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Yamnuska Mountain Adventures

Mountaineering, Rock Climbing, Ice Climbing, Backcountry Skiing

  • Avalanche
    • Avalanche Skills Training 1 – Canmore/Calgary
    • AST 1 (Classroom Webinar/Rockies Field Day)
    • Avalanche Skills Training 1 for Ice Climbers
    • Avalanche Skills Training 1 Refresher
    • Advanced Companion Rescue Course
    • Avalanche Skills Training 2 – Canadian Rockies
    • Avalanche Skills Training 2 – Rogers Pass
    • Avalanche Skills Training 2 – Purcell Lodge
  • Mountaineering
    • Beginner Programs
      • Scrambling Skills and Safety
      • Snow and Ice Long Weekend
      • Intro to Mountaineering
      • Women’s Intro to Mountaineering
      • Youth Mountaineering Course
      • Wapta Ice Hike
    • Intermediate and Advanced Programs
      • Yoho Peaks
      • Intro to Alpine Rock in the Bugaboos
      • Intro to Alpine Ice at the Columbia Icefields
      • Lake Louise Classics
      • Moraine Lake Alpine Classics
      • Rogers Pass Alpinist Camp
      • Bugaboos Granite
      • Tonquin Valley Alpine Climbing
    • Canadian Rockies 11,000ers
      • Mount Temple
      • Mount Willingdon
      • Mount Cline
      • Mt Woolley & Diadem
      • Mount Hector
      • Mount Athabasca
      • Mount Andromeda
      • Mt Joffre Expedition
      • Mount Victoria
      • Mt Edith Cavell
      • Mount Forbes
      • Mount Assiniboine
      • Mount Robson
    • Fast and Light Series
      • Castle Mountain
      • Mt Louis Kain Route
      • Bugaboo Spire – North East Ridge
      • Mt Sir Donald – Northwest Ridge
      • Mt Aberdeen
      • Mt Stanley
      • Mt Fay – West Ridge
      • Mt Temple – East Ridge
    • One-Day Crevasse Rescue for the Alpinist
    • Navigation 1 (Back to Basics with Map & Compass)
    • Navigation 2 (Digital Trip Planning & Electronic Navigation)
    • One Month Summer Mountaineering Program
    • Private Mountaineering and Guiding
      • Climb Mount Athabasca
      • Bugaboos Climbing Guides
      • Climb Mount Assiniboine
      • Climb Mount Robson
  • Skiing
    • Instructional Backcountry Skiing & Boarding
      • Intro to Backcountry Skiing & Splitboarding
      • Splitboarding Intro
      • Backcountry Freerider
      • Ultimate Steep & Deep Clinic
    • Guided Steep & Deep Programs
      • Rogers Pass Powder Skiing
      • Signature Series Splitboarding Camp with Justin Lamoureux
      • Kootenays Powder Adventure
      • Backcountry Powder Pass
    • Ski Mountaineering & Classic Traverses
      • Intro to Ski Mountaineering
      • Crevasse Rescue for Skiers & Splitboarders
      • The Wapta Traverse
      • Bow to Yoho Advanced Ski Week
      • Remote Ski Camp – Freshfields
      • Bugaboos to Rogers Pass Ski Traverse
    • 11’000ers Ski Programs
      • Mt Hector
      • The Lyells & Mons Ski Descents
      • Mt Columbia Ski Expedition
    • International Ski Trips
      • Troll Peninsula, Iceland Ski Safari
      • Rishiri Island Skiing in Japan
    • Navigation 1 (Back to Basics with Map & Compass)
    • Navigation 2 (Digital Trip Planning & Electronic Navigation)
    • One Month Backcountry Ski Program
    • Private Ski Guiding & Splitboarding
  • Rock Climbing
    • Rock Climbing Level 1 – Outdoor Rock Intro
    • Rock Climbing Level 2 – Learn to Lead
    • Rock Climbing Level 3 – Multi-Pitch Climbing Course
    • Rock Climbing Level 4 – Trad Rock Leader
    • Rock Climbing Level 5 – Rock Rescue
      • Foundational Rock Rescue
      • Advanced Rock Rescue
    • Signature Series Rock Leader with Sean Isaac
    • Hot Rock
    • Ghost Rock
    • El Potrero Chico Rock Road Trip
    • Beginner Experiential Rock Climbing
    • Multipitch & Instructional Rock Climbing
  • Ice Climbing
    • Ice Climbing Level 1 – Basic Ice
    • Ice Climbing Level 2 – Top Rope Management
    • Ice Climbing Level 1 & 2 – Ice Evolution
    • Ice Climbing Level 3 – Ice Leader
    • Ice Climbing Level 4 – Multi-Pitch Ice Leader
    • Steep Ice and Mixed Climbing Clinic
    • Drytooling Clinic
    • Rampart Creek Ice Camp
    • Ghost Ice Climbing Camp
    • ‘Hot’ Ice Climbing
    • Signature Series Ice Climbing with Sean Isaac
      • Early Season Ice Camp with Sean Isaac
      • Ice Leader Camp with Sean Isaac
      • Mixed Master Camp
      • Steep Ice Clinic with Sean Isaac
      • Mixed Climbing Clinic with Sean Isaac
      • Ice Lead Clinic with Sean Isaac
      • Multi-pitch Systems Clinic with Sean Isaac
    • Southern Ontario Ice Climbing
      • Southern Ontario – One-day Ice Climbing Essentials
      • Southern Ontario Ice Leader
    • Avalanche Skills for Ice Climbers
    • Beginner Experiential Ice Climbing
    • Private Multipitch & Instructional Ice Climbing
  • Mountain Semesters
    • 3-Month Mountain Skills Semester
    • 1-Month Summer Mountaineering Semester
    • 1-Month Ski & Splitboard Semester

March 1, 2010 By Sylvia Watson Leave a Comment

How difficult are our programs?

Hi Everyone,

Having just returned from the Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show I want to thank our new and return guests for coming out to say Hi. I truly enjoyed meeting you all and appreciated the kind words. I was actually speaking to one guest show participant about our Intro to Mountaineering course when a past client came up and literally sold this guy the course for me. A past guest raving about his experience – now that is positive word of mouth!

Having had the opportunity to get face to face with prospective clients, I want to address a specific issue that came up several times. Many people find the mountains and our programs somewhat intimidating – especially if they don’t spend a lot of time in the mountains. This is completely understandable especially when someone reads or hears about an injury. However, our intro/beginner courses are just that – for beginners and people with no mountain or climbing experience. Of course our intermediate and advance programs are for more experienced climbers, but someone who is ‘hiking fit’ should not be intimidated by beginner ice, rock, hiking, or mountaineering at all. Check out our blog post on Mountain Climbing Training.

We have over 30 years of experience doing this and our intro programs are carefully planned to put beginners at a comfortable level, yet still provide that exhilarating experience only the mountains can give. We have the best guides in the industry and their experience is invaluable in providing the best level of safety and adventure. I met several kayakers, rafters, hunters and other experienced outdoors persons who said they were scared to do our beginner courses but anyone who loves the outdoors will absolutely love our beginner programs… that I can promise you!

You certainly don’t have to be an ultra marathoner, but a good hiking level of fitness will definitely help you on the program.  I actually met an ultra marathoner who did white water rafting and he didn’t think he could do a beginner course – to that I say ‘looking forward to seeing you this summer Paul!’  Remember, even the most experienced climbers had to start somewhere and our Intro programs give you that opportunity.

Again, thanks to everyone who came out to see us, we have a huge base of past guests in Toronto and given the discussions I had there will be many more I am sure!  If you have any questions or want to talk in more detail about our programs, as those of you in Toronto now know… we never get tired of talking about what we do!

Thanks and see you soon in the incredible Rocky mountains of Canada’s west.

Len

I live in Toronto, one of the flattest urban settings in Canada, yet over the past 9 years I have become an accomplished mountaineer. My story reflects what Len has pointed out in this article — we all have to start somewhere, and for me, taking an Intro to Mountaineering course was the first step in transitioning from a hiker (who followed only well marked and well trodden trails) to climbing 6,000+m peaks with Barry Blanchard in Peru and Bolivia. Yes – it’s totally possible – I was 47, a mother, a small business owner, when I took my first mountaineering course and I haven’t looked back since. Thanks to Barry and the guiding team at Yamnuska, who have gotten me to beautiful places in the sky. Believe you can do it, and you’ll do it! Become a mountaineer! – Margaret Imai-Compton

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