With only a few weeks notice, I proposed a week long trip to Arthur’s Pass to get some time on the snow. The plan was simple – climb some of the many easy peaks as day trips and come back to the village each night and stay warm and cosy. Organising the trip was also ... Read more
Snow on Powell!Our journey began with a drive on the winding road to the Wairarapa, we eventually arrived at our first stop, the Clareville Bakery, for a last minute coffee and pastry. Once satiated with morning tea, we began our journey to the Tararuas, with a radiant sun shining, the snow was glittering off the ... Read more
Snow on Ruapehu!Our journey began with a scenic drive on Desert Road – with a radiant full moon and snow was glittering on the peaks of Mount Ngauruhoe and Mount Ruapehu. Being the shortest day of the year (June 21), not many people were out tramping. After a skilled late-night drive through winding roads and ... Read more
Mt Holdsworth day walk – a hiker’s point of view A video of a day walk to the summit of Mt Holdsworth in the Tararua Range from a hiker’s point of view. Includes walking time for sections of the track. There is even some snow to add to the spectacular view from the peak. For ... Read more
You would be forgiven for thinking this is simply a well-trodden run-of-the-mill loop in the Tararuas – the usual open tops, goblin bush and cute huts. This loop is fantastic and has a bit of everything, but this weekend it was spectacular. There was a dusting of snow on the tops, which made going over ... Read more
A very light sprinkling of snow fell as we arrived at the WTMC lodge at Iwikau Village, Mount Ruapehu, on Friday night. And some of it was still apparent first thing in the morning, though disappearing rapidly once hit by the sun: a brilliantly clear start to a calm and sunny weekend. After breakfast we ... Read more
Mt Princess – a climb to the Princess Bath 🛀 Taking a Princess Bath Soft snow on the way to the Princess Bath Transformation of the Sarahsaurus into a princess. Tony told me he knew of a mountain that could transform a rebel Sarahsaurus dinosaur into a princess and all she had to do was ... Read more
Kaweka Kaleidoscope – exploring Manson Country Kaweka Range – Kaweka Forest Park It nearly makes the squatters weep, It takes five acres to a sheep, And each year sees these smaller flocks, For sheep don’t thrive on snow and rocks. (An anonymous poet on the difficulty of mustering in the remote Manson Country) I have ... Read more
Kia ora, This article provides a brief update on club activities, including: WTMC April recap: Committee, trips and lodge updates Intentions for the year to come Coming up in May If you have any questions, comments or ideas please get in touch. Ngā mihi Anne de Ferronpresident@wtmc.org.nz Luxmore hut and a dusting of snow on ... Read more
I have been keen to complete the Southern Crossing after visiting Kime Hut in the snow last year. We had two groups completing the Southern Crossing; one from Otaki Forks to Kaitoke starting Friday afternoon, the other from Kaitoke to Otaki Forks starting first thing Saturday morning. I liked the concept of an early start ... Read more
With the demise of RAL there must be something to talk about with a positive theme. I’ll try the weather. When there is little snow on the mountain there tends to be better weather. When there is plenty of snow on the mountain there is less skiing. After returning from two weeks on the mountain ... Read more
We have just returned from three days up at the lodge where two of the days were ‘bluebird’ days. We also had some Alpine Club members join us which helped fill the lodge. Despite appearances on the webcams the upper mountain has plenty of snow. Given the cold temperatures RAL has been snowmaking onto the ... Read more
Friday night, the ferry arrived early in Picton, which we quickly found out doesn’t show movies on long weekend evenings (due to lack of demand!). Next morning, the E-M group we were sharing the van with kindly agreed to being on the road by 7.30am. Nearing the Richmond Ranges, we saw the rewards of the ... Read more
The Club continues to do well and I’ve continued with meeting my target of participating in at least one Club trip per month. Monique led a group of us to the Kaweka Forest Park over the Matariki weekend where we enjoyed some great tramping country, lovely bush, beautiful streams, excellent views of snow clad mountains ... Read more
The mountain gods have spoken. There will be no covid problems this season, the mountain will not erupt, and the snow will continue to fall at night with intermittent periods of sunshine during the day. Car parking will be free for all if there is space. The start of the season has had an early ... Read more
[Sent to Trip Leaders on 23 March 2022] Kia ora, This email provides a brief update about WTMC club trips: AGM and electing the new Committee on 6 April. Alpine training 2022 – Snowcraft, Avalanche Awareness and Alpine Leadership Damaged/used club gear – What to do? Club first aid kit – Contents list We are ... Read more
The weather forecast promised one day of good weather over the long weekend, and when combined with the fact that only the very upper parts of the mountain had skiable snow, the families group opted to do the day walk to Tama Lakes. Only one of the adults had made the trip before, and that ... Read more
So the ski season has ended for RAL on Labour Day. Given that there was still plenty of upper mountain snow under normal conditions the lifts would have continued to operate for a bit longer but nothing is normal this year or indeed last. The summer program for the Gondola and Cafeteria will commence on ... Read more
Launched in 2018, the WTMC scholarship programme is about supporting club members to gain experience and skills. We often think of the club’s courses in leadership, bushcraft and snowcraft or the local alpine club section courses. These are great courses and an excellent first step on your tramping and mountaineering journey, so be sure to ... Read more
We have passed the first group of school holidays with a good turn out of families staying at the lodge over the two-week period. Unfortunately, only the lower mountain was open for skiing due to the poor covering of snow on the upper mountain. Happy valley was open most days for skiing and the Rangatira ... Read more
The mountain has had more sprinklings of snow indicating that things up there are getting cooler along with the days getting shorter. The lift operator is flat out making snow in the Happy Valley beginners’ area which will be open from Queens Birthday weekend. Our Summer rates apply over Queens Birthday. We can only open ... Read more
The mountain has had a few sprinklings of snow indicating that things up there are gettingcooler along with the days getting shorter. Reflecting on this time last year things were a bit nerve wracking with a close down of thecountry and not knowing what the future would bring for the lodge. We can move into ... Read more
In August 2016 we completed our AIC (Alpine Instruction Course) at Temple Basin in Arthurs Pass. I remember one morning after emerging from our snow cave high up above the ski field, we got the best views of the rising sun lighting up the mountains across the pass. The most prominent of the lot was ... Read more
The ski season is now finished for the year. RAL (the ski field operator) were intending to run for a couple of weeks beyond Labour weekend but a significant loss of snow put an end to that. The Covid situation has made it a highly disruptive time for the lodge, but luckily a recovery was ... Read more
It has been six anxious weeks for us waiting for level 1. Very disappointing for all those who had booked and planned leave, and had great expectations of some great skiing / boarding / tramping / snow climbing. Again, many thanks to the bookings team and our treasurer for their hard work dealing with refunds ... Read more
So the snow is falling and topping up unwanted slots, rocks and crevices. Pretty much on cue as it tends to fall during the first week of the school holidays. LiftsRAL, the lift operator, has advised which lifts will and will not be operating this season. There will be limited lifts operating due to many ... Read more
The Club is trialling a new approach to some of our alpine trips this year. We want to avoid the work that goes into organising an alpine trip that is cancelled due to weather, and to give enthusiastic participants their best chance at getting some time on the snow. Alongside our normal fixed schedule (which ... Read more
“And this is my snow saw,” said Nick, as he removed the gleaming blade from its holster. A strangely curved, unwieldy and yet hugely useful device for creating a snow cave, as I would find out later that weekend. Led by Nick H, we were a band of five who had gamely signed up for ... Read more
Well, we could expect wind, no snow, eruption or earthquake to disrupt our mountain activities but not a nasty hidden bug, no, I will call it a beast. Things have been going very well for our lodge and users with plenty of activity in the summer as well as the winter despite weather problems for ... Read more
28 DEC 2024 – 4 JAN 2025 You won’t find them mentioned in a travel brochure on your high street; you won’t find them in most guidebooks, you probably don’t know anyone that has ever been there and they don’t even appear on some maps of the New Zealand’s South Pacific – these are the ‘forgotten islands’.
The Wellington Phoenix are going back to what worked for them last season as they endeavour to bounce back from successive defeats in the 2024-25 Isuzu UTE A-League. The Phoenix visit Western Sydney Wanderers on Sunday evening after 2-1 losses... The post Isuzu UTE A-League Round 9 Match Preview appeared first on Wellington Phoenix.
The Wellington Phoenix have knocked over the two-time defending Ninja A-League champions to stretch their unbeaten run to a club record four matches. The Phoenix have beaten Sydney FC 2-0 at Porirua Park thanks to milestone second half goals from... The post Ninja A-League Round 7 Match Review appeared first on Wellington Phoenix.
