2012 SUMMER COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT (Dec. 20, 2012-Jan. 9, 2013)
FIELD COURSE IN CANOPY ACCESS TECHNIQUES (CAT W-12)
COURSE LOCATION: Bocas del Toro Biological Station, Boca del Drago,
Isla Colon, Republic of Panama. The biological station is located on
a beach facing the Caribbean Sea. Coral reef and seagrass ecosystems
lie out in front of the station and lowland tropical rain forests lie
directly behind. This juxtaposition of the two most biologically
diverse ecosystems provides tremendous opportunities for education
and research. See: http://www.itec-edu.org/index.html for details.
INSTRUCTOR: Joe Maher, Tree Climber Coalition, PMB 43, 6625 Highway
53 East, Suite 410, Dawsonville, GA 30534. Telephone (Home)
706-216-2402, (Cell) 706-531-4516, email:
[email protected], web: http://www.itec-edu.org
Specialty: Tropical canopy access for research and ecotourism, field
photography.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is designed to provide students with
the methodology and expertise necessary to explore and conduct
research in the tropical forest canopy. The course involves a
hands-on approach to the techniques necessary for accessing the
canopy as well as lectures on various topics relating to climbing
techniques, safety while climbing, facilitation of climbing
activities, and combining scientific research with climbing. This
course is the equivalent of the Basic Canopy Climbing Course, the
Canopy Access Technicians Course, and the Facilitators Course, all
done back-to-back over a four week time period. Certificates of
Training at each of these levels will be awarded to those completing
the course and receiving a passing grade on the examinations.
The course will be divided into three distinct periods of instruction
and practice. Precise scheduling will depend upon student's progress
at each level:
The first week will consist of orientation, introductory climbs into
the canopy, and the Basic Canopy Climber Course, during which
students will be introduced to, and practice, basic methods for both
single rope technique (SRT) and double rope technique (DRT) climbing.
Techniques for initial access into the canopy will also be
introduced. Students will be climbing into the canopy every day.
There will be classroom meetings each evening to cover lecture
topics, debrief the activities of the day, discuss safety issues, and
acquaint students with the activities for the coming day. By the end
of this first week, students should be able to select a tree in the
forest, get a line into that tree, rig for a climb in the tree, and
make the climb, demonstrating familiarity with both basic DRT and SRT
technique and the safety issues involved with such a climb.
The second week will consist of the Canopy Access Technician's
Course, during which students will be introduced to more advanced
methods of climbing into the canopy and will be encouraged in their
development of a personal style of climbing. The course is designed
to take students beyond the basic styles of climbing and encourage
the use of a variety of techniques as demanded by the challenge of
the climb at hand. Creative thinking is encouraged so long as such
thinking is contained within the parameters dictated by safety
protocols. Students will continue to climb into the canopy each day
and there will be some climbs done at night. Students will also be
expected to participate in a blindfolded climb. Classroom meetings
will continue each evening for lectures, debriefings, and discussion
of safety issues. By the end of the second week students should be
capable of going into the forest in the absence of the instructor and
safely conducting a climb into a previously unclimbed tree.
At the end of the second week, students will have a three-day break
for a trip to Boquete in the central highlands. An optional
cloudforest climb during this break can be made by students wishing
to do so.
The third and fourth week will consist of training in the
facilitation of climbs, rescue techniques, and building confidence to
the extent that canopy climbers will be comfortable enough to conduct
research while involved with climbs into the vertical environment.
Students will also be introduced to the concepts of team climbing,
incremental climbing, and the issue of risk management. Students will
be asked to facilitate climbs made by others who have never climbed
before in order to demonstrate their ability to teach the techniques
that they themselves have been using.
Individual Research Projects Working closely with faculty, students
will be responsible for designing and completing an original
in-canopy research project of their choosing. These projects will be
carried out during the second half of the course and students will
have about 10 days for data collection. A few days before the end of
the course students will analyze their data, write a technical
report, prepare a PowerPoint presentation of their work and orally
present their findings at a station-wide symposium on the last day of
the course.
SUGGESTED READING:
o Maher, Joe (2004) Exploring The Roof Of The Rainforest. The
Treeclimber's Coalition, Atlanta, Georgia .
Contact Maher for a PDF file.
o Jepson, Jeff (2000) The Tree Climber's Companion. Beaver Tree
Publishing, Longville, Minnesota.
o Flowers, Dick (2000) Recreational Tree Climbing. Self
Published. Available from New Tribe at
www.newtribe.com.
o Smith, Bruce and Allen Padgett (1996). On Rope. National
Speleological Society, Huntsville, Alabama
o Vines, Tom and Steve Hudson (1999). High Angle Rescue
Techniques. Mosby Publishing, St. Louis,
Missouri.
o Lowman, Margaret and Nalini Nadkarni eds. (1995). Forest
Canopies. Academic Press, san Diego,
California.
o Priest, Simon and Michael Gass (1997) Effective Leadership In
Adventure Planning. University of
New Hampshire, Concord, New Hampshire.
COURSE LENGTH: ITEC Winter field courses are three weeks in length.
The CAT W-12 will run from Dec. 20, 2012 through Jan. 9, 2013.
TUITION: $1850 USD. Tuition fee includes all lodging, meals and
airport transfers in Bocas del Toro. The tuition also covers
transportation and lodging during the 3-day cloud forest field trip
on the mainland.
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Nov. 20, 2012. The course is limited to 10
students and applications will be evaluated as they arrive. If you
believe that your application may arrive late, notify ITEC.
CONTACT: Institute for Tropical Ecology and Conservation, 2911 NW
40th PL, Gainesville, FL 32605, 352-367-9128, [email protected],
http://www.itec-edu.org/index.html, [email protected].
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**********************************************************
Peter N. Lahanas, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Institute for Tropical Ecology and Conservation (ITEC)
2911 NW 40th Place, Gainesville, FL 32605, USA
phn: 352-367-9128
web: http://www.itec-edu.org
Bocas del Toro Biological Station
Boca de Drago, Isla Colon, Prov. Bocas del Toro
Republic of Panama
phn: 507-6624-9246
