Mountaineering Skills Course

We meet at the Aspiring Guides office in Wanaka for introductions and an outline of the mountaineering skills course. Equipment is reviewed and allocated by your guide. The weather and plan for the week will be discussed. We are fortunate to have several excellent venues to choose from and can move courses to where the conditions are best (West Coast, Aoraki Mount Cook or Mount Aspiring National Park regions). If it is not possible to fly into the high mountains straight away, we utilise local instruction venues such as the Wanaka rock climbing crags and Remarkables mountains near Queenstown to begin introducing the wide range of topics on the syllabus. Either stay in Wanaka or drive to accommodation near the heli-staging area in preparation for a flight into the mountains (2.5-3.5 hrs).

Once we have flown in, we get settled into the mountain hut. Use of the ice axe, self-arrest and cramponing skills are demonstrated by the guide and practised until it becomes second nature to the mountaineering student. Glacier travel skills are introduced and a walk on the glacier is followed by an introduction to glaciology and route finding by your mountain guide. You can learn to identify the features of the mountains. Efficient movement on snow requires mileage so your guide will keep you moving as you learn to navigate through crevasse fields.

After an early start, the group heads off to climb a small peak; along the way learning and practising snow anchors as well as belaying and pitching techniques. Doing short pitches, you will learn how to build effective snow anchors and belay your partner. This is the chance to really learn what type of anchor will work for a given snow condition. Back at the hut, the group takes turns cooking using the menu provided by the guide. A lesson on weather forecasting by your guide after dinner ends the day.

Everyone loves to climb ice and today is the day to get technical. Using a vertical crevasse wall, you will get to practise ice axe placements and footwork. Top roping allows participants to push their learning on lower angled slopes before tackling more technical terrain. Vertical and even overhanging ice can be experimented with in a safe environment. Learning ice screw placements and abalakov threads is essential before being on the sharp end. This is a great chance to fine-tune your crevasse rescue skills. Lowering you deep into a crevasse, your guide will look after your safety as you practise self-rescue techniques.

Navigation is an important topic and today the students prepare a nav plan using chosen waypoints. Learning to understand time and distance in a whiteout takes patience and practise. Both map and compass skills, as well as GPS technology, will be covered. Weather plays an important role in mountaineering and learning how to deal with poor conditions is an important skill. Emergency shelters and bivouacs are practised and depending on the weather, there will be the opportunity of bivi out in an emergency shelter or snow cave.

Alpine rock climbing is totally different from the usual crag or indoor climbing. Learning judgement and how to use minimal protection takes practice. Alpine climbing techniques such as slings and threads, friction belays and moving together are all ways to move fast and safe. Rock climbing in boots and carrying a backpack takes a change in attitude.

Last day! Depending on the venue, it might be possible to pack up and head to a lower hut for a pickup by the helicopter. Learning to pack light weight will make sense now as you are carrying all of your overnight equipment. The helicopter gets you abruptly back to the real world to return to the Aspiring Guides base in Wanaka for a debrief our on our deck with long-awaited beverages.

During these five days, you'll cover skills for movement on rock, climbing technique, rope skills and management, multi-pitch climbing and rescues.

Then you'll head off to put the training into practice on a multi-pitch mission at one of the following locations:

• Sebastopol Bluffs
• Upper Tasman Rock
• Mt Avalanche
• Chinaman’s Wall

After climbing for five days, you must be longing for altitude. And on day six you will pack your crampons, grab an ice axe or to and fly into the mountains.

The guide will teach you crampon techniques, how to use the ice axe and do self-arrests, and everything is practised until the skills become second nature. You'll get introduced to glacier travel, and after a walk on the glacier, the guide will introduce glaciology skills and techniques, navigation and route finding.

The next day will continue with mountain navigation, including planning and preparing a navigation plan using chosen waypoints. Learning to understand time and distance in a whiteout takes patience and practise. Both map and compass skills, as well as GPS technology, will be covered. Weather plays an important role in mountaineering and learning how to deal with poor conditions is an important skill which our guides will teach you.

Everyone loves to climb ice and day eight of the course is the day to get technical. Using a vertical crevasse wall, you will get to practise ice axe placements and footwork. Top roping allows you and your team members to push your learning on lower angled slopes before tackling more technical terrain. Vertical and even overhanging ice is experimented in a safe environment. Learning ice screw placements and abalakovs is essential before being on the sharp end. This is a great chance to fine-tune your crevasse rescue skills.

After an early start, you and the group head off to climb a small peak; along the way learning and practising snow anchors as well as belaying and pitching techniques learnt earlier in the course. Doing short pitches, you will learn skills of how to build effective snow anchors and belay your partner.

Last day! Depending on the venue, it might be possible to pack up and head to a lower hut for a pickup by the helicopter. Learning to pack lightweight will make sense now as you are carrying all of your overnight equipment. The helicopter gets you abruptly back to the real world to return to the Aspiring Guides base in Wanaka for a debrief on our deck with long-awaited beverages.

New Zealand is world-famous for its challenging mountaineering. Wanaka is the ideal location for alpine and mountaineering training, with a range of local instruction venues such as Wanaka rock climbing crags and the Remarkables near Queenstown. Wanaka has access to both the western glaciers of Westland National Park and the eastern Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park, and with Aspiring National Park on our doorstep so we can run our courses where weather and conditions are optimal.

• Mountain hazards identification and avoidance including avalanche awareness
• Mountain weather training
• Ropework, including belay, abseiling and rescue skills
• Protection and anchors on snow, rock and ice
• Glacier travel techniques and crevasse rescue
• Multipitch climbing and rescue
• Snow, ice and mixed climbing
• Alpine rock climbing
• Mountain shelter and camp management
• Equipment and clothing selection
• Route selection & navigation training
• Training for trip planning including assessment of weather and conditions, human factors and terrain

At the end of the course you will be a competent member of a mountaineering team, being able to contribute to decision making on mountaineering expeditions, attempt summits via routes graded 1 to 2 (NZ grade) or undertake guided ascents of more technical objectives.

If your goal is to climb Aoraki-Mt Cook one day, then our Mountaineering Skills Course is a great place to start ... check out the Progression Chart developed by our chief guide Tim Steward.

Comprehensive course notes are supplied which will assist in your trip planning and equipment selection. We supply advice on where to stay on your visit and our friendly office staff are ready to help with any questions you might have.