A pillow, curtains, carpet, even a hot shower. I like this style of alpine climbing! Staying at the lodge on Whakapapa is a great way to soften the blow of an alpine start. Our crew were up at 5am and out the door by 6am on Saturday morning, and we enjoyed the soft glow of … Read more
A whole week of snow made for an ominous avalanche forecast on Ruapahu, however we knew we’d be heading up to Ohakune as we had booked non-refundable accomodation at the LKNZ hostel in the town. On the morning of departure our other two members of the team reluctantly withdrew on the basis that it was … Read more
Like the other snowcrafters who had recently completed the WTMC snowcraft course, I was itching to get out on a “real trip” to see what it was like. I had found snowcraft hard. The physical and mental effort required was so much greater than tramping, and I found it frustrating that I couldn’t seem to … Read more
It was the weekend before last, a double bluebird day, a rarity. As a recent ‘snowcrafter’ I found myself visiting the Tongariro Alpine Crossing to get in some practice. However, my eyes were constantly drawn to beauty. Stood there, timeless, always in my peripherals, Mt Ngauruhoe. It was then I knew I had to return, … Read more
Summiting Ruapimple – Ruapehu’s baby brother An easy climb to the summit of Pukeonake the lowest named volcanic peak in Tongariro National Park Two van loads of happy WTMC trampers reached our lodge close to midnight. Everything was completely fogged in. Luckily the green lights up at XXC gave a good hint where to stop … Read more
Journey prep at the station after work on Friday involved us fitting five bikes, eight people and eight packs into and onto the van. The jigsaw came together well with people generally strapped in seats and bikes generally strapped to the bike rack so we had a comfortable if slow journey up to the lodge … Read more
INTRODUCTION The purpose of running the trip as an Alp1 “PLUS” was to give experienced Alp1-level members a chance to try something with a bit more exposure, and maybe needing the occasional rope to make crossing certain features safer. This proved to be a very popular proposal, and despite this being a Fit trip I … Read more
I signed up to this trip with very unalturistic motives – I was enormously curious to see the “lodge” that everyone at the club keeps talking about. In my head I pictured one of the huts on the great walks – which most trampers consider the height of luxury – and have flush toilets, lights … Read more
After a relatively quick ride to WTMC Ruapehu Lodge, we had the general introduction – we were asked to kindly not to put the lodge on fire and told when we were expected to be ready for the tramps. The lodge is much more comfortable than a road end since road ends don’t have spring mattresses, … Read more
Dan’s Red Crater group pretty much got to do what they set out to do, but didn’t exactly get to see what they set out to see. We left Wellington early Friday evening under an even mix of blue sky and high cloud. By the time we reached Kapiti, there was no cloud, the blue seemed bluer … Read more