My name is Nikki Wallis and I was born in North Wales in 1970. I started walking and mountaineering from a very early age, as my father was a Mountain Guide and my mother a keen mountaineer herself. Some of my earliest memories are of the Monte Rosa Hut in Zermatt, and Thabana Ntlyana in South Africa.

    I started rock climbing when I was 14, and was soon enjoying the climbing in Snowdonia – Llanberis Pass, the Quarries, and Gogarth, which was to shape my future life aspirations.

    I graduated in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 1994, after having taken some time out to go climbing and attain further Mountain Leader qualifications. Some of the routes accomplished include : Wendigo (Gogarth, UK), Left Wall (Llanberis Pass, UK), NW Wall Rosenlauistock (Engelhorner, Switzerland), SW Flank of the Wetterhorner (Bernese Oberland), Aiguille La Dibona (Ecrins Massif), Central Pillar of Frenzy (Middle Cathedral Yosemite), NW Wall of the Kingspitze, also other routes Tuolumne Meadows, Utah, Colorado, Joshua Tree, Verdon, Buoux, and Dauphine Alps.

    I then pursued a Post Graduate Teaching Diploma in Outdoor Pursuits and Science at the University of Wales Bangor. It was during this time, that I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, although I hadn’t seemed to suffer from any of the usual signs and symptoms. I spent 2 weeks in the hospital undergoing tests and being put on IV antibiotics until they realised that I was diabetic!

    Having missed quite a chunk from the course, and realising that my aspirations would have to be reassessed due to UK Government restrictions on driving minibuses (essential to working in Outdoor Pursuits), I changed career direction.

    All my spare time is dedicated to being a member of the Llanberis Mountain Rescue team and training a mountain rescue search dog with the Search and Rescue Dog Association, whilst learning to live with the inevitable ups and downs of being diabetic. I am often faced with stressful and demanding situations on both rescues and on the many searches that we are involved with, and am frequently faced with early morning call outs when I have to carefully assess my glucose levels and insulin requirements. Having recently started using a combination of Humulog insulin in addition to Humulin S and I, I find that my glucose levels are easier to manage in these situations. All my other spare time supports peripheral activities such as scuba diving, caving, Pre Hospital Care Emergency First Aid, piano & flute playing, drinking………

    I now work as a National Park Warden for the Snowdonia National Park Authority covering some of the highest peaks in England and Wales.