Application

This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to travel through canyons, according to planned routes, and utilise features for recreational activities such as rock scrambling, swimming, water sliding and liloing. It requires the ability to safely negotiate a range of terrain obstacles, hazards and canyon formations. It applies to both wet and dry canyons.
This unit focuses on activities within canyons and not on methods used to access or escape from them.
It applies to leaders, guides or instructors who use these skills when leading during canyoning activities. Leadership skills are provided in complementary units. The unit can also apply to assistants and support staff.
This unit applies to any type of organisation that delivers outdoor recreation activities including commercial, not-for-profit and government organisations.
No occupational licensing, certification or specific legislative requirements apply to this unit at the time of publication.

What You'll Learn

Assessment Requirements

Performance Evidence

Evidence of the ability to complete tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit in the context of the job role, and:
• complete two canyoning trips
• complete at least one of the above trips in a wet canyon
• during each canyoning activity, consistently follow safety procedures and safely negotiate hazards
• across all canyoning trips, collectively use the following techniques:
• rock scrambling
• spotting
• during any wet canyon trips, use at least two of the following techniques:
• water jumping
• water sliding
• liloing
• wading
• swimming.

Knowledge Evidence

Demonstrated knowledge required to complete the tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit:
• organisational safety and emergency response procedures for canyoning activities
• features of different types of local canyons and canyon formations sufficient to understand the overall characteristics of the canyon setting and its particular hazards
• clothing and footwear suitable for canyoning activities:
• types of clothing and fabrics that protect against the effects of weather and water conditions including sun, temperatures, winds, and precipitation of different levels and extremes
• reasons for layering clothes
• effective design and construction features of waterproof gear and exposure suits
• types of footwear used for canyoning activities; advantages and disadvantages of different types
• waterproofing and stowing techniques used to keep clothing, equipment and resources dry during canyoning activities
• techniques used for canyon activities to include those for:
• rock scrambling
• spotting
• water jumping
• water sliding
• liloing
• wading
• swimming, white water swimming
• communication protocols used between canyoners to include:
• calls
• hand signals
• whistles
• typical hazards associated with canyoning activities, and techniques used to safely negotiate these:
• dense vegetation
• squeezes and overhangs
• slippery or unstable terrain including rocks
• submerged logs and rocks
• sections of dark, deep or cold water and extended immersion
• rising water
• formations that might lead to foot entrapment
• practices used to minimise environmental impact to canyons to include removing all general and human (toileting) waste.

Assessment Conditions

Skills can be demonstrated in canyons which feature the following:
• easy climbing and downclimbing with little exposure
• hand lines may be required on occasion
• escape from canyon may take up to 1 hour.
Wet canyons would feature:
• slow moving water, with up to Grade 1 river features
• pools of calm to slightly moving water
• low angled slides.
No climbing or abseiling is required to reach canyons but it is possible to abseil in, participate in canyon activities and walk or climb out.
The following resources must be available to replicate industry conditions of operation:
• first aid equipment
• communication equipment for emergency response
• rescue equipment.
Assessment must ensure use of:
• a group of participants with whom the individual interacts during canyoning activities
• personal protective equipment, relevant to the activity, which might include:
• helmets
• exposure suits
• containers for the removal of liquid and solid waste including those for human waste
• template safety checklists
• organisational safety and emergency response procedures for canyoning activities.
Assessors must satisfy the Standards for Registered Training Organisations requirements for assessors, and:
• have a collective period of at least three years’ experience as a canyoning leader, guide or instructor, where they have applied the skills and knowledge covered in this unit of competency; the three years’ experience can incorporate full and or part time experience.

Foundation Skills

• {'skill': 'Reading skills to:', 'description': 'interpret detailed and familiar organisational safety and emergency response procedures; interpret complex and potentially unfamiliar technical information about routes and environmental features.'}
• {'skill': 'Oral communications skills to:', 'description': 'use clear and unambiguous verbal and non-verbal communications to make intent known.'}
• {'skill': 'Problem-solving skills to:', 'description': 'readily adapt to changing situations and terrain by selecting appropriate techniques and equipment to traverse canyons efficiently.'}
• {'skill': 'Planning and organising skills to:', 'description': 'manage own timing to complete activities within planned timeframes.'}

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