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From $450 per person

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The people most likely to save your life on a river are the ones in your own crew. River Rescue II is Paddle Australia's industry benchmark rescue certification — expected of whitewater guides and instructors, and a co-requisite for the PA Whitewater Guide and Instructor awards.

Over two full days on moving water you'll learn to prevent trouble, read hazards, and act decisively when someone's in the water.

What you'll cover:

  • River hydrology — reading water, and why rivers behave the way they do around swimmers and boats
  • Whitewater rescue principles and priorities
  • Craft-based rescue: the rescues you'll actually perform from your boat
  • Rescue swimming and river crossings
  • Throw ropes and practical mechanical advantage systems
  • Gear retrieval, pins and wraps

Who should attend: whitewater guides and instructors needing the qualification, outdoor education staff running moving-water programs, and recreational kayakers, canoeists, rafters and packrafters who want a genuinely rescue-capable crew. The course is craft-specific — you're assessed in the craft you paddle.

Prerequisites: whitewater paddling skills at PA Whitewater Skills level, plus minimum logbook entries in your Paddle-log. An online quiz and project are issued on registration and must be completed.

What to bring: your own craft, PFD, paddle and helmet. Contact us if you need equipment.

Duration: 2 days, approx. 9am–5pm. Cost: $450 (plus Paddle Australia's 3-year qualification registration fee). Paddle Australia members receive a discount — ask when booking.

Your instructor: Tren Long, Instructor Trainer for Rescue 3 International, IRTA and Sierra Rescue, and a Higgins & Langley award recipient, has taught river rescue on four continents to everyone from first-time paddlers to the FDNY.

Units Delivered

The following units will be included in your certificate:

P01051 - Paddle Australia - Whitewater Rescue Level 2

Course Delivery

This course can be delivered/assessed in the workplace or at facility organised by the training provider.

Course Durations

Course durations can vary for multiple reasons, so the durations below are the minimum possible amount.

Face-to-Face face-to-face contact time of at least 16 Hours

  • Paddling ability: whitewater skills at PA Whitewater Skills level — you must be able to confidently paddle Grade 2 whitewater in your chosen craft
  • Logbook: ten Grade 2 whitewater activities, each a minimum of two hours, within the previous three years — recorded in your Paddlelog
  • Craft-specific: you're assessed in the craft you paddle (kayak or canoe) — choose the one you'd actually use in a work or trip setting
  • Pre-course work: an online knowledge quiz, issued on registration, must be completed before assessment
  • Confident swimmer, comfortable being in moving water
  • Equipment: your own craft, PFD, paddle and helmet, Contact us if you need gear.

This certificate has an industry recommended renewal period of 36 months

Assessment is continuous throughout the two days rather than a separate exam — your instructor observes and signs off each competency as you demonstrate it, in Grade 2 whitewater.

An online knowledge quiz is issued on registration and must be completed before the certification.

This course does not lead to a nationally recognised certificate