Skye Guides specialises in teaching rock climbing at all levels.
Fun days out or courses dedicated to developing skills all have one common objective…

Spend as much time climbing as possible

High Adrenalin Outings

No need to climb a mountain. Huge abseils and Tyrolean traverses
have become popular outings in their own right. Suitable for large
groups. No experience necessary and all equipment provided.
We look forward to showing you our wonderful island and
the best mountains in Britain!

What Climbing Can I Do?

Ideas of popular days out are listed below. Climbs suitable for all levels of fitness and experience are available. Short courses and single days can be arranged to suit your availability and ambitions. All Skye Guides are active climbers with a high level of ability to both climb and teach climbing. We use our in-depth knowledge of the climbing areas and the weather patterns on Skye to make the most your time.

Introduction to Outdoor Climbing
No experience or equipment needed

Classic Routes
A guide and climbing partner on the best routes on the island

Learn to Lead
From building belays to calculating forces; something for everyone

New Routes
For climbers after a real adventure and name-check in - Cuillin history

Climbing Masterclass
Intensive climbing and rope-skills training

Prices

1:1 Private guiding costs £160 per day
Each extra climber is charged at £30pp

Most climbing days are about 8 hours long with all technical equipment and ropes provided. These rates apply specifically to rock climbing days rather than classic scrambles involving a small amount of rock climbing. Routes such as the Round of Coire Lagan are charged at the normal rate of £180 plus £40 per extra person.

Introduction to Rock Climbing

Suitable for those with limited or no experience of climbing on outdoor rock. Emphasis is placed on routes that are well within your standard. Route finding, rope-work, use of guide books and climbing are taught at a variety of venues with Elgol, Flodigarry and the Cioch face being the most popular.

Classic Routes

Black Cuillin
Mike Lates is author of the forthcoming SMC guidebook to rock and ice climbs in the Cuillin covering nearly 100 different cliffs in the range. Knowledge and publicity of climbing in the Cuillin has, in recent years, become polarised into a few well known scrambles and the odd popular climb such as the Cioch, Inaccessible Pinnacle, Integrity and Vulcan Wall. Through his research and the guidebook Mike is rekindling interest in the hundreds of forgotten classic routes that were formerly rated as highly as any climbs in the country. Mallory’s Slab and Groove, Commando Crack, Slanting Gully, Trap Face Route and Crack of Doom would all have been high on any climber’s hit-list just a generation ago. These are at all grades and epitomise the spirit of adventure and exploration that mountain lovers crave. When the mountain crags are dry the opportunity to explore should not be missed.

Coast
Over 700 new routes have been climbed on sea cliffs around Skye since the last guidebook was printed in 1996. This popularity is due to a combination of easy access and fine weather even when other parts of the island can be shrouded in mist. Both Neist and Elgol have very sunny aspects on the west coast and are the driest parts of the island. Ruabh Huinish at the north of the island stays dry in all but the fiercest of wet westerly airflows with whales spotted on almost all visits. Flodigarry, Kilt Rock and Staffin crags on the east coast are sheltered from strong winds

Learn to Lead

Flodigarry provides superb crack lines on low grade routes; Kilt Rocks' easier routes swallow gear in their numerous cracks; Elgol rock requires cunning thinking both to place gear and to minimise rope drag; Sron na Ciche provides a face of Alpine proportions to put the skills to the test. Skye Guides can provide all of the necessary equipment. Clients with their own gear are encouraged to bring this in order to increase their familiarity with their own equipment.

New Routes

Mike Lates has the benefit of an intimate knowledge of the Cuillin which has been greatly enhanced by his collection of crag shots. This has given him a chance to spot the enormous potential for new climbs. He has pioneered 20 in the last couple of years alone, many with clients and most in the lower or middle grades between V. Diff and E1. Adventurous clients are welcome to push Mike towards one of his many projects with fun guaranteed and a name-check in the book for any successes.

Climbing Masterclass

Most climbing is done under duress with little chance to analyse performance. We all suffer from the same problem and can all learn crucial lessons from climbers with more experience. The classes are tied in with most multi-day courses but can also be booked specifically. Areas commonly dealt with are correct use of feet, dealing with fear, simplifying rope-work and intense training in placing protection. We have an indoor facility if weather conditions are not suitable but always prefer to teach on real rock. Half days are available for the indoor sessions.
Instruction in alpine rope techniques suitable for use in the Cuillin is one of the most common requests and is available in conjunction with many outings.

Ideas for Individual Days of Rock Climbing

ELGOL
Our favourite location for introductions and indulgence is at Elgol, half an hours’ drive from the main road at Broadford. The crag is an easy 20 minute walk from the carpark. There is a practice slab (20m) used for top-roping to get everyone up to speed on footwork and other techniques before we get onto the main cliff where there are a few ideal routes for everyone. The rock is covered in huge holds of horizontally layered hard sandstone- “ I thought they only made holds this big for climbing walls Mike” is my favourite quote. Any split of abilities and ambitions is then accommodated by putting one person at a time onto other routes on a top-rope as the others watch. The setting is superb, weather tends to be far better than most parts of the island and we often have a bar-b-q down there too. Otters, dolphins, whales and basking sharks were all seen in 2009.

THE CIOCH
Sean Connery was flown in by helicopter in to shoot the famous scene in Highlander but the easiest route is well within the grasp of most aspiring climbers. An hour of easy walking brings us to the base of the cliff from where a variety of routes can be used to approach this amazing obelisk. Escape back down from its flat top is daunting but ropes keep everyone safe.

NEIST POINT
There are nearly 1000 routes to choose from at this, the furthest west point in Skye. There are many bays with a variety of aspects giving sheltered and frequently sunny climbing at all standards. Approach walks vary from 2 to 25 minutes from the car park and abseils are used to approach quite a few of the climbs we use. Full training is given and, yes, the guides do carry pulleys just in case! Gannets plunge into the sea just feet from the cliffs and close encounters with both whales and basking sharks have become increasingly frequent as sea temperatures rise.

"I would never have believed that my partner and I could learn so much about outdoor climbing in just 3 days. From being indoor climbers we now have the confidence to set up our own anchors for both top-roping and climbing. We are even leading easy routes, well within our grade, and feel a whole new world has opened up to us.

Complicated ropework issues were broken down to simple systems for us to learn and practice. Your philosophies on how to think about the climbs and mountains again clarified numerous written opinions that often contradict each other.

Most importantly we did lots of climbing in three wonderful areas of the magnificent Isle of Skye despite pouring rain in other parts of the island. " Heather Lines (June, 2008)"

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