A post snowcraft trip to Mt Ruapehu, Simon Williamson What do a bunch of international climbers do to escape the wind in Wellington? They go climbing. The Spanish, Austrian, American, Australian, Kiwi, Samoan team joined the usual long weekend exodus leaving Wellington on Friday afternoon and spent the first few hours sitting in traffic. A stop at the supermarket for a couple of extra items and dinner in Bulls with the Mongrel Mob were the highlights of the trip until we made our way up the mountain to find we were still able to find room in the top carpark. Shouldering our packs and with head torches on, we headed up the hill to the NZAC lodge at Delta corner. Meri took the lead, plugging steps up the side of the ski field, eventually drifting off course. Carolyn got us back on track by climbing a steep slope up to the back of the TTC lodge where the scoured snowpack forced us to don our crampons. A bivvy-eye view from the snow bowl above Whakapapa. Photo: Eric Duggan As we climbed higher on the ridge the force of the wind rose with us. Arriving at the lodge about 11:30pm we were welcomed by an extremely inebriated occupant who had managed to down two liters of cask wine and was barely able to stand. Harlen clearly had a few issues. His aggressive language made us uncomfortable to say the least. When he eventually fell onto his bunk the foul and abusive language went on for hours. Fortunately some of us had ear plugs. But his threats to kill people and the claim that he already had didn’t make for a great night’s sleep. Eric arrived about 04:00am for a few hours kip, followed by Tom around 09:00am, having been held up by the ski patrol who were out bombing. The wind was still intense. But rather than sit in the lodge with Harlen, we decided to pack and head up the mountain with the intention of spending a couple of nights in the crater. For the first 30min the wind was manageable. As we climbed higher, occasional gusts began to stop us in our tracks. Before we were able to reach the top of the ski field the gusts had become so strong and lasted so long that they were forcing us to hug the planet more than half the time. We eventually made it to about 20m below the crater rim. By now we were being blown off our feet. Moses had his bivvy bag ripped off his pack - which he miraculously found on the way down - and Carolyn and Meri, being lighter, were finding it hard to make any forward progress. We needed a new plan. Maybe we could drop into the gully and move up under the shelter of the ridge. We made our way to the edge and could see two ski tourers battling their way up - they didn’t make it to the top. The scoured surfaces combined with the wind gusts and steep slope forced us back down the mountain. Even with the wind behind us, standing was a serious challenge. By the time we got low enough to drop into the gully we had decided to make a full retreat and find some shelter for lunch. Tom pulled out his skis and headed off home. The rest of us, Jurgen, Meri, Eric, Moses, Carolyn and I dropped into a bowl out of the wind and dug in for the night. Jurgen had forgotten his phone charger back at the lodge. He rustled up a posse to go get it. Harlen was already well into his second nights drinking session, entertaining an unlucky group of ski-tourers when they got there. Amongst the group was a previous Wellington section Ruapehu trip member affectionately known as Vomit Greg. Funny how those nicknames stick. Back at the camp, limited cell coverage allowed a check of the forecast. Gale force winds were predicted to continue and go around to the north. No rain or snow though. We eventually stopped climbing up the side of the bowl to bask in the last rays of sunshine and dove into our sleeping bags to keep warm. Gusts of wind continued to batter the tents while Erik and Moses burrowed deeper into their bivvy bags. We all stayed in bed until the sun finally hit our bivvy around 09:00am, bringing the temperature in the tent up to 24 degrees. One of the longest sleeps I’ve had in years. The wind had eased a little as we packed up and headed out of the bowl. No one was motivated to climb back up to the rim. A good thing we didn’t as the wind went around to the north and regained its force. We meandered down, bumsliding our way through the skiers, to a lodge where we called in for lunch, before heading home a day early. In spite of not reaching our initial objective it was a great trip for a bunch of new friends. Right - setting up camp in the snow bowl at Poo Corner. Below - battling to stay upright on the way up. Photos: Moses Fruean In spite of not reaching our initial objective it was a great trip for a bunch of new friends. On the way back to Wellington we rendezvoused at a Thai restaurant in Levin. After such a good trip a beer was in order. Having a BYO licence, we picked up a couple of six packs and took them back to the restaurant. The corkage was $1.20 per glass. As we had gone out to get the beers after we had paid for the meal, we just left when finished. As we said our goodbyes outside, a young waiter appeared requesting payment for the corkage. We paid up, gave him the empties and parted company, vowing to plan another international trip as soon as we could. This image - the NZAC Explorers Club in formation. Photo: Eric Duggan 9th Annual NZAC North Island Ski Touring Meet By Joanna Divett So…it’s skiing uphill? Why would you do that? Ask most people when you try to explain your love of ski touring to them. Luckily, there is a small but growing group of people in New Zealand who completely understand why sweating and sliding your way up a mountain for hours is such a joy. A group of such likeminded crazies could be found tucked away on Mt Ruapehu’s wild side at the ninth annual NZAC North island ski touring meet on the weekend of the 5th and 6th October. This year’s group of 37 newbies and veterans quickly became adventure buddies as they descended upon the small club ski field f
