Hello and welcome
I'm a professional mountaineer based in the West Highlands of Scotland, working full-time in the mountains as a guide and instructor. I'm nearing completion of the British Mountain Guides training scheme, and am a full member of the Association of Mountaineering Instructors.
I live in Tromsø, Northern Norway, with my partner Emily. Previously we stayed for several years near the small harbour town of Oban, Scotland. I escaped the bustle of South East England in 2007, moving to Scotland to begin a career in the outdoors. I've since lived and worked in mountain regions across the world, including Wales, Norway and Antarctica.
I qualified as a Mountaineering Instructor in 2010, and spent several years working as a climbing instructor at the National Ice Climbing Centre and as a senior instructor at the Outward Bound Trust. Like many freelance guides, when I'm not out with my own clients I also work for a few local reputable guiding companies as an associate instructor.
A Brief History
I started hillwalking as a kid, but as a teenager my interest shifted to climbing on the small sandstone outcrops that litter the Kent/Sussex border. I have fond memories of a trip into London on the train to buy enough gear to set up top-ropes... In hindsight this was a bit ambitious given my limited knowledge, and it all seemed pretty epic at the time. Suffice to say the learning curve was steep! Since these early forays on rock, it seems like I've barely stopped climbing (or learning) since.
Climbing trips with friends have now taken me all over the world, and the list of places to visit seems to get longer rather than shorter. I love adventurous places, so I spend a lot of my time climbing on sea cliffs and similar difficult-to-reach places.
Over the years I built up a good working knowledge of many popular climbing and skiing destinations. I'm currently building my knowledge of Arctic Norway, and I count the West of Scotland, the European Alps and the Antarctic Peninsula as other parts of the world where I have detailed knowledge and experience. It's always good to expand on this, so if you have a destination in mind and want a guide, get in touch - if I can't help, I will always try to point you towards someone who can.
Many people know me as 'Chucky' - when I was nine I had a strong resemblance to the Rugrats children's cartoon character... The name stuck, and pretty much everyone calls me Chucky these days - even my girlfriend and several members of my family! That said, if you prefer Phil then I'm happy with that name too.