Lifestyle and Leisure
Climbing and mountaineering in NZ
NZ offers fantastic climbing opportunities. If you are interested in rock or ice climbing, bouldering, or mountain trekking, New Zealand has more than enough to keep you happy
When it comes to Kiwi climbing experiences, attention falls upon the South Island and the Southern Alps. Running alongside the western side of the island, the Southern Alps stretch up to 3,754 metres at Aoraki/Mount Cook. There are 19 other peaks in the range that exceed 3,000 metres, and a large proportion are protected in breathtaking national parks, notably Westland, Mount Aspiring and Aoraki/Mount Cook National Parks. The Southern Alps also contain some 360 glaciers, the largest of which – the Tasman Glacier – is 29 kilometres long. These glaciers make the region ideal for ice climbing.
Although the Southern Alps are small compared with the Himalaya's 8,000 metre plus peaks, in ruggedness and valley to summit altitude gains they offer comparable climbing experiences. It was in these ranges that New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary, one of the two first men to scale Everest, prepared for his epic climb. Sir Edmund crisscrossed the Southern Alps in both summer and winter, and it is still possible to retrace some of these trails today. North Island also has its climbing opportunities. There is the
Raukumara range, the Kaimanawa Mountains, and the Ruahine and Tararura Ranges. Again, there is a connection to the legendary Hillary. His interest in climbing was sparked by a school trip to Mount Ruapehu, a tall volcano in the centre of the North Island, where in summer climbers can scramble over lava flows and scree slopes to the summit.
In New Zealand the most popular climbing season is summer – which runs from November to April. If you are an experienced climber, you can of, course, just strap on your crampons, clip on your carabineers, pick up your ice-pick and go. However, if you feel you need a bit more guidance you will find plenty of climbing companies which organise supervised trips and tours. Look out to see if guides have been trained through the NZMGA (New Zealand Mountain Guides Association) or the IFMGA (International Federation of Mountain Guide Associations). Ultimately, in New Zealand, the only limit to the kind of climbing you can take part in are your fitness levels and the size of your appetite for adventure.
Mountain trekking
Mountain trekking involves both hiking and basic climbing skills, allowing walkers to traverse and climb demanding peaks, but, without the need for sheer-face climbing or masses of specialist equipment. The most popular region for mountain trekking and climbing is the Southern Alps. There are several national parks across this region, but perhaps the most spectacular is the Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park, marked by its huge peaks, wide glaciers and permanent snow fields. With 19 peaks over 3,000 metres, it is New Zealand's climbing mecca.
State Highway 80 leads to Aoraki/Mount Cook Village which is situated beside Lake Pukaki and provides a good climbing base. Accomplished climbers can enjoy probably the best climbing in Australasia, while trekkers can take in alpine tarns, herb fields and spectacular glacier views. If you want a guided climbing experience through the Mount Cook Range, there are a number of companies available. Alpine Recreation, run the Ball Pass Trek in the company of mountain guides. This crosses the Mount Cook Range from the Tasman to the Hooker Valley, following alpine terrain, snow fields and glaciers. Visit Alpine Recreation for more information. Alternatively Alpine Guides run a Mountain Experience Course in the in the Mount Cook Village area, designed for people who want to make their own forays above the snow line. You are taught the basics of snow craft and mountaineering, as well as how to camp/bivvy in an alpine environment.
Ice climbing
With its icy mountains and extensive glaciers New Zealand is an excellent place to practice the precarious art of ice climbing. Using specialised equipment and basic cramponing and ice axe techniques, climbers are able to scale the most vertiginous of pitches. The beauty of ice climbing lies in the variety of climbing feats you can perform. With ice tools and the front points of your crampons you can climb vertically and overhang ice walls and pinnacles.
The best place in New Zealand to practice glacier and ice climbing is the Westland/Tai Poutini National Park. The glaciers in the park stem from snowfields high in the Southern Alps, but Maori legend explains their existence more poetically. They say that a beautiful girl named Hinehukatere loved these mountains and encouraged her lover, Tawe, to climb them with her. He slipped, falling to his death and Hinehukatere's tears formed the glaciers. The area is known as "Ka Roimata o Hinehukatere" – the tears of the avalanche girl.
There are more than 60 glaciers in the park. Two of them – the Fox and the Franz Josef – are the only glaciers in the world to flow down to temperate rainforest. The Department of Conservation maintains a series of alpine huts high in the park, and the towns of Fox Glacier and Franz Josef provide a full range of accommodation. Fox Glacier Guiding offer guided tours across the glacier and ice climbing packages. Visit Fox Guides for information. If you want a thorough introduction, Adventure Consultants offer a five-day Ice Climbing Course in the Southern Alps which teach people to explore different ice faces.
Rock climbing
Rock climbing and bouldering is a great way to explore New Zealand's geology close up. The sport developed from climbers' desire to climb progressively more extreme peaks. To do this, climbers developed better safety equipment, new climbing techniques, and began to climb shorter but more extreme rock climbing routes in order to hone their skills. By the 1920s rock climbing was evolving into a sport in its own right. Since then the sport has developed, with skills of balance, weight distribution, energy conservation and choreography being honed. Equipment has also developed, meaning that belaying (climbers' safety systems) have become more reliable.
The popularity of rock climbing in New Zealand has grown recently, a growth attributed in part to the availability of indoor rock climbing walls and media coverage of New Zealand climbing competitions. When it comes to locations, the South Island and the Southern Alps contain many fantastic routes, as for example, are found around Lake Wanaka and Canterbury. However, there are also crags, boulders and cliff faces to explore on the North Island around places such as Taranaki and Wellington. As mentioned above, New Zealand also has numerous indoor rock climbing venues where you can hone your technique. Auckland alone has five, but every major city has a least one climbing wall.
If you want help beginning rock climbing, the company Wanaka Rock offers courses in the Matukituki Valley on the edge of Mount Aspiring National Park and Lake Wanaka which teach the basics and will act as a springboard for further exploration. In addition the website Climb.co.nz gives useful advice about the sport and where to go.
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