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What It Means to Be a Guide
Being a Mountain Guide is about spending a lifetime in the hills enjoying the company of other people who appreciate the outdoor environment as much as we do.
To quote the British Mountain Guides Website: (link www.bmg.org.uk/about-bmg/what-is-a-mountain-guide)
“A Mountain Guide is someone with the IFMGA carnet, the highest qualification in the world for leading people in the mountains, whether skiing, climbing or mountaineering. A BMG Guide holds the IFMGA carnet, which is the only UK qualification valid abroad for climbing and skiing off-piste on glacial terrain.
Mountain Guides come in many shapes and sizes – the one thing they have in common is their passion for the mountains. Wherever they live and work, they will have a mass of experience, from rock climbing to Scottish winter, mountaineering and skiing all over the Alps, and experience of difficult climbs and remote mountains in other ranges around the world.
A Mountain Guide’s mountaineering background is consolidated with a rigorous training and assessment course lasting up to 5 years, with an apprenticeship period working alongside experienced Mountain Guides for 2 years before being finally certified to lead people in the mountains. Regular professional development training keeps Mountain Guides up to date with the latest techniques and standards.”
In addition to being the highest level of certification worldwide, the IFMGA carnet is a legal requirement to practice as a guide in the high mountains and on glaciers in most alpine nations.
I love being a Mountain Guide. It enables me to spend most of my life where I want to be, in the mountains, and to enjoy the companionship of the people I go there with.