WTMC Basic Snowcraft

PURPOSE

WTMC Basic Snowcraft 2025:

This year we will run an in-house snowcraft course for up to 8 x active club members (2025)! Check out the trip schedule to sign up.
If you are not successful in getting a spot on our course, we recommend exploring options with other providers for snowcraft level 1 / beginner mountaineering courses:
– NZAC Wellington Section or national courses (noting that these are only open to NZAC members)
– Tararua Tramping Club – Find out more about their 2025 AIC course.
– Professional providers on the North Island or South Island;
– Other local tramping clubs.

Snowcraft is a thorough introductory-level course on the techniques required for moving safely and effectively in an alpine environment, taught by experienced club members. 

Snowcraft is ideal for people with tramping and navigation experience, a solid fitness base and a desire to learn more about travelling safely in snow, ice and mixed conditions.

Understanding how to move and what risks to mitigate in the alpine environment can open tramping up to high-alpine winter walking, and trans-alpine tramping. Therefore, Snowcraft with the WTMC focuses heavily on trip planning, route selection, alpine navigation techniques, and avalanche avoidance. 

Basic avalanche avoidance techniques will be introduced only, though there is heavy emphasis that to be competent in avalanche rescue takes many months – or even years – of practice. 

Successfully completing Snowcraft qualifies you for going on WTMC ALP1 trips. 

For any questions about the course, please contact the Chief Guide or the Assistant Chief Guide

WTMC Basic Snowcraft 2025 in a nutshell.
– one Wednesday evening in Wellington + one 3-day weekend at the WTMC Ruapehu Lodge (24-27 July 2025)
– for club members only, fitness requirements apply
– course fee: $405
– sign-up closes on 18 June 2025.

2025 COURSE OUTLINE & STRUCTURE

The course runs over one 3-day weekend at the club lodge on Mount Ruapehu.

You must also be available for three Wednesday night sessions; all of which are between 1 and 2 hours each. See below for dates and venues. 

Snowcraft includes introductory instruction on:

  • Mountain weather
  • Avalanches and avoidance – may include the use of transceivers and probes (if these can be sourced)
  • Alpine risks
  • Clothing for the mountains
  • Moving on snow without crampons
  • Moving on snow with crampons
  • Self-arresting
  • Navigation and route selection 

What is not covered

  • The course does not cover the use of ropes and related technical climbing equipment. Alpine rope skills are considered to be advanced skills that open the possibilities for a trip exponentially, and are better covered under dedicated professionally-run courses that are aligned to current best practice. 

ENROLLING & EXPECTATIONS

Eligibility criteria:

In recognition of the level of inherent risks that are involved with activities in the alpine environment, eligibility criteria set a baseline to ensure students have a suitable fitness level and experience to manage risks in an alpine environment. 

To enroll in the Snowcraft course, students must:

  • Be an active club member
  • Have a level of fitness equivalent or higher than Medium level trips
  • Have a reasonable degree of understanding for navigation. 
  • Identify three ways to volunteer for the club – completed in the last 12 months and/or to be completed in the following 12 months (e.g. leading three club trips). Feel free to contact the Chief Guide if you’d like to discuss options or check the Volunteering page for ideas.

We expect the students to: 

  • Have limited or no experience using crampons and an ice axe; or, 
  • Want to refresh their alpine skills after a period of not using them; or, 
  • Want to consolidate their informal learning of alpine movement techniques. 
  • Have their own basic equipment for being outside in the cold and wet (or hot, glary and wet!), including sturdy boots, water-proofs, layered clothing and the like (“gear” will be a key part of the learning of the course). 

You can expect the instructors to: 

  • Be WTMC members experienced in the alpine environment. 
  • Be club volunteers; not professional instructors with formal teaching qualifications. 

CLUB GEAR

While you will have all-season gear suitable for tramping in rough conditions – including the Tararua Ranges when the weather is not so great! – we also understand that you may not have your own helmet, crampons, axe, shovel & probe at this time, and these things will be provided by the club and included within the course fee.

While instructors will make every effort to look out for your health and safety, this is primarily your responsibility. You cannot use our Snowcraft course as credits for any NCEA or other educational programme. If you want to do a professionally run course we recommend contacting a professional alpine instruction company.

Other gear you should take is listed on ‘what to take on a trip‘.

DATES

The Snowcraft course includes three evening sessions at the WTMC clubrooms, and one three-day weekend at the WTMC Lodge on Ruapehu. 

The dates for the 2025 course will be : 

  • Wednesday 16th July, at the club (gear room). 
  • Thursday 24 July to Sunday 31st July, at Ruapehu Lodge.  (leaving after work on Thursday)
  • Thursday 10 August to Sunday 10 August – back up weekend

(Depending on weather and snow conditions the practical weekend might be rescheduled to the back-up dates)

COSTS

Snowcraft is open to club members only, and is run on a cost-recovery basis with volunteer instructors.

Course costs for 2022 have been calculated at $405 per student and cover the following : 

  • Shared meals at the lodge for three days
  • Accommodation at the lodge for three nights
  • Transport to and from the lodge on the weekend away
  • Gear (helmet, crampons and ice axe, and avalanche transceiver and probe)

APPLYING & PAYING FEES

Applications for inclusion on the Snowcraft course can be submitted via the sign-up form on the trip schedule before 16 June 2025.

Applications to join the course will be assessed for suitability on an individual basis. Payment details will be made available to the successful course applicants before the course commences. 

Number of students: min 6, max 8.

BEYOND SNOWCRAFT

Once you have completed Snowcraft, you will be able to go on alpine club trips graded ALP 1, appropriate to your level of fitness for alpine conditions.

If you enjoy alpine trips then the next step may be to become a WTMC club alpine trip leader, and further still would be to do a professionally-run Alpine Instruction Course (AIC) where you can learn how to use ropes and other equipment to do snow, ice & mixed climbing.