Mountaineering Instruction – Courses in NZ

As one of New Zealand’s leading expert instructors, I specialize in delivering high quality private mountaineering instruction courses, teaching techniques and knowledge and have been doing this successfully for the last 25 years.

My mountaineering courses are designed to allow you to realize your alpine potential with a combination of teaching and coaching.

Private mountaineering instruction.

I am an alpine climbing instruction specialist and enjoy providing  quality mountaineering courses at all levels from a week starting from the basics for the beginner new to this excellent sport, to engaging with a group who already have some skills be it rock climbing or snow hiking and building on this skill base.

You might in the recent or not so recent past have done a mountaineering course and are looking for an update on techniques and skills – something specific or in general. Custom courses are my specialty

I work with a learning environment of either one on one with me or  participants coming as a pre formed group. With this set up, we can focus together on your learning and absorption of mountaineering techniques and knowledge that will allow you to climb safely globally.

Just email me with a description of where you are at, and we can discuss which would be the best course of action: to start, build on or refresh your mountaineering skills…..

Logistics for private alpine climbing instruction All trips fly in and fly out
*Price for 6 days:	1 person	2 people	3 people	4 people
	$7525	$4450 pp	$3475 pp	$2975 pp
*Price for 7 days:	1 person	2 people	3 people	4 people
	$8795	$5200 pp	$4050 pp	$3495 pp
Price Includes:	Guide fee for 6/7 days, hut fees, accommodation and vehicle transport during trip days, high quality food, party technical equipment e.g. rope, snow pickets, ice screws
Price doesn’t include:	Personal clothing and equipment, flights in and out of mountains, personal rental equipment. The flight cost varies according to aircraft used and loadings of the day. More about flights and please ask us for details

*note:prices are in NZ$ and include GST (our goods & services tax of 15%) 2024/2025

Locations for Mountaineering INSTRUCTION:

Typically we head to the West Coast of the Southern Alps and fly into the head of the Fox Glacier or Franz Josef Glacier at 2400m right in the heart of big glacier country, OR we go East to the head of the Tasman Glacier – this is dictated by weather and conditions at the time.  No matter which, these venues offer superb terrain to learn and practice mountaineering skills.

Common topics that are covered on my intermediate level NZ mountaineering courses are:

• ice climbing, alpine rock climbing
• anchor selection, placement and set up
• intermediate-advanced crampon techniques
• equipment selection
• route planning and mountain weather
• glacier travel
• crevasse rescue – mechanical advantage systems
• rock rescue
• rope handling, abseiling, belaying, knots
• climbing roped up – moving together on runners/ridge travel
• avalanche awareness

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Being a small, boutique company it has become impossible due to  government beauracracy to continue to  operate under our own department of conservation  concession, so all instruction courses in NZ with Gary Dickson, IFMGA/NZMGA mountain guide, are now in collaboration with

Alpine Guides (Aoraki) Ltd.

Bookings will go through their office and will be subject to their booking conditions. Trips with Gary will be run as per AGL’s concession and safety management system requirements. A great solution and working well 🙂

Pre-trip information, discussions  and trips will as far as you are concerned, continue to run as they previously did.