What is coasteering?

When I first started working at Adventure Specialties, I had no idea what it was!

I wasn’t even sure what the instructors were saying at first.

Co-steering? Whaaaaa?!?

Anyway, after asking around, looking at photos from our programmes, and watching this staff video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InsOe3LoDwo&t=37s), and (of course) asking Wikipedia, I slowly figured it out …

Firstly, it’s combination of the words “coast” (surprise!) and “mountaineering” (the activity of climbing a snow-covered mountain).

Coasteering is an outdoor adventure activity where you make your way around a section of coast, on foot and by water.

So it can involve walking, climbing, scrambling, swimming (normally with wetsuits and life jackets), jumping off rocks or waterfalls, climbing up rocks, diving, the occasional back flip … anything to get you from one spot on a coast to another, with maximum fun!

The appeal of it comes from travelling through the “impact zone.” The area where the tidal ocean meets the land, a high energy zone.

Both our Auckland and Christchurch branches include coasteering in our outdoor adventure programmes. I haven’t had the chance to try #coasteering for myself yet, but I’m definitely keen to tag along at the next available opportunity!

Have you tried coasteering? Or anything similar? What is it like?

– Bex

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“A better sense of their inbuilt character strengths: the qualities and skills that help us get through life.”

This is one of the intended outcomes of our outdoor adventure programmes (along with increased wellbeing, increased social skills, ongoing participation in outdoor activities and manaakitanga, a Maori concept that roughly translates to kindness, empathy, respect, generosity and a desire to uplift others).

We use different ‘tools’ to encourage these outcomes: team building activities, one-on-one conversations, facilitated group discussions, and just simply being outside in nature, which is an incredibly powerful tool, all on its own.

These photos were taken on a 10-day “Project K” journey with students from Waitakere College and One Tree Hill College in Auckland.

Keep an eye out for the video of the trip, coming soon!

Project K is a 14-month programme designed for Year 10 students, created by the Graeme Dingle Foundation (visit the Project K website). It involves three parts (wilderness adventure, community challenge and an individual mentoring partnership with a trained mentor). The wilderness segment is run in partnership with various outdoor providers like us, Adventure Specialties Trust.

Project K focusses on building confidence, teaching life skills, promoting good health, relationships and encouraging a positive attitude. The aim of Project K is to arm rangatahi (youth) with a belief in their own ability to complete tasks and achieve goals, and to help them find purpose and direction, transforming their lives.

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