I had signed up for this trip with the Wellington section several months before. At the moment I’m flitting between cities (and sections of the New Zealand Alpine Club) like a butterfly. However, Ruapehu is conveniently situated between Wellington and Auckland, making it easy for me to settle on. Friday I was the advance party. I got down to Ruapehu first (I wasn’t working that Friday). I made a voyage up to the hut via the poled route. It was perfectly clear, with barely any wind. As I climbed up Delta ridge towards the hut I could see more and more stars over head. Rounding the final snow cap I saw the hut, and was happy to see it lit up (other people were there!). The other two hut occupants were off to attempt to climb up Tahurangi the next day. We had dinner and eventually went to bed at 9ish, thinking that the others would arrive at around 11ish. Saturday I woke the next morning to a hut that was bustling with people and new faces. I met our trip leader (Robert Hawes) and we got packed, ready for the walk up to Paretetaitonga, the 2nd highest peak on Ruapehu at 2751m. We decided to climb up the east ridge of Pare. From the top, we had magnificent views across the crater lake and the surrounding country side. The crater lake below was looking pretty volcanic; gun metal grey, with steam rising from it and a dark streaky curl snaking through it. The whole area was utterly stunning, and we had clear views all around. We descended back down onto the summit area, and decided to take off to Dome shelter for a spot of lunch. After lunch we descended down onto the summit plateau and set off to explore the Cathedral rocks. Trip leader Robert Hawes We split up into two groups and clambered up to just beneath the jagged, ice encrusted Cathedral rocks. From there we could see the tiny black figures of other climbers on various peaks. There was also a great crowd of people forming on Pare. We checked out the South face of Te Heu Heu which we were to climb the next day. It looked pretty impressive from where we were standing. Then we headed back down towards the hut. Being a roasting hot day, we were sweltering by the time we got back to the hut. The hut was packed and everyone there seemed to have had a wonderful day that day. Then we all got to bed early in order to make the most of the following day. Rongo decided to camp out at the Cathedral rocks, so after dinner he went up and spent the night in a snow cave up there. Sunday We got up early and got ready for our attempt of Te Heu Heu. We set off up towards the Plateau bright and early. Crossing the white expanse of the plateau the weather was perfectly clear again, and we headed up towards the bottom of the climb. At this point it was time to get serious. We made sure we had our gear and everything that we would need for the climb. We climbed up to where it started to get quite steep and more exposed, and we put our first anchors in. The snow was quite hard so we put in snow stakes. I was climbing with Reece, and he set off to lead the next pitch. He climbed up then started work on the next anchor, as I belayed. Lorraine and Rob were climbing beside us. I started climbing up next, and I found I did need two tools to get up. I got up to Reece and we sorted ourselves out, I started belaying again, and he started climbing again. He got to the top, just before the end of the 60m rope, which was fortunate! I climbed up, and stopped a couple of times, just to admire the beauty of the scenery, and the thrill of the height around us. Jane climbing Te Heu Heu From where we were you could see Girdlestone and the Eastern side of the mountain, and Whangehu hut as a tiny dot at the end of the glacier, far below. The snow steepened towards the end, and I climbed up to the top. It was fantastic! Rongo and Glen were fast climbers and had gotten to the top first. We met Julie and Steve at the top-they had come up an alternative way. Julie won the stoicism award for going up Te Heu Heu despite a nasty cold (I think I might have been tempted to stay in bed). From the top of Te Heu Heu (2732m) we had a beautiful view of the surrounding areas, towns, rivers, lakes and all the other Mountain ranges covered in snow. Lorraine on Te Heu Heu Thanks very much to Rob Hawes for organising the trip so well and managing the group dynamics well. Thanks also to the weather gods and goddesses for giving us a big high the whole weekend. All in all it was a fantastic and thoroughly successful trip! By Jane Dudley Party: Robert Hawes (Leader), Julie Olds, Jane Dudley, Lorraine Johns, Mike Phethean, Glen Werner, Reece Guersen, Rongo Jeram Patel. UPCOMING CLUB TRIPS
