The Southern Alps is a mountain range which runs along the western side of the South Island of New Zealand and forms a natural divide along the entire length of the island. Majority of the highest peaks and the best alpine climbing is in the Mount Cook National Park. The highest mountain - Mount Cook (natively Aoraki) named in honor of Captain James Cook in 1851 is 3754m high. The second most popular place from climber's perspective is probably Mount Aspiring National Park with Mount Aspiring at 3027m being the tallest and most attractive objective. Despite the fact the mountains are relatively low they are more glaciated compared to the Cascades thanks to the wilder climate where severe storms are common even during the summer. This makes climbing in NZ more challenging and patience and enough time are as important as good climbing skills. Fortunately these days climbers don't have to endure the elements in a tent since there's an excellent network of mountain huts.
I went to New Zealand for 5 weeks starting just before Christmas. If you go on your own as I did first you need a partner. There are a few internet sites that can help you. The best is www.mountainz.co.nz which is the cc.com of NZ but without the spray. New Zealanders are really nice people. The second is the NZ Alpine Club web site http://alpineclub.org.nz/. Joining the NZAC before the trip is a good idea anyway because club members get deep discounts at most huts.
This is how I found Alex from UK who’s currently living in Peru. Somebody from mountainz.co.nz also gave us a tip about a Cantenbury Mountaineering Club (http://www.cmc.net.nz/) meet at the Mount Cook village. The organizer had nothing against us joining so the first stage of my trip was set. As a note the clubs like NZAC or CMC are very open and will likely let you join their trips so it's good to check what they are planning if you don't have any plans/partners.
I landed in Auckland on 25th and flew to Christchurch on the South Island the same day. I met Alex on the second day. We bought guide books, maps and food and took a bus to Mount Cook Village on the 27th. The CMC meet was at Wyn Irvin hut which is owned by the club and located about 2km outside of the village. The bus driver delivered us including 2 big bags each all the way there.
Mount Cook as seen on the way to Mount Cook Village
Hard to see Mount Cook Village from the approach to Footstool
There we met bunch of native kiwi climbers heading to climb Footstool which sounded just like the right warm up. Footstool is a 2-day climb, there's a only a small basic shelter at the high camp so we used a tent for the first and the last time). The next day we chose to climb the Divide Route - it's mostly snow, some of it steep and loose scramble at the top. The weather these two days was calm and sunny. I did not have weather like that until Jan 16th.
Sefton bivy below Footstool
Some steeper climbing on Footstool,, Mount Cook in the background
Alex on the Footstool's summit, Mount Sefton in the background
With the forecast calling for rain we did some sport climbing just outside of the village on the 29th.
The main weather service provider in NZ is MetService http://www.metservice.co.nz/. They usually provide 2-day forecast for the national parks. Anything longer range is not very reliable. Precise forecast seems to be harder to get right down there. With this in mind we decided to see if we get lucky and six of us packed food for 7 days and set off up the Hooker Valley on the 30th. There are many fine ice climbs up this valley including the North Ridge of Mount Cook which was the line taken during the first ascent. As we found out later most of the ice climbs were out of shape. I'd recommend going to NZ earlier late Nov/beginning of Dec if you want to do some of the classic ice climbs like the East Ridge on Cook.
There are two huts in the upper Hooker Valley - Gardner and Empress. Here's how it works with the huts. They are mostly operated on first-come-first-served basis. Before you leave you should go to the Department of Conservation office to register. They keep track of how many people are in the huts. Every hut has a radio and at a given time the DoC first broadcasts the current weather forecast and then they check the names of all parties expected to be there. This way they know who's where and who's missing. It seems to work. While we were sitting out some of the nasty weather at the Empress hut a party tried to get to the Gardner hut. They didn't make it. The DoC knew it because they didn't respond over the radio so a rescue was initiated and they picked them up by a helicopter the next day.
It was not easy to get to the Gardner hut. It involved going up a glacier from its end, climbing through an icefall, short ice step, one pitch (5.4) of rock and then climbing up a cable. It took some 10 hours.
A dead thar on the moraine - lower Hooker Valley
Steve and Alex are getting to the Pudding Rock below Gardner Hut
Gardner Hut
Next day 3 of us attempted Nazomi above the hut but a gully at the lower part of the route we wanted to climb was melted out and we found the rock climbing too sketchy. In the afternoon all six of us moved to the Empress hut.
The rock climbing section on Nazomi
Crossing a snow bridge on the descend from Nazomi
Upper Hooker Glacier on the way to Empress Hut
Jiri in front of the Empress Hut (Mount Hicks in the background)
Inside the highest hut in NZ
Forecast was for clear weather but gale force wind. On the 1st in the afternoon the hut stopped shaking so two of us decided to go out and play on one of the steeper slopes with some exposed ice. We made it up two pitches before the wind (maybe 40-50mph) forced us to head back. Overnight the wind picked up again. According to the forecast up to 140km/h at 3000m, we were at 2500m. The next day the shaking stopped around noon again. This time 5 of us decided to climb to Harpers Saddle between Mount Hicks and a ridge leading to the top of La Perouse (Divide route). We followed the ridge to the second high point - Mount Sturdee - and climbed to the top.
Climbing ice on the lower part below Harper's Saddle
Greg at the saddle - Tasman See in the background
Jiri on top of Sturdee - in the background from left to right: Hicks, Dumpier, Cook
Descending from Sturdee
Clouds spilling over LaPeruse
When the gale picked up again in the evening this time it was accompanied with a torrential rain. Next day was without a change. Sitting in a hut in bad weather is never good for the morale and we started to feel it was time to go back since the routes were out shape anyway and the weather made even going to the toilet a major undertaking. There was a lull in the afternoon and 3 of the guys decided to leave. I was in no hurry and not much interested in descending in the rain. The rest of us left next day. It got colder so at least the rain turned to snow and I trusted the snow bridges a bit more. When we got back we learned Alex badly twisted his ankle and they didn't get back to Wyn Irvin until 5am.
One of the guys was Steve - young Australian eager to do alpine climbing. Since I lost my partner we decided to get together and head for Mount Aspiring. On the 5th we got a ride to Wanaka, got food for 7 days, guide book, maps and arranged a shuttle that took us to the TH on the 6th. Unless you take a helicopter which is very common in NZ it takes 2 days to get to the high hut. There are two options to reach the high hut. We chose an approach via French Ridge which seemed easier with a giant pack. The MetService issued a heavy rain advisory for the night before and indeed it was raining. We stayed at the French Ridge Hut for the night and spend the evening trying to dry our clothes. It was a nice change to have a hut we didn't need climbing skills to get to but the rain added some extra challenge.
French Ridge Hut in the morning
Quarterdeck on the left, Gloomy Gorge below and Avalanche Mountain on the left
Mike from Colorado and his partner on the top of French Mountain
Next day we followed the French Ridge to its top via Quarterdeck Glacier. Here we shed the packs and went to the top of Mount French (NZ 1). After this little excursion we dropped down to the Bonar glacier and followed it below the South and West face of Aspiring to the Colin Todd Hut which is located at the base of the NW Ridge. Next day we woke up at 2am for our first attempt and made it as far as the hut's front porch. Next day after our second attempt to leave the hut the weather improved in the afternoon and we decided to stretch our bodies by climbing Rolling Pin Peak. Our first attempt on this small neighboring peak was interrupted by passing lightning storm. The second attempt an hour later was successful. The day after that we started getting tired of sitting in the hut and despite unfavorable weather forecast we made preparation for our last attempt on Aspiring. We set tracks all the way to the base of the classic route up SW Ridge which we hoped to climb. On the 11th we got up at 2am. It was very windy so we waited an hour and finally left at 4am. It was still windy with the gusts strong enough to cause us to lose balance. The wind was coming from SW and it would get worse once we'd be fully exposed to its force on the ridge so instead of following our tracks we turned left towards The Ramp which is a standard variation of the NW Ridge. This was a good choice as the mountain itself was shielding us from the wind and we got to the top in some 4 hours after leaving the hut. The next day after climbing Aspiring on the way back to the French Ridge Hut we attempted to climb Avalanche Mountain via the West Ridge but we didn’t get far. From the hut we arranged a shuttle over the radio for the next day which took us back to Wanaka 13th.
Colin Todd hut
A wet Kea - an alpine parrot
Steve descending from Rolling Pin, section of the NW ridge in the backgroup
Steve soloing up The Ramp
Steve caught in a gust of wind on the upper NW Ridge
Magically there's no wind on the top
Negotiating bergschrund below the ramp
Avalanche Mountain
We felt we just had to give a Mount Cook a proper try before leaving so we made our way back to Mount Cook Village. To save time and take advantage of a few high pressure systems moving over the South Island we took a helicopter to the Plateau Hut which is the base for the Tasman Glacier side climbs of Mount Cook. The flight was 660NZ$. Steve brought his friend Oliver along to reduce the cost. It was the first sunny and windless day of 2010. To get some exercise Oliver and I went up to Glacier Dome sitting above the hut. Climbing Mount Cook even via the standard route - Linda Glacier - is quite technical and takes long time - over 12 hours even if moving fast. Next day was supposed to be the best according to the forecast so we got up at midnight and left at 1am - the usual time. The route follows the Linda Glacier almost to its head below steep rock walls and the Gun Barrel ice fall. Then it traverses to the left below the ice fall (the scariest part) and over the Linda Shelf to the base of the summit rocks. Here you climb about 4 pitches of snow, rock and ice to the exposed summit ridge which is then followed to the summit. On our first attempt despite the clear sky there was a cloud sitting on top of the mountain and in the whiteout we could not see how to get on the shelf and turned around. Feeling restless Oliver and I went to climb one of the Anzac Peaks in the afternoon the same day. I was looking forward having a rest day on the 18th but unfortunately for me the forecast changed and Steve started talking about another attempt the next day. So we did. This time we had no problems with visibility until the summit ridge and a bit on the way down. The round trip from the hut to the summit took us roughly 15 hours. It started raining in the evening.
10 min approach
Plateau Hut on the edge of the Grand Plateau
Exposed Scrambling on Glacier Dome
Climbing upper ridge on Anzac Peak - Tasman Glacier in the background
Sunrise on Mount Tasman, picture taken from Linda shelf on Mount Cook - Linda glacier below
Steve climbing in a couloir above the Linda shelf towards the summit rocks on Mount Cook
Japanese guide at the top of the couloir and the start of rock climbing
A guided group on the summit ridge of Mount Cook
Jiri heading for a summit shot
Steve found a crevase near the hut on the way back
My remaining time in NZ was getting shorter so the next day after climbing Cook I flew out with a Japanese group while Steve and Oliver stayed behind hoping to attempt one of the few remaining easier routes still in decent shape - East Ridge of Dixon. As I found out later the weather would not let them. Eventually I got over my fear of driving on the left side, got a car in Christchurch and drove back to Auckland over the next 6 days. The last night I spend at a town called National Park outside of Tongariro NP where Mount Ruapehu - one of the world's most active volcanoes, the largest active volcano in NZ and the highest point in the North Island - is located. I made it to the crater rim and a little above 2700m following the rim in a whiteout. I turned around when it started raining and later hailing. According to the radio the conditions were ideal for thunderstorms that day and I got caught in one on the way down. That was scarier than driving on the left side. Fortunately it was moving quite fast and after about 1/2 hour sitting on the ground in running water and having some thoughts about stupidity I felt it was ok to keep moving.
Ruapehu
The only thing left after this experience was to catch a flight in Auckland in the evening and fly back to Seattle.
"to share your love for climbing is a gift - write down your events" Alex Lowe