Exercise Jungfrau Northern was a Leeds University Officer Training Corps expedition to the Swiss Alps, 17- 30 Aug 13. Its aim was to carry out challenging multiday trekking and alpine mountaineering, with two separate groups carrying out each activity.

On day 1 the trekkers set off towards the Voralphütte where they would be spending the night. The day started off well, if a little cold and wet, but they soon came to their first obstacle, a section of glacier which they needed to circumnavigate. The next day they set off early and climbed the first peak of the day. Having crossed over the top they then had their first experience of scrambling downhill using the chains and ladders. The route took them around the side of the valley before a very steep descent down to the Chelenalphütte. The next day they had to negotiate several hundred metres of very unstable rocks before crossing another short section of dry glacier, this time with the help of a rope.

Back in the valley they had to plan the routes for week 2. They looked at different routes and chose the best for the group according to abilities and timings. On day 1 they reached the Rotstockhütte early afternoon and so spent the rest of the day covering all the lessons about weather, first aid, clothing, equipment, route planning and other useful skills. Early the next day they started the ascent of the Schilthorn, which at 2970m was the highest peak so far. They then summited the next peak of the day, Birg at 2677m before making their way down to the Schilthorn Hütte for the night.

The next morning they got to the summit of Bieterhorn where they spent a while taking photos, despite the lack of view again.

For their final night out on the mountain they started on what was probably the most difficult climb up to the unmanned Guggihütte. As they got higher up the mountain it began to rain and then snow which made already quite technical route much more difficult. For the last few hundred metres they used a security rope on steep ground as a precaution on the very slippery rocks. Eventually they arrived at the hut very cold and wet and the first priority was to light the fire as the hut was unmanned and this would be the only source of heat for the night.

The weather had cleared by the morning and so they were able to appreciate how close to the glacier the hut was, some of them even heard the glacier moving during the night. As they were about to leave the hut the Jungfrau came into view from behind the clouds so they took some group photos before they left.

The alpine mountaineers had a gentle start to the expedition. Day One was an instructional day into the basics of harnesses, rope work and moving about on the ice with and without crampons. Feeling pretty good about themselves they were soon shown the true challenges of alpinism as they headed off on their first multi-day adventure. From training areas around the Albert-Heim Hütte, they crossed the Tief-Gletscher Glacier and made a great climb of the PD+ Stralen-Gratt before heading over to the Sidelen Hütte. The next day they climbed the Bielen Horn before returning to the Furka pass and travelling to Interlaken for some well-deserved rest. After a day of honing technique through sports climbing, they were ready for moving around the Steingletscher glacier in the Susten Pass, practicing crevasses rescue drills and doing a rather wet and slippy climb of the Kanzelgrat near the Sustlihütte. Their final climb was to the summit of Grassen which was a real culmination of everything they had learnt across a variety of terrains. Working on a rope promotes a strong need, in some situations even a strong desire, for truly excellent team cohesion. This allowed each of the students to develop their leadership, their control of both the situation and the group, but furthermore, to appreciate how demanding, sometimes scary alpine mountaineering can be as adventure training. Were they challenged on the exercise? Memories of clinging desperately off an overhang with the Eiger for a backdrop, or sweating heavily in freezing conditions in order to pull a friend out of a crevasse remind them that they all were. What's more, they all loved it.