I went to New Zealand expecting a magical place and I certainly got that. However it was not in the way I anticipated. I expected Europe (great accessible snow and sport climbing) what I got was a remoteness, small ski fields and un-travelled climbs.
With a population of about a million (roughly) on the south island, an island much the same size as Ireland, it is soon evident how sparsely populated the island is and how remote you can get. While snowboarding in Europe, if you don't actually live underneath the lift station, then you make use of the (generally) free shuttle bus to the lift, which is maybe a 20 min drive. Whereas here in New Zealand, no one lives close to the lift. Everyday, we drove the 40km trip to get to Cardrona or Treble Cone our closest two ski resorts, half of which was on an unsealed road, the edges of which were barely marked with posts, twisting and turning its way up a mountain.
Will I miss Wanaka? Yes!! Will I come back to Wanaka and New Zealand? Definitely! But my reasons for returning wouldn't be solely for climbing and snowboarding as they were on this trip. I would come for the remoteness, the sense of adventure, the scenery, the mountains not for the fresh tracks or a new grade.
1 comment:
good write-up. Describes NZ pretty well. Basically don't go there but big ambitions in sport - just go for the scenery.
think we all learned that while there!
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