Treble Cone seems to be a place I only go to once it is closed for the season. Being so close to Wanaka and the biggest resort on the South Island it pulls in a lot of people. If it’s a powder day you can expect that number to double. From my one previous experience we had two good powder laps before the place was tracked out. So when snow arrived in late November and I had a few days left on my trip it was time to give the place another chance.
New Zealand Ski Tours
This is a breakdown of my experience after 5 years in New Zealand ski touring all over the Southern Alps with a week long Volcano mission on the North Island. Rugged and isolated with famously bad weather where it is so strong ridges don’t develop cornices it’s wild country down there with just a few roads providing access so its a splitboard on your back and takes enjoy your 5 hour approach type of place.
Tasman Glacier Ski tour back at the Kelman Hut
Ski Touring on the Tasman Glacier
The plan was to do a ski tour on the Tasman Glacier after a wild trip up to the Liverpool Hut. Soon we were driving toward Mount Cook Village for a 4 day ski tour based out of the Kelman Hut. Our plan was to spend our time snowboarding around in hopes that the snow would be great. This would be my forth time touring around the area so by know I was quite familiar with the area.
Mount Barff and the Liverpool Hut Sufferfest
Mount Barff is a beautiful peak situated in the Mutukituki valley with the Liverpool hut at its base. My friend Ben arrived in New Zealand for a two week trip of ski touring and exploring. We went over different ideas of places to go once he landed at the Queenstown airport. We decided to drive North to Wanaka and after picking up some groceries head to Mount Aspiring National Park. Once there we would climb up to and stay at the Liverpool Hut and do a ski tour around Mount Barff.
Back to the Club Field Culture NZ
After a successful trip to Australia I was landing in Christchurch New Zealand. One it town I got my gear situated and picked up my Licence to Chill pass so I would have access to the club fields. It was the beginning of September and I was on a 3 month stint climbing and exploring the backcountry.
Exploring the Treble Cone Backcountry
I started my 2017 season doing the traditional renting a Juicy Van and driving around and locals yell at you type of trip. There were two reasons for this, One you can camp wherever you want and two you get free tickets to Treble Cone ski resort. Though to some it may seem like a waste I used to my ticket to go ski touring in the Treble Cone Backcountry with my friend Lorenzo Rieg.
I’ve known Lorenzo for a few years taking a trip with him to Norway as well as a week long trip in his home of Innsbruck Austria and he just so happened to be in Wanaka New Zealand.
Hope Lake in the Otago Backcountry
In 2017 I found myself back in New Zealand and ready to go on some new adventures. I had gone down on a trip with my wife and after a month of tourist based activities it was time to get back out in the backcountry. My friend Adam came up with a plan to do a heli accessed mission to Hope Lake in the Otago Backcountry. Once dropped off we would set up a tent and ride some lines in the area.
Mt. Rolleston High Peak, Armstrong and Philistine in a 24 Hours Sufferfest
Mount Rolleston is the crown of Arthurs Pass National Park on the South Island of New Zealand. The mountain stands proudly above all the other peaks in the area. When riding at Temple Basin one just stares and drools at such a beautiful mountain and I kept hoping that one day I would ski it. The day came in late November 2015 when Ryan Nicol came up with a plan to do a triple peak tour climbing Armstrong, Mount Rolleston via the high peak and Philistine in a single day push.
It would be a long day but it was possible with an alpine start. It was obvious that it would be an ambitions mission but I was happy to go along with it, Finally we were going for in a zone I had dreamed of snowboarding for years.
Climbing and snowboarding the Warrior up the Rakia River
It was an honor to be invited on a 2 week hut mission base camping at the Lyall hut. We would have access to numerous options of potential mountains to snowboard. We had loosely set our eyes on climbing The Warrior which is a distinct peak in the Armoury Range. It’s one of the more isolated regions in a massive range that’s known for isolation. so it’s out there. Ryan and his friend Yossi took a helicopter to the hut while I decided to hike in the 20kms.
Ski Touring Mount Clarke in the Reese Valley
I quickly realized that my time in NZ was running out with less that two weeks so I was fortunate to meet up with my friend Manu. We decided to do a predawn mission up the Reese Valley, ski touring Mount Clarke.
Returning to the Remarkables for Some Late Season Powder
It was time to leave Mount Ruapehu and the North Island to head back to the Southern Alps. After a long night of hitch hiking and getting onto the first plane available. I was heading back to the South Island and meeting up with my friend Adam Flemming. With new snow in the high country it was time to returning to the Remarkables.