3-Month Mountaineering Skills & Outdoor Leadership Semester
The Mountain Skills and Outdoor Leadership three month course has been our 'flag-ship' program for thirty years. In these decades since its inception we have provided unforgettable and life-changing experiences for over 800 participants.
We will give you thorough training in all aspects of mountaineering, our objective being to instill the skills needed for you to be fully independent in in the mountains. Our graduates can lead rock and ice climbs, operate on glaciers and know enough about avalanche risk to select the best ski descents.
Our past students have uniformly commented that one of the greatest strengths of the program is our exceptional instructor team. These dedicated and motivated individuals are all certified mountain guides.
Canadian Semesters are held in the Canadian Rockies in the spring and fall. The Canada-New Zealand Semester starts in January in the Canadian Rockies and finishes in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. Both semesters encounter the full range of seasonal conditions in the mountains.
Whether it's to improve your own knowledge and safety or perhaps to kick-start a career in the outdoor industry come join us for an experience of a lifetime!
Curriculum
Leadership: Regardless of whether you are out with friends or if you are a guide, your leadership skills are an important ingredient of your success and safety in the mountains. Leadership development is an important part of the program and it is imbedded in all sections (all Semesters).
Backpacking & Adventure Hiking: Navigation and route finding in challenging terrain, river crossing and camping skills will all be covered during this section. We are also keen advocates of the Leave No Trace principal which will be introduced on this section and which will remain a constant thread throughout the semester (Fall and NZ Semester only).
Rock Climbing: In the spring and fall rock climbing is run at one of the best climbing venues in Canada: Skaha, BC. It's huge variety of climbing makes it an ideal place to learn "sport" and "traditional" climbing techniques including leading and gear placements. In New Zealand you will climb in the Queenstown and Wanaka areas (all Semesters).
Ice Climbing: We have some of the best ice climbing in the world on our doorstep. The Canadian Rockies are world renowned for their ice climbing and we will conduct much of the training in the heart of it near the Columbia Icefields. We will teach you how to move on steep ice using all of the specialized equipment, advanced climbing techniques and placing and removing ice protection. We will be covering "mixed climbing" and you'll find 'dry tooling' a sure way to get you 'pumped' (all Semesters).
Mountaineering: Training takes place in some of the most remarkable terrain in the world. We teach you how to climb on snow, ice and alpine rock plus instruct you in glacier travel, crevasse rescue, route finding and navigation. All of this is combined with the ascent of several peaks. The final mountaineering expedition gives you the chance to organize and lead the trip under the watchful eye of the supervising instructors (all Semesters).
Backcountry Skiing and Boarding: As with ice climbing we have world class back country skiing on our doorstep here in the Canadian Rockies and in the Selkirk Range just to the west. Winter route finding, avalanche hazard assessment, glacier travel and winter camping skills are all covered. Canada is a world leader in avalanche training and Canadian Avalanche Association sanctioned certificates will be awarded on completion (all Semesters).
Rescue: We will introduce you to further rope rescue techniques and to the advanced skills needed to extract victims from remote settings and steep terrain. Invaluable knowledge to have in the mountains (all Semesters).
Wilderness First Responder: Part of the Semester is a professional level wilderness first aid course. The Wilderness First Responder Certificate course is run delivered by Wilderness Medical Associates, North America's leading provider of wilderness 1st aid training. This 80 hour program trains you to deal with the treatment and evacuation of casualties in a remote setting. It is the industry standard for outdoor professionals.
CANADA - NEW ZEALAND SEMESTERS
