UKC

My goal: classic alpine mountaineering (to summit peaks 3,500m+ inc. glaciated routes)

About me:
>25yrs
>Haven't done roped climbing since I was in school.
>Experienced and physically fit hill walker mainly in the Lake District.
>Comfortable with exposed routes and scrambling grade 2's
>Have via ferrata experience in Austria:
https://www.bergsteigen.com/touren/klettersteig/kaiserschuetzensteig/

Here's what I've looked at doing to get me towards my goal:
>Taking outdoor roped climbing courses in the lakes
>Winter climbing courses in Scotland
>and finally, if I could get straight into it, I found this introductory swiss course:
https://www.frostguiding.co.uk/course/14/Introduction_to_Alpine_Climbing.ht...

So all that said, my question is simple: What would you do in my position to get towards the goal of alpine mountaineering, and do you recommend any courses that you've been on yourselves? (all with a view to time and money of course )
 

Thanks.

Sounds like you’ve got the right ideas. If you go on the courses you mentioned you should be very well informed to tackle a straightforward 3500 peak in the alps. 

For my first trip climbing in the alps (see photo in gallery) I was an experienced rock climber but knew nothing about mountaineering really, but I was in the company of two people that knew a lot. We did several peaks above 3500m, crossing glaciers etc. It was great.

There is a lot to be said for winter hillwalking here in the UK as prep for the alps. Being comfortable on snow and ice covered ground in whatever weather is in many ways more important than rope skills that can be picked up quickly. The courses you a looking at will cover the technical skills, experience of “conditions” take time to acquire, particularly if you don’t have mountains on your doorstep.

Fwiw I did a five day intro to summer alpine mountaineering course and I was the only one who currently climbed or led trad, and only half of us had done winter skills before. Personally I think those were useful for me (I'm a slow learner and it might have been a bit much otherwise) but the guide generally seemed more impressed with those who were fit, good with exposure and picked things up quickly. 

I won't suggest that particular course as I don't think it really left me feeling like I could do easy alpine stuff independently afterwards - I think it may have been partly due to weather, but we didn't do as much glacier/snow stuff as I would have liked. But just wanted to reiterate that your starting point sounds like a good one.

Roped scrambling courses so you know how to do alpine coils and short rope etc would be a good skill to learn in the UK (not something I had, as I only ever did trad, or scrambled grade 1s).

I'd also add the perhaps obvious point about consolidation - if you do winter skills etc (not a bad idea), make sure you then use it - not like me, doing it in January 2020, and then doing a mountainteering course before a major injury!

+1 to the winter skills and experience bit, the alps isn't the place to trip over on your crampons. (Neither is the uk, but you get the idea)

Join a mountaineering club- some also run summer alpine meets.. 

https://www.thebmc.co.uk/find-a-club

Course looks good- I think a few days with a guide are good- I was lucky to attend a Conville course & the lessons learnt were invaluable for an aspirant mountaineer!

This!    https://www.jcmt.org.uk/

As others have said, I would (a) find a local club who can get you out on the crags and multipitch climbs, with possible added benefit of meeting like-minded chums; (b) get lots of mileage on crampons, wherever; and (c) learn how to cross a glacier, perhaps via a course.

Then choose a simple objective or two with a friend, and go for it, keep safe and learn.

Nick

Lots and lots of scrambling, lots of long roped scrambling/long easy rock climbing. N Wales is good as there is a lot in a compact area (which causes its curse of over popularity)

https://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crags/carnedd_y_filiast_cairn_of_the_gre...

https://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crags/clogwyn_y_ddysgl-696/clogwyn_y_per...

If you don't have basic mountaineering ropework skills, get a weekend with a good instructor 1:1 or 1:2 with a buddy. Or as mentioned join a club.

Winter hillwalking also essential as people mentioned, better to learn to walk in crampons and walking axe than trip over somewhere unthinkable to trip over in alps. These days that likely means a winter weekend  in Scotland. (Tripping is common novice issue in first day or two especially when very tired, because you need to walk slightly differently keeping feet apart a bit or the inside edge of one crampon can snag the other. After 2 days walking in them you should be fine)

Get yourself on a Winter skills course, will need to wait for winter now. Or.. join a club.

Get a 2 week break in a campsite in Chamonix in start July (which will also teach you there are better places to go for the next trip!!) Easy to get there from Geneva airport but ******* miserable journey by coach from London - just don't go by coach. And while you are on a walking holiday get on a day's intro trips from Chamonix guides. Or.. join a club.

This may be worth considering for next year:

https://www.jcmt.org.uk/courses

Thanks for all your comments, it's given me a lot to think about.
I just wanted ask further because it's not been touched on yet for what can be said for pursuing a course in the alps directly as a beginner such as the course I mentioned above or similar:
https://www.frostguiding.co.uk/course/14/Introduction_to_Alpine_Climbing.ht...

Which states "Some prior experience of winter mountaineering and/or roped climbing is helpful, but we will guide you from first steps in all the essential Alpine Mountaineering skills."

I understand the value of preparation on home turf to develop sure skills, but if alpine mountaineering is my goal, the alps might be the best to place to learn those skills?

can't comment on that course but plenty of French, Swiss, Italian & Austrian climbers have started mountaineering in the Alps without much background in walking or climbing elsewhere.

I´d go along with that. Don´t worry about the crampons, you get the new gait within 5 minutes. The Alps have things like glaciers and crevasses which Scotland doesn´t have, and if the Alps are your goal, just get out there and do it. I really enjoyed my 6 day Alpine basics course in Austria, having already spent two summers with experienced but (with hindsight) technically incompetent partners  knocking off summits up to 3900m in the Bregaglia and the Ortler group. There were 6 of us on the course in the Stubai range, with 2 guides, and they started us from scratch (boulder hopping outside the hut), continuing with stuff like crevasse rescue and ice axe self-arrest (and not just theoretically!). We had a lot of fun, and the course gave me a great foundation for later independent Alpine trips.