High Alpine Skills Courses Credit: Paul Rogers November 2018 January 2019
1 NZAC High Alpine Skills Courses 2018-2019 Where: Aoraki Mt. Cook National Park When: 6-11 November 13-18 November 20-25 November 27 November - 2 December 4-9 December 2-7 January 8-13 January 15-20 January Click here to register if viewing online Credit: Paul Rogers Who is this course for? The High Alpine Skills Course (HASC) is a six-day course designed for those who already have some alpine climbing experience, and have familiarity with lead climbing on rock or indoors. Ideally they will have taken part in an Intermediate Snowcraft Course with the NZAC or similar organisation, and have embedded their knowledge with further climbing. The ability to carry a heavy pack for several days at a time is mandatory and all those who register for the course must have a suitable level of fitness.
2 At a MINIMUM, those wishing to register for the HASC must be capable of: Fitting and adjusting crampons quickly Putting on a harness quickly Tying the rope into a harness with a recognised knot quickly Lead climbing on easy bolted climbs Belaying a lead climber safely Abseiling Knots: figure 8, bowline, prussik, clove hitch, Italian hitch, tape knot, alpine butterfly Coiling a rope quickly Confident with the use of an ice axe and crampons, including self-arresting and step cutting Carrying a heavy pack (15-20kg) for several days at a time. On the HASC, participants will learn the following: Snow skills- correct use of crampons and ice-axe Glacier travel and crevasse extraction Pitched climbing on rock and snow Soft snow anchors Rock anchors Route assessment Avalanche evaluation Alpine bivying/ camping Basic weather assessment Basic navigation Instruction Credit: Tom Hoyle The course will be run with up to 8 students in a maximum 1:4 guide to student ratio, headed by a fully qualified IFMGA or NZMGA Climbing Guide. All participants must agree to follow the guide s instructions and directions.
3 Course Fees The course fees are $1790. Payment of a $300 non-refundable deposit on acceptance secures you a place on the course. The remaining $1490 is due on October 1 st, 2018. No refunds will be available should you cancel within 14days of the course start. Any refunds are at the discretion of the NZAC National Office and will depend on whether a replacement can be found. The course fee includes accommodation at Unwin Lodge the night before the course start date and flights to and from the course location. It is important to note that once on the course if you decide to leave the course early for personal reasons the cost of an individual early flight out is not included in the course fees and you will be responsible for the cost of the helicopter flight out. No refunds are due for courses voluntarily reduced in length. If weather and/or conditions require the course objectives/itinerary to be modified no refund is due. Some course costs may be returned if they have not been incurred. No refunds are due for leaving the trip for medical or fitness reasons. Exceptional circumstances may be considered and are at the discretion of the NZAC. Course Location Based at the NZAC Unwin Lodge in the Aoraki Mt. Cook National Park. The course will be split between DOC hut nights and bivvying depending on weather and terrain conditions. Hut fees are included in the course cost. The course will generally be run out of Kelman Hut, Tasman Saddle hut, or Grand Plateau hut. Which hut will depend on hut occupancy as there may be other groups using the huts. In the case of severe weather, the guides may choose to fly out early and move the course to an alternative location to continue instruction. The course location has moved to Tai Poutini National Park due to conditions in the past, and so was accessed from Fox Glacier, so please be aware that this may occur. Insurance We encourage you to consider insurance options as part of your preparation for participating on NZAC Instruction courses. NZAC offers some insurance options for both New Zealand and Australian residents linked here.
4 For NZ residents we strongly recommend taking out our loss of deposits insurance, to cover you once the full course payment has been made to the lead up of the course start date. Alternatively, Travel insurance is available to Australia section members travelling to climb in New Zealand and is recommended for the HASC course. Emergency Situations and Risk Disclosure: The course instructor will have Emergency Management Procedures in place and a Satellite phone to immediately contact rescue services in the case of an accident or emergency. It is encouraged to take your own personal locator beacon if you own one. The natural environment and climbing activities can involve risks. While recognising that the course organisers and instructors are doing their best to manage these risks, and agreeing to accept their direction whenever required, you must accept personal responsibility for your own actions and safety. You must also accept to follow the instructions of the Course Leader and other instructors at all times. All participants on NZAC High Alpine Skills Courses are expected to be as honest and transparent as possible about their mountaineering experience and fitness as part of their application. The course information pack provided for High Alpine Skills Course details the pre-requisites required. If a participant s lack of fitness/ability severely affects the running of the course the participant(s) will be asked to remain at the hut or other location for certain activities. Arrangements may be made to evacuate the participant(s) at their own cost. The instructor is the final arbiter in these decisions. Gear Group gear: For purposes of organising group equipment and food, people registering for the course will be divided into pairs. Please let the organiser know when you register if you have a friend or partner you would like to be paired with. Terrain and weather conditions sometimes mean that some of the gear may not be used, but to allow for the widest range of instructional options all equipment must be brought to the course base. A limited number of items marked with an *asterisk are available to hire from NZAC Canterbury/Westland section, subject to availability. You will need to pre-book any hire gear you require, please indicate on the application form if you require to hire equipment. The available items will be at Unwin Lodge for pick up / drop off and payment can be made upon pick up. Your NZAC section may also have these items available for hire please check your local section webpage or with the section committee: https://alpineclub.org.nz/regions/.
5 Be aware that if any essential gear is missing or inadequate at gear check on the first day the Course Instructor may refuse my participation for safety reasons and no refund will be given. Equipment (per pair) list: Item Specification # Rope 50-60m dry treated lightweight half rope 1 Rock gear: Cams (#0.5 3) 5-6 Rock gear: Wires Assorted 6-8 Rock gear: Piton* Angle 1 Rock gear: Piton* Blade or Lost Arrow 1-2 Quickdraws Extendable (made from a 60cm sling) 4 Tape Sling or Cordelette 17mm tape or 6mm cord x 6m 1 Ice screws* 13-16cm 2 Ice screws* 19-22cm 2 Cooker Plus fuel for 5 days for 2 people 1 Pot For cooking 1 Individual gear list: Item Specification # Harness with adjustable leg-loops 1 Helmet rated for climbing 1 Pack alpine 55-70L 1 Bivvy bag or lightweight tent (2-person shared ok) 1 Sleeping mat foam or inflatable 1 Sleeping bag 1 Locking carabiners not magnet lock. 8 Snaplink carabiners 8 Belay device ATC or similar 1 Long slings 2 x 120cm, 1 x 240cm (spectra) 3 Prussik loops (6mm) long (from foot to chest) 1 short (from belly-button to eyes) 2 Pack-leash x 60cm prussik cord (6mm x 120cm) 1 V-thread (abalokov) hook made from a coat hanger or bicycle spoke 1 Ice axe* + leash 60-75cm; leash is length of shaft 1 Ice hammer* + leash 50cm approx; leash is length of shaft 1 Crampons must fit boots well & have anti-ball plates 1 Mountaineering Boots Good quality, stiff, insulated, fit crampons well 1 pair Snow gaiters snug, clean profile on inside of foot/leg 1 pair Rock shoes Optional 1 pair Snowstake with 75cm sling attached to top 1 Headtorch plus spare batteries 1
6 Water bottle If you are bringing a bladder bring a back-up 1 Compass 1 Maps Barron Saddle, Plateau, Tasman Saddle 1 Transceiver* 3-antennae 1 Shovel* 1 Probe* 1 Personal 1 st Aid Kit 1 Toiletries & Poo pot Including toilet paper 1 Walking poles Optional 2 Snow shoes Optional 1 pair Personal Locator Beacon Optional 1 Clothing List Again, it is important participants are sensible about how much clothing and personal items they intend to carry in order to keep the packs at a reasonable weight. But then again, you don t want to be cold. An alpine-spec shell system and a down or synthetic jacket or heavy weight fleece for bivvying is essential. Item Specification # Hat warm 1 Glacier glasses AS/NZS cat 3 minimum, 4 preferable and a 1 pair of backup sunglasses or ski googles Wind defence neck gaitor; snow goggles 1 Sun defence sun-hat, face-scarf, sunscreen 1 Alpine shell jacket GoreTex or equivalent 1 Alpine overtrousers GoreTex or equivalent, leg zips 1 Gloves lightweight e.g. polypro, wool 1 pair Gloves insulated waterproof wrist retainers & removable inners best 1 pair Insulated Jacket Down/synthetic or extra heavy fleece 1 Jacket Fleece or softshell 1 Pants or longjohns Fleece, softshell or wool 1 pair Thermal tops Polypro or merino 1-2 Lightweight glacier shirt To keep the sun off 1 Socks, underwear, hut shoes Optional foot warmers 2 sets Hut Shoes Optional 1 pair Food Participants will pair up and provide their own food, unless your instructor decides that communal cooking is more appropriate, based on dietary requirements of the participants. Flying in gives you the option to pack pre-cooked and easy to prepare meals and fresh food. It is not recommended to solely rely on dehydrated food for sustenance however make sure you have at least one meal suitable for preparation in the less luxurious bivy conditions. Food can be transported in boxes within reason. Keep
7 in mind that food needs to be lightweight and capable of being cooked in a billy or pot. Once paired up, both persons in the pair could bring their own breakfast and lunch material, and then each provide two or three dinners for two. Please remove all unnecessary food packaging before getting to Unwin Lodge (we don t need extra rubbish our mountain environments). Fitness As a rough gauge for fitness you should be able to: - Jog at a moderate pace for 5-8 kms without stopping and/or - Hike 300 metres uphill (1,000 ft.) in less than an hour, with a 12 kg pack. - The ability to carry a 7-10kg backpack, preferably up hill, over an 8-10 hour day is vital. Start time Start time will be at 8am on the first day of course. The guides will do an equipment check and briefing so please make sure that all gear is readily accessible and you are fed and ready to go. The Helicopter will be booked for 10:30am pending weather. The course will finish at Unwin mid-afternoon on the last day. Payment for the night before the course starts at Unwin Lodge is included in the course fee, but not the final night if course participants intend to stay on. If you intend to stay at Unwin on the night after the course finishes, please notify the hut warden. Publications: Feedback from our guides is that it would be ideal for all participants to have read and be familiar with the topics covered in the Alpine Guides Technical Manual: a Resource for Alpinists (2014 Edition). We can supply a copy if you don t have one already for the discounted price of $20.00 plus postage. Click here (if you are viewing online) to register, otherwise visit www.alpineclub.org.nz Questions can be directed to: Ashlee Peeters Programme Coordinator New Zealand Alpine Club Email: ashlee@alpineclub.org.nz Phone 64 3 377 7595 ext 5 Mobile 022 105 6193 Fax 64 3 377 7594 Post PO Box 786, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand Courier Unit 6, 6 Raycroft Street, Waltham, Christchurch 8023, New Zealand