. A good week of outdoor activity is well fuelled by Christine's great cooking, crafted from home made (mainly organic and local) ingredients. Vegetarians are welcomed.

What's included

8 day trip, 7 nights accommodation, including 1 mountain hut night.
Gîte Based : self catering, no meals or drinks included.
Hotel/Chambre d'Hôte B&B : Breakfasts only - evening meals can be taken at local restaurants, and packed lunches can be purchased at local food stores.
Hotel/Chambre d'Hôte Half Board : All meals, inclusive of packed lunches. Drinks at own cost.
Transport : To and from all venues. To and from Nice airport, aside from gite guests who decide to hire a car during their stay in Berthemont. We offer supermarket visits for self catering guests who do not wish to hire a car.
Activities : Six days tuition with a qualified International Mountain Leader.

Itinerary

• Day 1 Arrive Nice airport, transfer to hotel, or the gîte at La Zourcière, Berthemont les Bains.
• Day 2 Lacs des Millefonts- Maps and Interpretation – variations from the OS format.
• Day 3 La Madone de Fenestre - Rudiments of navigation: The right equipment: Building a shelter.
• Day 4 La Madone de Fenestre - Micro navigation: Moving on steep ground: Stave off the hunger.
• Day 5 La Cougourde – The Weather: Hut night: Night navigation.
• Day 6 La Cougourde – Route finding: Group dynamics.
• Day 7 Lacs des Millefonts – Micro Navigation.
• Day 8 Depart Berthemont les Bains or transfer back to Nice for hotel guests.

Suitable for

Your welfare & protection

As a small enterprise, it's very important to us that our guests are professionally looked after during their stay with us.
Your protection : our operational base is in France, and our company in France is registered as a tour operator (habilitation touristique) and holds business failure cover and public liability cover.
Your welfare : all our activities are led by fully qualified local Mountain Guides and International Mountain Leaders (Accompagnateurs), thus ensuring that you receive not only top professional care, but that you will also benefit from their in-depth local knowledge of the regions that we operate in.