Coaching

This includes the majority of the practical skills. Opportunity is given for exploration in mountain sport activities.

Field Trips

Field trips take place regardless of the weather conditions, unless deemed to be dangerous by the programme director or instructors. Generally field trips have a student/instructor ratio of six to one.

Rock climbing 1 (5 days during autumn)
Location – Stonehill, Montana
This course introduces the student to the basics of top roped rock climbing. Students learn: basic knots, safety procedures, equipment and rope skills, group management and climbing techniques, to safely set up and climb basic top roped climbs. Students will demonstrate knowledge of: construction, care and use of basic climbing equipment, ropes, anchor placement equipment and basic knots used in rock climbing and be able to climb top roped routes to a minimum 5.8 standard.

Rock Climbing 2 (5 days during spring)
Location - Canmore/ Lake Louise
This course introduces the student to the basics of multi pitch and lead rock climbing. Students learn: basic knots, safety procedures, equipment and rope skills, group management and climbing techniques, to safely set up and climb basic lead and multi pitch climbs.

Mountaineering Expedition 1 (5 days during winter)
Location - Bugaboo Provincial Park
This course introduces students to ski mountaineering and basic glacier travel. Group management, roped travel, crevasse rescue, glaciology and winter camping skills are practised during a five day expedition. Students will be able to: demonstrate self and team arrest and belay techniques, identify major features of a glacier and appropriate safe routes of ascent and descent.

Mountaineering Expedition 2 (6 days during spring)
Location - Wapta Icefields near Lake Louise
This course focuses on more advanced ski mountaineering and basic glacier travel. Students will learn how to: plan all aspects for a multi day alpine expedition, recognise physical, technical and equipment limitations in the field, demonstrate safe and appropriate climbing techniques while ascending a moderate glaciated peak, demonstrate self and team arrest and belay techniques.

Wilderness Travel (5 days during autumn)
Location - St Mary’s Alpine (near Cranbrook and Kimberley)
This course involves a five day hike through local mountainous terrain where students learn: basic camp skills, environmental concerns, group travel considerations, safety and route planning, navigation, and food preparation. Students will be able to plan a multi-day wilderness trek for a small group, and navigate in mountainous terrain using map and compass, and altimeters.

Backcountry Touring 1 (5 days during winter)
Location – Fernie’s backcountry
Introduction to: backcountry equipment, backcountry terrain, route finding, hazard evaluation, and winter camping skills. Students will learn to practice proper group travel procedures, plan a single or multi-day tour for a small group, organise or participate in self-rescue or organised rescue techniques.

Backcountry Touring 2 (5 days during winter)
Location – Roger’s pass
An advanced Mountaineering course where students use existing winter camping skills to advance their touring skills in larger mountainous terrain. Students spend five days practising route finding and navigation skills, assessing avalanche terrain and skiing through glaciated terrain.

Flatwater Canoe Course (11 days, 5 days during autumn and, 6 days in spring)
Location – Near Fernie and Kootenay
Flatwater canoe skills leading to the BC Recreational Canoe Association Flatwater Canoe Instructors certificate. Tandem and solo paddling, teaching skills, strokes and equipment are practised on local lakes and rivers during the fall and spring.

Raft Guides Course (10 days during spring)
Location – Bull and Elk Rivers
Intensive introduction to the rafting industry and the preparation for the provincial raft guide’s exam. Multiple days on the Elk and Bull rivers develop strong team rafting skills as well as learning about equipment, river reading techniques and safety and risk management issues.

White-water Canoeing and River Expedition (4 days during spring)
Location - Kootenay and White Rivers
During our final river trip students put all their new river skills together to on-sight navigate these pristine white-water rivers. This trip offers a chance to develop strong white-water manoeuvres in the canoe and learn advanced strokes, river morphology, safety and rescue procedures and river food planning and preparation.

Introduction to Waterfall Ice Climbing (1 day during winter)
Location - Nordegg Alberta
This course introduces the student to the techniques and skills used in waterfall ice climbing. Safety and hazard management is the focus as the students learn anchor building, ice evaluation, belay considerations, moderate angle and vertical climbing techniques.

Snowboard instructors course (5 days during winter)
Location – Fernie
At the end of this course you will hopefully gain level 1 CASI. If you already have level 1 you can take level 2 instead but you will have to pay the difference.

Skills Development Log Book (All Seasons)
An ongoing development over the nine-month programme, log books document skills learned,
weather and snow-pack data, certification and extracurricular activities pertinent to mountain adventures. Your log book is a legal document many employers may want to see.

This section is comprised of courses that relate to management of emergencies, hazard recognition and avoidance.

Class 4 Drivers Examination
This course enables the student to take the driving exam to acquire the Class 4 driver’s license. This license enables the student to drive a 15-passenger van or a 22-passenger bus.

Occupational First Aid Level 3 or Advanced Wilderness First-Aid
An 80-hour industry standard course covering emergency medical techniques needed for the first aid attendant.

Outdoor survival techniques
This course introduces the student to the concepts of emergency survival in wilderness settings. Topics such as navigation, fire and shelter building and psychology and stress are discussed. An overnight survival exercise completes the course. Students will understand: route plans and pre-trip planning, how to build a fire with minimal supplies, food and water requirements, lost person behaviours, emergency shelter types, basic emergency kit and group search and rescue.

Map/Compass and Navigation
In this introductory navigation course, students will learn to identify and understand declination and magnetic north, take a bearing from a map, set a compass from a map, locate positions using the military grid system and lat/long, follow a compass bearing, interpret contour lines and other map symbols and complete an orienteering course.

Helicopter Safety
Students learn the basic skills and knowledge to perform a helicopter rescue in the field. Students learn safety features, operating standards, loading capacities, knowledge of landing area specifications and range capabilities for different helicopters and group management around helicopters.

Avalanche skills training (5 days during winter)
The course is designed for persons who are new to backcountry travel. It involves: terrain assessment, the collection of weather, snowpack and avalanche data, recognising the formation and nature of avalanches and the hazards involved, snow stability evaluation, applying personal and group safety measures and performing self-rescue.

Swiftwater Rescue Technician Certification Course
The Swiftwater Rescue Technician course includes, river rescue instruction as it pertains to canoes, kayaks, and rafts, hypothermia and drowning, rescue in moving water, improvised rescue, rope system rescue and rescue simulations.

Courses that pertain to tourism, computers, the organisational and environmental aspects of tourism. Research, communication, and critical thinking skills are emphasised.

Risk Management in Adventure Tourism
Students will explore legal and industry standards for risk management including; Canadian Legal System and Tort Law, the elements of a waiver and its valid delivery and enforceability, development of a risk management plan for an adventure tourism business, understand the guides and/or patrollers role in day to day risk management.

Computer Applications in tourism
An introduction to computing in the business environment. Emphasis is placed on computer applications in business including Word, Excel, Powerpoint and basic web page design. Topics related to computer needs in business will also be discussed.

Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
This course introduces the students to the basics of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management. Students gain an understanding of how to establish and manage a small business. An essential part of the course is the students' development of research and analysis skills. The application of the knowledge is demonstrated by the student completing a business plan.

Natural History
This course should increase the student’s sense of wonder and stimulate exploration of the environment around Fernie by introducing them to unique ecosystems. Topics of instruction include; non-living and living components of wetlands, grasslands, forest and old growth forests; amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals and invertebrates in each ecosystem; characteristics of healthy ecosystems; threats to ecosystems and methods to reduce human impact; identify common trees, flowers, birds, mammals, fish, amphibians and reptiles of SE BC; geological processes forming the Rocky Mountains; the principles of eco-tourism.

Leadership in Adventure Tourism
Explores the role of leadership as it applies to guiding in the adventure tourism industry. Topics discussed include: philosophic approach, qualifications profile, roles and responsibilities, group dynamics, interpersonal communication skills, log books and journals, radios and helicopters, professionalism and leadership styles.

Environmental Stewardship
In this course, you examine the relationship between tourism, outdoor recreation, and the management and conservation of natural resources. You develop an understanding of the central concepts of sustainability and sustainable development in working with communities, other resource based industries, and with visitors to natural resource based areas. Planning and management strategies to maximise benefits and minimise impact to ecosystems, communities, and visits are addressed, and the roles of various agencies and organizations managing natural resources examined in terms of their tourism/outdoor recreation roles.

Intro to Adventure Tourism Industry
An overview of the Adventure Tourism industry, its origins, the industry today, future considerations and the guide's role. The student will understand economic, environmental, and liability issues as they relate to employment in the Adventure Tourism Industry.