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.

Brewster Hut in Mount Aspiring National Park

Enjoying the view of the Southern Alps and the Brewster Hut

The resorts of New Zealand are absolutely amazing but it’s the mountains that make the place so freaking special. When I arrived I had a bunch of experience in the North Cascades of Washington which are famous for long approaches, steep slopes and deep maritime snowpacks but the truth was that I was completely green in this range. What we call remote they call “Taiga Country” what we call a dismal snowpack they call abundant.

After the resorts shut down it quickly became obvious that we were going to have to work for our turns. This wasn’t something new to me but I was going to have to do a little bit of adjusting to get into the Kiwi style of ski mountaineering.

The plan was to spend a few days out at Brewster Hut in Mount Aspiring National Park. The weather forecast wasn’t looking the greatest but we decided to go for it.

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1st Tour of the Season in the Remarkables backcountry of New Zealand.

Driving up to the Remarkables Looking out towards Queenstown New Zealand

The last time I had been in New Zealand was 9 years prior and although I brought a Splitboard I would say I had only used it a handful of times and once in the Remarkables Backcountry but this time around it would be my only method of snow sliding. I wanted to see how much my perception of the Island had changed and if I could immerse myself into the Splitboard culture.

I sent out a Facebook post asking if anyone was in or near the Queenstown area and would be willing to show me the ropes and I got a response from Adam Flemming who runs the Splitboardnz site. The minute I arrived he was waiting at the airport and was kind enough to provide shelter, beta and both Adam and his fiance Jaime were great touring partners. The day after I arrived were were off to the snow heading up to the Remarkables Backcountry outside of the Ski Resort.

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