The Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS) is running a series of four Winter Skills courses and three Avalanche Awareness courses this winter.

These one-day training courses provide a great opportunity to learn new skills, which should enable those new to Scotland's winter mountains to be more self-reliant and make better judgements when out on the hills.

The courses are organised by the MCofS Mountain Safety Adviser, Heather Morning, who says:

'The MCofS winter courses are great value for money and a superb way of equipping yourself with the skills needed in the Scottish mountains in winter. By limiting the course content to the key requirements and one day only we are able to keep costs to a minimum.'

Heather goes on to say:

'The MCofS is working tirelessly to reduce the number of mountaineering incidents in Scotland and we are urging those that are new to winter activity to take up this opportunity of good quality training as part of achieving that aim.'

The Winter Skills courses are for MCofS members only, while the Avalanche Awareness courses are open to all.

Course dates are as follows:

Winter Skills courses at Glenmore Lodge. Tuesday 3rd January, Friday 6th January, Saturday 28th January and Sunday 29th January. Course fee £50.

Avalanche Awareness courses: Sunday 8th January – Nevis Range. Saturday 4th February and Sunday 5th February – Glencoe ski area. Course fee £40 for MCofS members and £50 for non-members.

For further information see the MCofS website.