Jonathan checks the weather

I found Jonathan scanning around like this a few times on our trip. I assumed that he was taking in the views but in actual fact he was risk assessing things like the weather and snow conditions. I spotted Ron and Fi doing the same sort of thing a few times as well. A word on Jonathan. He is an excellent guide. He is used to training aspirant guides so he sets very high standards and they never drop for anyone in his company. It means that he sometimes comes across as a little coarse or impatient. His approach paid off though. By the time we were making our summit bid on mont blanc, the three of us were a finely honed and supremely organised wee team. Compared to many of the other squads we saw up there we looked like a bunch of professional mountaineers. Jonathan had a habit of making comments on the flaws of certain teams regarding their ropework or safety equipment. He did it completely in camera with the persons in earshot as if they were wax models placed there for the benefit of our instruction. Often he would walk over and point to the offending knot or similar whilst narrating out loud to myself and Julie what would happen to the person in the event of a slip or a fall. I found it highly amusing. The wax models found it a bit worrying.