Rachael Crewesmith - Mountain Biking, Mountaineering and Other Outdoor Stuff

A Dream of White Horses, Wen Zawn, Gogarth

Running along Crib Goch at sunrise

Filming for British Cycling Trailsmart series

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It’s a while since this beauty got some rough mi

It’s a while since this beauty got some rough miles under her tyres. An exploding mech in the spring, a major shortage of parts in the summer and a lack of time on my part meant she mostly sat looking forlorn without any cranks! A bit of winter effort and a finishing touch from the amazing @off_beat_bikes and she rides again! So pleased to get this bike back on the trails.

#gravel #rideyourbike #gravelbike #lochaber #scotland #freshair

Ace day out in a new part of the mountain for all

Ace day out in a new part of the mountain for all of us. Gardyloo Gully is in “sporting” nick right now with a tricky step at tech 4. An amazing display of competence from @loufreedomoutdoors finished off the the route. The snow is really firm right now and a slip would be really bad so we pitched the steepest snow. The crags are pretty black but stuff is hanging on up high and it was raining on the summit when we topped out. Some good nav practice got us safely across the plateau and down a mellow Number Four Gully. A great adventure with Lou and @timharrop.

#winterclimbing #thinkwinter #wearerab #moveyourworld #themountainpeople #scottishhighlands #scottishwinter #winterclimbingconditionsscotland

🏃🏽‍♀️Birthday weekend part 3: The 🐢

🏃🏽‍♀️Birthday weekend part 3: The 🐢 and two 🐇

After the strongest coffee of my life, the remaining three of us headed up some Munros from Glenfinnan. “It took me three hours last time”, Finlay said, so I checked I had my headtorch packed with the ambitious aim to be half his pace and therefore twice the time. Actually it took us 4.5 hours, with some impressive waiting skills from the boys so I was pretty stoked with that.

Sgùrr Thuilm and Sgùrr Nan Coireachan were much more wintry than we had anticipated and in hindsight we might have brought warmer kit but it was so nice to be moving in the hills with great chat, bad singing and silly games as well as the occasional stonking winter light.

I’ve had a few pretty lonely birthdays in the past and my little heart couldn’t be more overjoyed for all the friends who made an effort to share my weekend with me this time. Thank you to @edsmithphoto @ed_trees @eilidhstirrup @rob.brown26 @savannahparton @mralexhill, Dan from Mallaig and ‘mysterious running man’, my winter flatmate, Finlay. How lucky I am!

Now stick a fork in me. I am done. 😴

📸 @edsmithphoto

#running #hillrunning #halfthepaceoffinlay #friends #birthday #munrobagging #fellrunning #runwild #wearerab #themountainpeople #moveyourworld

Birthday Weekend part 2: grabbed some lush people,

Birthday Weekend part 2: grabbed some lush people, a few G&Ts and a tub full of dhal and headed out for a sleepover in the forest. Almost set myself on fire (stay safe with stoves, kids) and drank such strong coffee in the morning I felt sick until lunchtime (giving up caffeine reduces your tolerance to caffeine. I already knew this…). Expanded my knowledge of vegan cooking with this ace apple cake from @ali.naylor89 and hugged some trees on the way home.

#birthday #friends #bothy #dhal #love

Birthday weekend part 1
Laps of Nevis Range with l

Birthday weekend part 1
Laps of Nevis Range with lovely people where I was mostly enjoying the view and the company. Followed by a chilly dip in Loch Linnhe. @gillymcarthur has been swimming every day in January to encourage more men to experience swimming in the cold so I did my bit by bringing @edsmithphoto and @ed_trees into the water. Check out Gilly’s page for more info.

#wildswimming #friends #visitlochaber #outside #birthday #birthday #heswims

Important work meeting with @orangemountaineering

Important work meeting with @orangemountaineering today. However this extremely warm and wet weather meant that bikes were a much more appropriate transport mode than our feet so we went on a wild but actually very local adventure showcasing some of Lochaber’s finest puddles. “I love this kind of riding, Rach!” was a repeated cry today. Which was lucky, because most people aren’t into this kind of thing: phew! It was fun reacquaint myself with Scottish nadge-core on my @julianabicycles Joplin and I was relieved to have a massive @mudhugger2 to keep my legs clean. Although only bin bags would have protected my feet from the puddles today. Completed the soaking with a dip in beautiful Cuil Bay 💙

#rideyourbike #scottishwinter #wildswimming #mountainbiking #gojuliana #nadge #lochabersfinest

Two days on Ben Nevis this week for an @ami_profes

Two days on Ben Nevis this week for an @ami_professionals Workshop got my winter climbing season started with a (slightly soggy) bang 💥. @mountain_motion shared so many good tips, tricks, secret routes and teaching ideas as well as clever ways to link up routes and provide good days when the weather is bad. The snow was rubbish, the ice was melting but craic was excellent from the team. The coolest bit was staying in the hallowed CIC Hut overnight, a treat none of us had experienced before. My winter experience feels different this year, more clarity, more psyche, more confidence. Here’s hoping it continues. Currently the conditions are warm and wet and all the rock is black though. Come on winter, we are waiting for you!

#winterclimbing #moveyourworld #themountainpeople #wearerab #thinkwinter #makewintercount #getoutside #learnfromexperience #snow #newfriends

I was out today playing around with snow anchors a

I was out today playing around with snow anchors and chewing the fat in the sunshine. We were testing how different anchors behave in the deep windslab that has accumulated over the past couple of days and I got to test the slow-mo camera on my phone. You can see that in the first video, the buried axe fails at the pick end which happened on every test today. Reinforcing with a second axe in front of the buried axe produced better results. The deadman was effective as long as the snow in front hadn’t been compromised, unlike in video 3 where it failed spectacularly. Testing to destruction in a benign, safe environment helps reinforce how important it is to use these techniques in conjunction with others, for example, a bucket seat, in order for them to be safe when used on the mountain.

I topped up my tan at the beach afterwards but couldn’t convince @onhighhills_jontymills @runwildmountaineer or @alex.reid99 to join me. Thanks to the Friday Deadman Club for a fun and useful day.

#thinkwinter #skills #learning #moveyourworld #themountainpeople #wearerab

Winterrrrr!! Great to be back working for @cairngo

Winterrrrr!! Great to be back working for @cairngormadventureguides after our fallow year last year. I ordered the weather for this lucky crew and Cairngorm did the teaching today. Great to have frosty eye lashes and crispy jackets and appreciate the cup of tea at the end so much.

#thinkwinter #wearerab #themountainpeople #getoutside #scotland #winterskills #winterskillscourse #cairngorm #wintermountaineering #snow #frost #thisgirlcan #moveyourworld

New year. New challenges.

We better hit 2022 hea

I’ve been laid up with a horrible cold, which I

I’ve been laid up with a horrible cold, which I was worried was covid so I isolated for ages until tests convinced me it was ok to leave the house. I had a compelling urge for chips for every meal and was grateful it was raining so I could stay in and watch tv and read books. I am convinced the cold came because I stopped swimming! Do colds feels worse now because we don’t get them so much?

It was so nice to finally feel well enough to share this amazing sloe gin we made last year for @ali.naylor89 and @willy_nayled_it wedding earlier this autumn. Thanks to these lush friends for a restorative amble and a gentle swim through some lovely doorstep places.

#homemade #friends #mountains

❄️Swim friends part 2 💙

Pic 1: Savannah’

The highlights of these Silly Swims have not been

The highlights of these Silly Swims have not been the places or the epic sunrises (although there are some of them to come!). The highlight has been the people I’ve shared them with. Once word gets around that you are doing something silly, it’s amazing how often “swim today?” pops up on your phone. Some old friends, some new, some paying students and some total strangers. What an amazing opportunity to spend time in cool places with lush people.

Pic 1: Kerry and Bertie on New Years Eve, the end of our Dip a Day December
Pic 2: The Lonely Tree Crew: always easy and cheerfully peer-pressured to come swimming with me.
Pic 3: The best chef in town Sarah ❤️
Pic 4: Pamela as my chief photographer, cheer leader and dresser (!) in a frozen Loch Leven in January
Pic 5: Mummy Sue and I go AWOL at Ali’s wedding, Lac du Montriond
Pic 6: Filming with Joby in Llyn y Cadair 🥶
Pic 7: With my sensei Claire in our Japanese Onsen
Pic 8: Loch Leven Swimmers join me on my birthday in January.
Pic 9: Eryri Blue Tits Laura and Tas
Pic 10: Jonny and Izzy after climbing on Idwal Slabs

#friendslikethese #sillyswims #wildswimming #thanks

💙Day 365💙

Ooosh. Who’d have thought it he

Rock climbing…in December? Are you mad? I think

Rock climbing…in December? Are you mad? I think @elouise_french is completely bonkers for smiling all the way through our trip up Nor Nor Grooves and down Little and North Gully today on Tryfan. We were sheltered from the sheets and sheets of hail and rain pulsing across the Cwm but it was still finding a way down our necks and into our socks. Elouise had never thought MCI was in her grasp but a clear talent for scrambling, finding solid gear and sniffing out the right way has changed her mind. It’s not all about climbing VS: this job has so many facets and I think we just found Elouise’s!

We hid from the weather in the climbing wall on Tuesday where Elouise climbed her first 6b after telling me she could probably climb 5c… there’s talent in them bones! It’s been brilliant working with Elouise and I can’t wait to see how far this woman can go.

To top it off, she even joined me for a dip on my penultimate day of my Silly Swims year long challenge. What a legend.

Working for @cathwilson_mtn_leadingedge @samleary_mtn_leadingedge as an @ami_professionals

#findyourcalling #talentspotting #wearerab #nosuchthingasbadweather #themountainpeople #moveyourworld #mountains #scrambling #winter #wales #visitwales #thisgirlcan #hikingadventures

Back to the day job with a clunk. Oooft. Some sava

Back to the day job with a clunk. Oooft. Some savage north-westerlies brought damp and a cold, cold wind to our Mountain Leader Training. Great effort from the candidates for maintaining concentration and the psyche as we navigated into darkness and didn’t make camp until 9pm. We (I) needed every bag of moralibo in our packs as the wind bit into our cheeks but a Plan B (Plan P?) low camp saved the day and it meant we didn’t have to go back out to navigate. One blessing of the short days and long nights.

It’s definitely time for a long sleep for me.

Working for the excellent @mountainindependence with a super awesome group.

#wearerab #themountainpeople #moveyourworld #getoutside #mountainleader #themountainsarecalling #rain #winter #hillwalking #mountains #learnsomethingnew #thisgirlcan

💥🎙My debut presenting job at KMF was everyth

💥🎙My debut presenting job at KMF was everything I hoped it to be and more. After the thrill of speaking to Victor Saunders as part of the Literature Festival, I spent the next three days on a whirlwind, dream journey meeting great people, steering conversations and learning so much about the mountains, the climate and also about presenting. Thanks to @kendalmountainfestival for taking a chance on me, to @rab.equipment for sponsoring the stage (and therefore me) and to all the amazing guests who took the time to come and speak at Kendal. Last night I cried at dinner because I have found my “thing” and I couldn’t be more excited.

#kendalmountainfestival #kmf #findyourthing #presenting #themountainpeople #wearerab #moveyourworld #sharethejourney #friends

What a total dream to be on *that* stage interview

What a total dream to be on *that* stage interviewing the effervescent and infernally cheerful @victorsaloschin for @kendalmountainlitfest. I hungrily watched everything on the Kendal Mountain Player last year and I can’t believe I was on the other side of the lens this time. I love reading books with a critical eye and it was a treat to spend so much time with an author. Thanks to the Lit Fest for taking a chance on an unknown and giving me the opportunity. I absolutely loved it.

I’m on stage all weekend hosting the Shackleton Stage for @rab.equipment which is another new challenge for me and I can’t wait. Check out my stories for some snippets as well as the stories from @kendalmountainfestival.

You can watch our conversation and all the other content on the Kendal Mountain Player.

📸 @paul.scully

#interviewer #bookworm #literaryfestival #mountains #alpinism #mountaineeringliterature #victor #kendal #kmf #hosting #interviewer

More silliness from me and serious faces from @rob

More silliness from me and serious faces from @rob_greenwood. Rob was having a difficult week with poorly family members and so I held the on-screen-fort 🏰🤣

We’ve got to the meaty videos in the @rab.equipment Gear Guide series on @ukclimbing. What to pack for winter hillwalking, mountain cragging, alpine climbing and wild camping. Plus you get to see Rob’s stupendous book collection which upstaged the whole thing. Link 👆🏾

#rabgearguide #themountainopeople #moveyourworld #wearerab #lookforthelogo #amiprofessionals #outdoors #climbingadvice #whattopack #gear #amiprofessionals #expertadvice

Poor visibility navigation is an essential skill f

Poor visibility navigation is an essential skill for a mountain leader. Being able to find your way in the dark, the mist, the rain whilst looking after everybody in your charge is what sets the Mountain Leader apart as such a well respected award. We certainly had the conditions for it on Thursday night. Getting back into my wet clothes after a two hour siesta in my tent was a low point of the week but the group were in cheery spirits, admitting they really enjoyed the exercise, which I always do too.

Working for @adventure.expertise as an @ami_professionals.

#mountainsleader #nightnav #futureleaders #learnsomethingnew #outside #hillwalking #mountaineering #walking #navigation #wanderlust #wearerab #themountainpeople #moveyourworld

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