A NZ Mountain Safety Council (MSC) accredited course
Avalanche Skills Course 1: for Skiers and Snowboarders
The Aspiring Guides Avalanche Skills Course is an extended introductory short course now run over 2 days of each weekend of winter that should be your first step to understanding avalanches. On this course, you will focus on Reading a forecast, Identifying terrain, trip preparation, route selection, decision making and the all important companion rescue skills. It will suit people interested in traveling out of bounds at ski areas and mountain areas for ski touring who have access to touring equipment. Some familiarity with ski touring equipment use is assumed.
Ski Touring Equipment is required for winter courses: We run these courses on ski touring equipment to get out side the ski area boundary and travel in avalanche terrain away from the crowds and to familiarise participants with the areas they may access in the future.
If you are wondering about taking a more advanced avalanche course, this is the perfect way to introduce yourself to the concepts that you will need to know.
Note: Any lift tickets required to access the course location (Treble Cone unless weather dictates) are not included as it depends on the day where we go. The Backcountry 3 ride pass at TC is currently $75.
book now Pricing Skills Form
Day One
Three Hour Evening Session: We meet at our office in Wanaka at 6pm. After introductions your instructor will cover avalanche terminology and information gathering. The emphasis is on giving you the tools to make decisions based on science rather than emotion.
Day Two
Field Day: We head up to one of the local ski areas (depending on weather and conditions) where your instructor will do a gear check and introduce you to avalanche safety equipment. The morning will be used learning about safe travel and relating evidenced based decision making clues to the environment. The afternoon will be spent learning small party rescue techniques including using transceivers and shovelling.
The course will start to develop an understanding of the characteristics of avalanche terrain as well as indicators of dangerous avalanche conditions.
You will learn a system to make good decisions about personal safety in order to avoid avalanche danger, as well as rescue techniques and what to do if you or someone in your party is caught in an avalanche.
Course includes an introduction to:
- Identifying avalanche terrain.
- Making observations to avoid avalanche danger.
- Route selection and safe travel techniques to minimise exposure to avalanche danger.
- Trip planning and preparation for ski touring, climbing, tramping or mountaineering including interpreting weather and avalanche forecasts.
- Companion rescue, including transceiver search, probing and shoveling.
Note: It is a good idea to be familiar with ski touring equipment travel and transitions, however this is an introductory level course and so some instruction on these skills can be included as needed.
Availability
| Trip Date | Available |
|---|---|
| June 29 - 30 - school holidays | Open to Enquiry |
| July 6 - 7 - school holidays | Open to Enquiry |
| July 8 - 9 - school holidays | Open to Enquiry |
| July 20 - 21 | Open to Enquiry |
| July 27 - 28 | Open to Enquiry |
| August 3 - 4 | Open to Enquiry |
| August 10 - 11 | Open to Enquiry |
| August 17-18 | Open to Enquiry |
| For additional dates + private trips, please email info@aspiringguides.com |
Pricing
| Client Ratio | Price |
|---|---|
| Min ratio: 1:5 - Max ratio 1:6 | $590 pp |
What's included
- IFMGA or NZMGA ski guide and Avalanche Professional
- Avalanche Safety Equipment (Transceiver Shovel Probe)
- course certificate
- course handbook
What's not included
- If the course field day runs at Treble Cone then you will require a single ride lift pass - (or you can use your season pass)
- You will need your own ski touring equipment or rent from local operators
- Lunch and snacks for the day
Frequently asked questions
The closest airport to us is in Queenstown. There are regular shuttles between Wanaka and Queenstown airport (one-hour drive).
For shuttle and taxi information:
Queenstown -Wanaka
Ritchies Connectabus
Yello Taxi Service
Christchurch - Wanaka
InterCity Coachlines
We offer a number of different options for you to make payment for your trip:
Web-based Foreign Exchange Dealers
Bank Transfer - NZ Domestic & International
Credit Card - Visa, MasterCard only (3% fees apply)
Equipment Detail
I took part in the one and half day avalanche awareness course with Aspiring Guides and learnt so much!! All the staff and guides are super lovely people, very knowledgeable and experienced, and I came away from the course with some awesome photos, v...read more
Bethany, New Zealand, 1.5 Day Avalanche Awareness Course
