One of the most coveted – and challenging – roles in the British mountains is up for grabs.
The Lake District national park is seeking an experienced mountaineer to become a ‘Fell Top Assessor’ – which involves providing regular reports from the top of Helvellyn over winter.
From December to April the assessors make daily climbs to the top of Lakeland’s third highest mountain – or other similar fells – to report on weather and ground conditions for the Weatherline information service.
The role is highly sought after and usually attracts a large number of applicants (several commenters responded to the Lake District National Park’s tweet advertising the vacancy by describing it as their “dream job” or similar.)
Run by the Met Office and Lake District National Park, Weatherline provides detailed mountain weather forecasts alongside the assessors’ reports to give fell users an up-to-date picture of current and expected conditions.
The assessors also lead groups on winter skills courses, introducing people to vital know-how like ice axe and crampon use and avalanche awareness.
The salary is £22,304 pro rata and the role requires working a minimum of five days every 14 days, 5 – 8 hours per day.
See a full description and job spec on the Lake District National Park Authority website.
