Crossing the Tasman river is quite an undertaking. The water is fast and full of silt. You cannot see the bottom to cross, and the rocks are sharp and glacial. We once holed a raft crossing here. It is possible to cross the valley on the Tasman Lake, and Glacier Explorers might ferry one across….
The Cass Valley; The Needles from Falcon’s Nest hut, Tin Hut Stream, Gamack Range.
August 2020 This route is on private land (Glenmore Station) and so access must be negotiated prior to visiting. The Falcon’s Nest hut is in Tin Hut Stream, and can be booked for ski touring parties. There are bunks for 8 people. It has a fireplace, gas cookers, clean mattresses, cooking utensils and even a…
Latest access information to Pisa Conservation Area
Pisa Conservation Area information for ski touring – submitted by WT. The Pisa Conservation Area is unique for New Zealand ski touring. The area is massive with a network of connected valleys (or burns) making for easy, safe travel. Non-threatening terrain and good access (very atypical for alpine NZ) make the area ideal for learners…
Godley Glacier & Neish Plateau from Sealy Pass, Main Divide Southern Alps.
August 15 2020 The Godley Glacier is at the northern end of Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park. There are three branches of the glacier; the Neish Plateau, the Amherst/Mt Shyness glacier, and the Terra Nova pass/McClure branch. These spill together to form the Godley Glacier, which eventually melts its way into the Godley Lake. The Neish…
Mt Hutt backcountry accessed from ski field, Mt Hutt Range
It takes about 1.5 hours out to the North Peak of Mt Hutt from the ski field. This clip is of the East basin below the North Peak. The SW basin can also hold good snow at times. For information on backcountry access from Mt Hutt ski field check out: https://www.mthutt.co.nz/ski-touring/
Symphony on Skis, West to East, Mt Cook N.P.
Symphony on Skis: A West to East crossing in 5 days The team and photo credits are: Ian McIvor, Karl Greasley, Liv Barron & Anna Brooke. This is one of the trips that should be on every ski-mountaineer’s list. It offers changing mountain and snow conditions, glacier travel, steepness, playful lines, and a smorgasbord of…
Kaimakamaka Peaks, Ben Ohau Range
I understand that Kaimakamaka means ‘knucklebones’ in Maori. If this is so, then the peak is aptly named, as it sits like a solid fist on the ridge; rocky knuckles festooned with steep parallel couloirs. When the springtime snow line is high, a quick flight up to the Kaiamakamaka peaks is worthwhile. This area gets…
Ohau’s northern bowls, Ohau Range
August 2018 Ohau ski field is well known for having good access to ski touring. Indeed, search this website and you will find the posts for Mt Peterson, Mt Stafford and Mt St Mary. These peaks are accessed from the ski field, from above the top lift, via the south ridge . Other more common…
Mt Aspiring / Tititea via NW Ramp
Tricky to get this one on with conditions but if you do it will make for a memorable journey skiing the Gnarr. Was skied in firm wind pressed snow, the ice cap had a narrow ribbon of soft snow through the typical 3000m NZ sastruggi making it skiable off the summit. |After that it was firm but…