*HISTORY

THE ORIGINS
Although in its infancy in New Zealand, canyoning, as they call it in Europe, or canyoneering as it is known in North America, saw its first adventures at the beginning of the century. Yes, almost 100 years ago!

The fascination of these hidden streams and gorges, the surprising rock formations and natural sculptures, the thrill of rushing waterfalls, and the calm, deep pools were already drawing people into epic expeditions. Multi-day explorations were then common in the canyons of France, Spain and Australia.

At the time, there was no specialised gear, and for that reason, many canyons were explored…going upstream! The early canyoners could not take the risk of being caught above a waterfall with too short a rope, and preferred going against the current, so as to be able to see the difficulties. Of course, that sometimes meant scaling the waterfalls with ladders, or climbing the walls on the side of the stream!

As the techniques and the equipment evolved, many more steep streams were systematically explored, and canyoning has become a very popular sport.

Gorgonchon Canyon, Sierra de Guara, Spain. Located in the Aragon region, on the southern side of the Pyrenees, the Sierra de Guara is one of the birthplaces of canyoning. Its limestone mountains and plateaux are deeply incised by many canyons, which remain an extremely popular destination.


CANYONING IN NEW ZEALAND
In New Zealand, the first canyons have been explored only recently, and the potential is promising.

Compared to their North Hemisphere cousins, the canyons of Aotearoa are generally steeper with lots of waterfalls, and the canyons around Auckland are not an exception.


CANYONING TODAY: SAFE AND FUN
It is now a long way from the early days when the word ‘wetsuit’ was not even in the dictionary and a waterfall was more an obstacle than an exciting challenge.
Nowadays, we have all the gear that allows us to follow the water downstream in complete safety, comfort… and fun!   Every summer, thousands of canyoners put on their wetsuits, harnesses and helmets and venture down into these aquatic playgrounds to abseil, swim, slide, jump, and marvel at the amazing rock walls and hanging vegetation.
And now, it’s your turn!!