Ross Cadie joins the Mountaineering Scotland team

Mountaineering Scotland’s newest member of staff is Ross Cadie, who joins the Mountain Safety Team.

A Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor (WMCI), Ross will head up the team of himself, Ben Gibson and Kirsty Pallas.

Ross said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to join the Mountaineering Scotland team and to be involved in such an important part of the Scottish walking, climbing and skiing scene. 

“I will be working part time as the Senior Mountain Safety Advisor, taking over from Heather Morning who left earlier this year.”

After a review of the team, it was decided that Mountaineering Scotland would split the original posts again from its previous structure, to one that now has a team of three part-time Safety Advisors: Ben Gibson (0.6), Kirsty Pallas (0.4), and Ross as Senior Advisor (0.6).  This should allow much more flexibility in delivering the many skills courses, but also brings a broader range of ideas and experiences to the table.  Kirsty’s role will mainly be delivery of courses, Ben’s time will be split between delivery and some strategic work, and Ross will mainly be working on strategy with a little bit of delivery.

Ross added: “As the world emerges from all the covid restrictions, it is fantastic to see that so many more people are wanting to access the delights of the Scottish mountains, but not necessarily through the traditional ways.  This of course brings many new challenges to the team of Mountain Safety Advisors in how we engage with, encourage and support people in the mountains with regards to staying safe. 

“Getting the safety messages to a wider, more diverse audience is going to be an exciting challenge in a changing landscape of participation.  Understanding how these changes have possibly led to the record number of call outs for Mountain Rescue teams across Scotland last year will be the main focus and I’m looking forward to working with all the representatives that make up the Mountain Safety Group.”

Ross was born in Northumberland and started his love for climbing and walking at secondary school where he had an inspirational PE teacher who introduced him to adventure sports. After completing a degree in Adventure Recreation and enjoying lots of climbing and mountaineering with the university club, Ross crossed the border north.

Since moving to Scotland Ross has worked in Outdoor Education and progressed through many different outdoor qualifications, which include the Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor (WMCI) Award, Mountain Ski Leader Award, as well as kayaking, sailing and mountain biking qualifications.  Ross has spent most his working life introducing people to the joys and challenges of the mountains and loves sharing the skills and knowledge of how to access beautiful places in a safe way.

Ross Lives in Argyll with his wife and two children where he is a member of a Mountain Rescue team which he joined in 2006 and is currently involved in the Scottish Mountain Rescue (SMR) rigging courses which run across the country.