Thursday 7 May 2015

Corporate Events in The Lake District. Gorge Walking in Borrowdale. 30th April 2015.

Last Thursday, Iain joined yet another intake for Nucleargraduates - running another corporate Ghyll Scrambling Session in The Lake District with the intention of providing a challenging environment where this group of successful applicants would be impelled into working together and getting to know each other better as a result.

The first photo shows the group - equipped, as we believe any person heading into a Lake District Ghyll should be! Walking boots to provide protection, grip and ankle support, a wetsuit and cagoule to provide insulation, a buoyancy aid, to keep you afloat in deep pools, a helmet to protect your head and a harness to attach you to a rope so that we can safeguard you on one of those more challenging sections of any mountain stream (usually a waterfall) where a slip could turn into something more serious.

It doesn't matter who you are or what time of year you join us for a Ghyll Scrambling or Canyoning Session in The Lake District - you can also expect to receive this equipment as part of your fee; and we expect to offer you nothing less! Our activity sessions are designed to be safe first; and equipment such as this ensures your comfort - second. Only when these two factors are dealt with satisfactorily will you begin to enjoy yourself, have fun; and work together - the primary objective on this session.

Indeed, we had a number of reluctant participants arrive for this Ghyll Scrambling Session. The weather has been unseasonably cold in recent weeks feeling more like late Autumn or very early Spring and a number of these graduate apprentices were not keen on immersing themselves fully in chilly water - especially when they could see that the hills around had a pretty impressive coating of snow on them! Nor was Iain keen on this plan, so we chose to avoid getting a thorough soaking on this session and in fact - not get wet above the tops of legs if possible either. At first this group failed to interact which is what usually happens, but by the time photo two was taken, they were all starting to look after and help each other. People started to smile; and enjoy themselves!

We made our way up the venue - Hause Gill in Borrowdale, with the unity of this team of graduate apprentices growing stronger by the minute. One of the team fell headlong into the water and was very unhappy about this. There was a lack of certainty as to whether or not she wished to continue, but with the support & encouragement of her peers, she soon felt better; and a lot happier. Good things were happening today!

There was more water in Hause Gill this time; in comparison with the session three weeks earlier and at the first big waterfall, Iain had to individually rope each team member up so that they could bypass this wet and powerful obstacle seen in photo three just to the right of Maddie. Everyone enjoyed this challenge which we wouldn't have been able to do without harnesses and Iain's experience as a Ghyll Scrambling Guide. It is good that we were able to adapt to the situation and provide a safe & exciting alternative. We do this wherever we can for our clients in order to exceed expectations.

The final photo from this post about Corporate Ghyll Scrambling Sessions in The Lake District sees Ben & Maddie giving Ghyll Scrambling the thumbs up. On this session, Ben showed himself to be a strong performer - taking all of the challenges presented along the way in his stride and being very adept at providing support for other members of the team.

Maddie, would probably admit to being one of the least enthusiastic of the team at the outset; and initially avoided getting into the water, but very soon we saw a very positive change as she decided to get stuck right in along with everyone else. Great stuff!

The group worked well for the rest of the session and we kept going for as long as we felt it was comfortable to do so - making considerable progress up the streamway and developing a stronger team along the way. After returning to the car park and getting changed into dry clothes, a mug of steaming hot chocolate each was all that was needed to add the "icing on the cake" to what had turned out to be a much better session than anyone had expected at the outset.

All of these successful apprenticeship applicants bonded together well on this session and everyone learned something about their own capabilities and the benefits of working together as a team to get the job done.

We look forward to working with Nucleargraduates next Wednesday when one of our associates - Scott, will be running the session on Iain's behalf whilst he guides a group on the Cuillin Ridge of Skye. Watch out for the report and if you would like to book a Ghyll Scrambling session in The Lake District for your own bunch of employees or apprentices - then do contact us to discuss your aims and objectives and allow us to arrange a session to suit you. We look forward to working with you.

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