Sunday, July 24, 2011

A week of it - activities at the Snow Farm, Cardrona Valley, Central Otago

Over the years I've posted often about my predilection for cross country skiing at the Snow Farm, so this week I thought I'd share more of the flavour of the place. It's rather unique for New Zealand, as it incorporates not only skiing, but vehicle testing and a whole lot of other things.

My preferred activity is to ski out to the area boundary alone on dusk. This is a privilege I appreciate very much, and comes about due to a long friendship with the owners. This view is looking north towards Lake Hawea. Sometimes it's possible to see Mt Cook from here...
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Bob Lee hut on the skyline...
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On my return I often meet JP on the trail. He lives in a tent all season near Meadow Hut, and often works at Biathlon coaching at the Snow Farm or ski patrolling at the nearby by downhill terrain park area [yet another aspect of the facilities], so being an athlete in training he runs up to the Snow Farm from that area at a slightly lower altitude, and then skis mostly downhill on cross country skis to his little home...
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While most people know the Snow Farm as a facility for recreation on the snow, the real business in the area is the Southern Hemisphere Proving Grounds. While it's summer in the north cars, tires, car parts, snow blowers etc. are tested at 12 large building facilities all scattered around a very large area and largely hidden from the public.

When it's all boiled down to it machines like this grader on the right, or the groomer below are what keeps the life blood of the area flowing, night and day...
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But this is more the scene I experience in the dark. Traveling on light skis on good snow and trails at this 1500 mt altitude is amazing. Not just how the stars twinkle, but the enormity of the space that they sit in...
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During daylight hours this is more the scene the public knows...
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And if the wind if good, then not far from the car-park this is a preferred activity for sometimes up to a doz. brave souls...
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In another area or zone there are skidoo tours. Here is a group of several setting off. The two helicopters in the back ground are dropping off a wedding party, but they are also often seen parked up here, assisting with the filming of commercials or movies...
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A wedding party heading away from the helicopters to go dog sledding...
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Meanwhile the latest cars to be tested cruise by, all upholstered so people like me can't take photos that are of interest to auto magazine editors...
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The bride is encased in furs for her sled tour - Siberian huskies are used predominately...
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The sledder or musher harnesses the team...
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The groom heads off following...
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Meanwhile the world's top athletes train and race both classic and skate nordic skiing...
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And lastly today, I did yet another tour with my good friend Vicky. We knew a severe weather system was coming, but decided to sneak in a trip to Meadow Hut. It caught us on the return.

From the moment we left we encountered Antarctica like temps. and an absolutely cutting and ruthless southerly wind. It was interesting to observe myself and feel the old apprehension again that arises on meeting such bluntness, then to remember [and practice] that the first prerequisite of being safe in such conditions is to be calm of mind!

Maybe minus 15 oC and 30-40 knots - makes for an extreme wind chill factor. Camping was not an option as we groped our way back...
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It's important to breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. In these conditions icicles were forming in the small hairs that populate the entrance to both my nostrils, and I had to safeguard against frost-nip [mild frost bite] to the flesh on my cheeks below the glasses, but the beard really does help elsewhere...
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And this smily lady was on her way back to the Lodge - her job to clean the two huts in the area ready for the next groups - often from schools. She stopped on her skidoo to check we were OK, so out with the camera! ...
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So it's a pretty interesting place. I sometimes liken it to Disney Land, but every winter at some point I'm reminded these are real mountains, and it's a total privilege to have access to them on my doorstep, and to be able to travel lightly amongst them with great people!

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Sunday, July 17, 2011

The pleasant aftermath of quite a storm

This weekend we've experienced the positive benefits of quite a spell of wild weather. Front after front dropped up to 2 meters of snow on the local ski areas, and probably double that back in the Southern Alps.

It was a pretty unusual cycle though, as a lot of it happened accompanied by gale force south west winds. This is not a usual wind direction for winter storms around here.

Lake Wanaka with Roys Peak on the right, when it cleared on Friday morning. A year and a bit ago I traversed this ridge from right to left just before the winter snows arrived. Now it'd be quite an undertaking, but one I prefer to just imagine in the current conditions...
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As the storm petered out many southerly fronts tried to reach us, but we're just a bit to far away [this is not the case for nearby Queenstown which is open to the south]...
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A tele shot of Roys Peak as the weather finally cleared...
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A few of my friends have ski toured it this weekend, but it's not that good a run, but what is unusual right now and when I did the same many years ago, and it's a "full on" alpine proposition, and this is rather unique being so close to town. That's me taking a break on the way up...
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As the storm cleared a full moon was revealed...
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An 8 sec time exposure looking towards Treble Cone [groomer lights] and Black Peak to the the right...
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And so when Sat. arrived everyone who skied went skiing.

Up the Cardrona Valley this unusual cloud formed at about noon...
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By the time I'd skied to the saddle near Bob Lee hut it'd morphed into this amazing affair that seemed to magnify the sun...
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With winter now in full swing, there is more than just cross country skiing to engage the interest...
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One thing we discovered at the comparatively new Meadow Hut is that the side walls lieing to the sun do a lovely job of warming up cold backs. Here my friends Vicky, Mario, Hill and Sarah test the facility...
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Moving on we enjoyed this view of Mt Aspiring and a sun bathe out of the wind in the shelter Bob Lee hut. I know I've published shots of the vista before, but it never ceases to grab my attention. There are just so many mountains, and of course trillions or more snow flakes have fallen on them...#alttext#

And swinging the eye around the right a little in the foreground are the historic Criffell Diggings. The highest altitude in NZ where gold mining has been carried out, many years ago...#alttext#

On my return to town I could not resist making this image as cold and silence settle on us for the night...
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Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Slipping and sliding and storms and things

The weather has really been the big topic for discussion for the last several weeks, with the chatter initially being about the snow not coming.

Well historically we've always been lucky if it came before the old school holiday's mid term break, but no, marketing spin-doctors steal the show. But now the spell is broken and it's been dumping especially in the Southern Alps.

I've been happy to have had my first wee nordic ski on Sunday, between fronts and before the area opens to the public.

The spindrift was inspiring...
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My friend Karl does some packing, thinking it's good to use 8 ton of groomer opportunistically, before the next metre arrives in a few hours...
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I think I'm smiling - my first day out on skis - my 44th NZ winter season tearing it up. I'm incredibly grateful the years and follies have treated me well...
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Only an hour after this shot, the next front was upon us...
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On driving off I noticed no one bothered to dig this one out from the previous dump...
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But my turn came down the hill as the storm progressed! I slid/parked here to help two cars in the ditch well to the right...
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It's a bit of a story:
Then the big camper you can see above on the right, came down and started sliding way up the road - it sailed alongside and miraculously snuck into the space between me and the two cars! All had chains on and all impacted at about 35 degrees to the drifts. No damage to any, better yet no souls harmed not withstanding some falling over and landing heavily.

So while trying to get it all sorted out.. well actually I just txtd them up the hill and asked for a grader.

So in a few minutes an old mate Rosco who works up there arrived in another Land Cruiser like mine with tractor-like lock diffs. It was nice to see a familiar face! So we considered pulling me out as I could not go forward, but frankly you could not even stand on the road in the picture without sliding. And me being near 3 ton and his maybe 2.5 - we deferred that decision!

It then became quite a problem to stop others coming anywhere near us. Those that did we told them to keep seriously to the right and not attempt to stop. Try that on ice - walking alongside giving instructions through their windows

Then another mate John came in a grader [by this time it's dark] and soon all were towed out, leaving me enough room to drive out [actually seemed less scary to not be towed].

So we headed down into the growing dark...
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In the old days it was like right now... deep snow is right down to the valley floor.

So modern day skiers of say several years experience have chains, but obviously on Sunday did not know how to drive to the camber and what grit there is. Easy to be critical after 43 winters, but we still have to learn. It's been so long the lessons came my way as well!

As I post this we're between fronts again so I had a walk to town...
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But there is more to come - just look west and marvel at it all, and how each snowflake has fallen in it's proper appointed place...
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PS Readers are telling me they can't leave comments. Something has broken at Google's end. I've tried resetting to no avail. Watch this space - a rebuild and upgrade has already started. We're moving to my beloved WordPress platform.

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Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Seeing things differently

Life is all about perception, and here is a selection from the last few weeks! [hmm... a selection of perceptions, seems not quite correct English.. but, oh well]

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