Many of you will know we flew out to NZ to link up with our son Edward. So as part of the deal I got one day and one mountain to enjoy with him. So today was the day. Amidst one of the biggest depressions to hit NZ in some times we managed to grab one day of decent weather on Mt Ruapehu's highest peak, Tahurangi.
So at 06:30 this morning, Edd and I set off for the short drive up to the ski center car park at Turoa.
The forecast was for sunshine and keen winds. The later would test us on the way down.
Any way the money shots from the day. NinthAce will appreciate the flag.
Whist we were enjoying the summit the wind strengthened, so we cut the planned hour up there well short and headed back down the summit ridge to the steep icy section. It took us nearly three hours to carefully decend the few hundred meters to skyline ridge and I was very happy to be back on rock when we got there. The fun was not over yet though the afternoon sun had weakened the mornings solid frosty surface and the high wind was now throwing pretty shiny little ice crystals straight at us. Not fun at all that bit. We finally dared to come off the relative safety of the ridge a 100mtrs or so above the top of the winter ski runs and enjoyed a snow slide down though the deserted ski lifts for several hundred meters, before finally putting way the axes for the last few hundred meters down to the car.
What an epic day with my lad. We always like to push ourselves within our limits when we get the opportunity and today was spot on.