FMC last week launched a ‘Celebrating Outdoor Recreation’ campaign to connect with outdoor pursuits on the fringes of its core tramping and climbing constituency. The campaign will identify a pursuit annually and make its development a priority for FMC over a July – June timeframe. Canyoning is the agreed focus for 2015/2016.

FMC President Robin McNeill notes, “Our members and clubs are engaging in a wide variety of outdoor activities. Sometimes these activities aren’t as organised, or as well-known as they could be, and we might be able to contribute to developing these opportunities, improving awareness and increasing participation. We will be particularly looking to support pursuits that take place in the same environment as tramping and share the same ethos of exploration, companionship and appreciation of the natural environment, canyoning fits this bill admirably”.

Canyoner Daniel Clearwater, who runs the kiwicanyons.org website and is on the cusp of publishing New Zealand’s first canyoning guidebook, is thrilled at the support, “We are pleased to be working with FMC. This is an exciting time for canyoning, with the guidebook, as well as a technical manual coming out before the next summer season, and the community growing all the time. We are looking at formalising our organisation, increasing our capability to introduce more people to the sport and spreading awareness of how people can get into canyoning. FMC has experience and connections that we will benefit heaps from over the next year”.

McNeill also emphasises that the ‘Celebrating Outdoor Recreation’ campaign is partly targeted at connecting with the next generation. “Outdoor pursuits on the edge of normal inspire those, often younger adventurers, infused with a thirst for exploration. Young people, especially the young leaders of tomorrrow’s outdoors community, want to go places and try things that are out of the ordinary or haven’t been done before, this should be encouraged”.

However, McNeill, also thinks that FMC has plenty of existing members keen to give new things a try, “we have members who have been exploring our backcountry any way they can their entire lives, we hope this campaign might provide them a few more sparks”. 

As for what pursuit may be next in line for 2016/2017, McNeill grins, “we’ll see what we can do for canyoning, then we will have a look at what our clubs and members are up to. We know they run, canoe, rogaine, ski, pack-raft. We will talk to some of the leaders of these pursuits, and the communities that are engaged in them and if we feel there is something we can contribute positively, then that pursuit might be next.