Beata Brodowska :

I just wanted to thank Aspiring Guides, and Jo Haines in particular, for our fabulous 6 day private instruction course on Fox Glacier. My husband and I were looking to complete a basic skills course in mountaineering, but the week was so much more than this. We were lucky enough to have Pioneer Hut all to ourselves, and so spent some relaxing evenings over Raro sharing stories with Jo and getting inspired to get out and do more! During the day, we had the glacier all to ourselves to traverse, slide down, jump off and climb. Jo was an excellent instructor, with the right balance of patience and good humour. Thanks to Jo, I've developed a love for knots and hitches (crazy, I know...) and discovered how much fun ice climbing can be. My husband Spiro had a ball throwing himself down steep slopes to learn how to self-arrest, and abseiling down 'the drain' outside of Pioneer Hut. We can't wait to get back to NZ to do more, and would recommend Aspiring Guides to anyone.

Virginia Mumford, NSW, Australia writes:

What did you think about the information you received about your upcoming course ? "I thought it was detailed and gave a good idea of the equipment required"

Do you feel the course was conducted at an appropriate level for you? "Simon Howells took great pains to make sure he understood our expectations"

Did you feel that your safety was adequately supervised at all times?
"Absolutely"

How would you rate your guide's performance, manner, professionalism? "Very high - it made a real difference to have a guide I felt safe with and was so easy to get along with"

 Did you achieve what you wanted from your course?
"Absolutely - I have been accepted on the South Georgia Crossing and now feel confident that I can cope." 

 What was your favourite part of the course? "Putting on crampons for the first time - on crisp snow and in brilliant sunshine"

 What was your least favourite part of the course & how would you change it for the next course? "going home"

 Would you recommend this course to your friends ? Why ? "Not many of my friends would want to expose themselves to this much fresh air - but for the outdoor fanatics I would highly recommend it - they are all much better climbers and would really appreciate the challenge of doing multi-pitch mixed climbs."

 What was your overall impression ?"Extremely positive - I thought the course was well run, you were all very helpful with my questions, and even managed to organise fabulous weather"