Ski Mountaineering Course

The Ski Mountaineering Course is for those with aspirations for ascents and ski or splitboard descents of New Zealand’s high peaks. The course introduces and develops the skills to undertake classic ski mountaineering objectives and glacier travel throughout the Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana. It is an excellent next step from our other ski touring courses.

Location

The Ski Mountaineering Course is based in the Aoraki / Mount Cook region but depending on conditions it is also possible to travel to the Mount Aspiring or Westland National Parks or the Remarkables, near Queenstown.

These venues provide a range of terrain and ski touring and mountaineering objectives to explore and practice the skills and decision making to keep you safe on your own ski mountaineering adventures.

Ski Mountaineering Course Itinerary

On the first day of the course, your guide will pick you up from your accommodation in Wānaka to travel to Mount Cook village to fly into the mountains. Once settled at the high alpine hut, the group will head out to cover the skills of the course and explore the area with day packs.

Course topics will be covered whilst exploring the névés, cols, and summits with day packs. On the last day, the tour will ski down the Tasman / Haupapa Glacier for a helicopter transfer back to the village. The itinerary is flexible and subject to weather.

Ski Mountaineering Syllabus

Course topics can be tailored to an individual or group’s needs and aspirations. The Ski Mountaineering Course is our most advanced ski course and the focus is on the climbing and mountaineering skills required to ascend New Zealand’s classic snow and glacier peaks for the purposes of ski and snowboard descents and utilising skis or splitboard to access more remote objectives.

Topics include:

Snowcraft including crampon and ice axe use
Steep transitions
Snow and ski anchors and ropework for pitching and abseiling
Ski and splitboard equipment selection, management, and maintenance for mountaineering objectives
Glacier travel, route finding, and crevasse rescue
Trip planning and navigation
Mountain hazard analysis, risk management, and decision making including avalanche awareness and rescue

Visit our Downloads page for course resources to prepare for the course.

What to Expect

Wānaka Mountain Guides - Ski Mountaineering Course

Good fitness is required to get the most out of the course. Expect uphill travel of up to 1000m on consecutive days.

Strong Intermediate or higher skiing or snowboarding ability with touring experience and ability to handle a range of off-piste snow conditions and experience ski touring.

No mountaineering experience is necessary but some experience with rope work, knots, and rock climbing setting will be useful.

Equipment

The course takes place in a remote mountain environment so participants need to have some experience touring and be familiar with their touring equipment. If hiring equipment, we recommend having a few warm up days around Wānaka before the course.

Ski or splitboard crampons are mandatory for glacier trips. For splitboarders, we also highly recommend dedicated snowboard mountaineering boots over downhill boots. These offer a stiffer sole with heal welts for compatibility with boot crampons and better edging when boot packing in firm snow. Also a slight rear flex for more comfortable uphill travel and a rand for protecting the longevity of the boots.

Further advice on ski and splitboard touring equipment can be found on our Knowledge Base article: Equipment for Ski and Splitboard Touring.

Equipment List

Pricing and Dates

Duration: 5 days

Maximum ratio: 1:4

2026 Dates:

Can’t make these dates. Get in touch to arrange group or private bookings from August to October. Private courses for individuals or groups can be arranged at any time. This allows you to choose the dates, duration, and tailor the course content to your specific requirements.

2026 Price: $2950 per person

Inclusions: applicable taxes, NZMGA certified guide, accommodation in the mountains or at our Kea Lodge, all food, flight into and out of the mountains, and transport from Wānaka.

Exclusions: Ski and splitboard touring equipment. This is available from MT Outdoors in Wānaka.

If you need accommodation in Wānaka the night before or after the course, shared and private rooms are available for clients in our Kea Lodge which is adjacent to the WMG Base.

If the course is unable to spend the entire time in the high mountains due to weather, day or overnight trips will be carried out from Mount Cook Village or Wanaka using nearby ski fields to continue the learning.

‘[Our guide] did an outstanding job of creating building blocks of learning – e.g. around crevasse rescue – so each of us was able to assimilate the learning involved at a rate that was appropriate for each of us. He also very skilfully managed and created situations where we could test ourselves at a level at which we were comfortable, without specifically calling this out. He is exceptional as a guide and brings a number of qualities to guiding which are very difficult to teach and which make him stand out to me.

— Ruth, Summer Mountaineering Course

‘The exact course I was looking for to learn and develop my skills and experience. 10/10, highly highly highly commend. I am very eager to join more trips with [our guide] in future. extremely knowledgeable, great with people, eager to assist and educate, could tell he loved what he was doing.’

— Rick, Ski Mountaineering Course

‘The course description on the website was super clear and tailored exactly to my needs (a keen backcountry skier with minimal climbing or mountaineering experience). Also Tim being very accommodating by taking my phone call where I quizzed him on some details of the course before booking.’

—Peter, Ski Mountaineering Course