Glacier Ski and Splitboard Tour
The glacier ski tour can be based out of Tasman Saddle or Kelman huts on either the eastern or western glaciers of Aoraki / Mount Cook or Pioneer or Centennial huts in Westland National Park. Alternatively, we can fly in with an expedition-style tent camp to more remote areas such as the Murchison Glacier. Objectives can be tailored to the experience and aspirations of the group. All venues provide a range of terrain and ski touring objectives.
Options on the Tasman Glacier include Hochstetter Dome, Lendenfeld Saddle, Darwin Bowls, Canyonlands, or crossing over into the Murchison. For trips based on the Fox or Franz Josef glaciers, options include Pioneer Pass, Mount Von Burlow, Grey Peak, and Graham Saddle.
As part of the trip, the guide will provide instruction in important safety skills. These include avalanche awareness and rescue, glacier travel and crevasse rescue, and basic snowcraft, including crampon and ice axe use.
Meeting at our base on the morning of the trip for a gear check, it is a 2.5 hour drive to Mount Cook Village or 4 hours to Fox Glacier township, the staging areas for flights into the mountains. Trips are based from high alpine huts from where it is possible to explore the glacial névés with day packs. The itinerary is flexible and subject to weather.
On the last day, the tour will ski the Haupapa / Tasman Glacier for a helicopter transfer back to the village. It may be possible to undertake a side trip to explore the Bonney and Darwin glaciers. From the huts on the west side of the divide, we ski down to the historic Chancellor Hut for the helicopter ride back down. There are many options to explore the névés, cols, and summits with day packs.
The trip takes place in a remote mountain environment so participants need to have some experience touring and be familiar with their touring equipment. If hiring equipment, we recommend having a few warm-up days around W?naka before the course.
Ski or splitboard crampons are mandatory for glacier trips.
Further advice on equipment can be found in our Knowledge Base articles: Equipment for Ski and Splitboard Touring and Packing for a Glacier Ski Tour.
Includes: Applicable taxes, NZMGA certified guide, all food, mountain accommodation during the trip, transport from W?naka to Mount Cook Village or Fox Glacier, avalanche safety gear, and helicopter flights in and out of the mountains.
Excludes: Ski touring equipment hire. Available from MT Outdoors in W?naka.
If the tour is unable to spend the entire time in the high mountains due to weather, day or overnight trips will be carried out from Mount Cook Village or nearby ski fields.
‘We really had an excellent time with Wanaka Mountain Guides. We feel very fortunate that we were able to spend two awesome days up at Plateau hut and the Oahu ski field / lodge experience was equally unforgettable.’
— — William, Glacier Ski Tour
