Packrafting 101

Day 1

The course departs central Queenstown at 8am and together we'll make our way up to the Northern end of Lake Whakatipu towards Glenorchy. Once in Glenorchy we'll spend a few minutes running over some theory and discussing the outcomes of the course to ensure everyone is well prepared and on the same page.

We'll then head into our home for the weekend, the Rees Valley. Once we've got into our river gear and made sure everyone has the gear they require, we head down to the river to begin a full day on the water. Please ensure you have enough snacks and some lunch with you, we'll more than likely eat this down on the river.

Initially we'll cover some basics around river swimming and what to do should you find yourself in the water but then the rest of the session is spent focusing on the acquasion of paddling skills.  We aim to finish day one with a full run of the middle Rees before getting changed and driving to camp.

Camping and Food

Previous iterations of this course have involved camping out in the valley, however we've now altered the course to be a series of day trips. However, we are mindful that people who travel from out of town might be interested in camping to save it a bit of money. We can happily show you some cheap Doc sites on the way to/from Glenorchy that you can stay in. 12 Mile camp ground for example is right on our route and we can pick folks up and drop people off if needed. Happy to provide tents and/or camping equipment if that is useful.

Day Two

Day two we start to cover some more of the rescue skills and aim to run a "mini-expedition" whereby we will be travelling down the river, running exercises, scouting, discussing lines and alway practicing our paddling as we go. 

Day Three

The final day of the course is dedicated to really fine tuning  and consolidating the boat handling skills. When it comes to skill aquasition, there is no substitute for repetition. We always seek to introduce progression into every day, this might mean paddling some new rapids that we previously haven't done, it might mean asking you perform harder moves on easier rapids, what is certain is that you'll improve a great deal throughout the course.

We're off the water and back in Queenstown around 6pm on the third day at the latest.

Equipment

We encourage people to bring as much of their own equipment as possible so that they get used to the gear they will use in the real world. However, we understand this is a "try before you buy" for many people and folks may not have gear yet. We are very happy to supply equipment for a nominal fee. The reason we charge a small fee is to encourage students to take ownership of the equipment used during the course and mitigate against the occasional loss and damage of our kit. This nominal fee ($40 per day) can be used as towards any equipment purchases made through us after the course.

Covid

100% refunds will be given should we have to cancel a course due to an outbreak or if you are unable to travel so you can book with confidence. We are able to operate at level 2 restrictions and lower.