m mm m m m m m m m m m m m mm m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m mmm mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mr mm |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Upcoming Expeditions |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Private Guided Expeditions
Mountain Recreation conducts guided tours and
climbs throughout Mount Aspiring and Mount
Cook National Parks including ascents of Mt.
Aspiring and Mt. Cook during
the Summer and Winter seasons. Over snow options include:
By foot, fancy new & efficient snowshoes or ski
touring eqt.
Aircraft access, food and hut fees extra.
PRIVATE |
|
1st
Person |
2nd
Person |
Add:Food @$39 p/p per day |
Add:Hut Fees @$36/night (1 client & guide using Mt. Cook alpine huts) |
| Note: Hut fees, transport and party food on private guided tours and Copland Pass is individual cost or additional charge. |
COPLAND PASS GUIDED CROSSING:
This famous high alpine pass links Mt Cook and
Westland National Parks. The spectacular mountains and
lush forest views make it an unsurpassed 4 day alpine
trek for strong outdoors people. The pass crossing is on
steep rock and glacier requiring ice axe, crampons and
rope. Your MountainRec. Guide joins you from Mt. Cook to
the West Coast. Groups benefit greatly by the Guide
accompanying them for the whole journey to provide
assistance with routefinding, rivercrossings, logistics
and local knowledge. All personal alpine equipment is
available for rent from Mtn. Rec.
(See
Equipment Lists)
(Trek &
Course Notes)
COPLAND
HELICOPTER OVERFLIGHT and PASS CROSSING CIRCUIT
Start the journey in Wanaka with a drive around to the
end of the Track. A 20 minute breathtaking helicopter
ride then whisks the party (Up to 3 + Guide) up the
Copland valley over the Pass and down to Mt. Cook
village.
The group then starts the tramping/mountain crossing up
the Hooker valley.
This is our recommended and prefferred circuit. It is and
exciting and much safer and efficient format to use than
other options available.
Cost: (For party of 3 with one guide) $1180 per
person
Includes: Transport to Fox from Wanaka,
helicopter ride to Mt. Cook, 4 days guiding fee, alpine
eqt. ice axe and crampons.
Does not include hut fees and food (incl. guide) We can
supply for an additional $230 per person.
Cost for 2 persons: $1750 per person
THE COPLAND PASS CROSSING updated March 2001----- From Mt Cook to Fox Glacier Ó Geoff Wayatt, Mountainrec, Wanaka New Zealand
There are several classic alpine tramps through the Southern Alps and the Copland Pass trans-alpine crossing is right at the top. It's physically tough, technically demanding and weather dependent. The Pass is glaciated, crevassed and bounded by rock ridges and loose scree slopes and in icy or stormy conditions can be exposed and treacherous. Yet each summer hundreds of people successfully cross the Pass, usually from East to West. However,over the past 5 years wash-outs on the Hooker Glacier moraine wall have made the route a more serious mountaineering undertaking. Parties must have ice axe, rope and crampon skills or the assistance of a Guide for the whole 4 day trip.
ACCESS:The track commences at Mt Cook National Village which is serviced by daily bus and plane transport from Christchurch. At the West Coast end of the track there is regular north and south bound public transport. An InterCity bus passes Karangarua Bridge around 2PM daily heading North to Fox Glacier township(15 minutes)
INFORMATION: Current pass and track condition can be obtained from the Dept. of Conservation Field Centre at Mt. Cook or the Fox Glacier Field Centre
HUTS: Hooker
Hut has 12 bunks - fee ($18/night). There is an emergency
shelter at 1830m, just below the Pass. Douglas Rock Hut
(benches/10 persons) & Welcome Flat Hut
(Floor-mattresses/40 persons) (fee - $14/night) have only
wood stoves so it's advisable to carry personal cooking
equipment. All the huts are radio equipped for weather
updates and emergencies.
The Copland Pass by Geoff Wayatt,Email:geoff@mountainrec.co.nz
Recent debate over the future of Hooker hut has brought
the Copland Pass crossing into the spotlight. Mountain
Guide, Geoff Wayatt has been guiding people over the Pass
since 1966. His Company, Mountain Recreation, Wanaka last
guided a party on a 4-day trip in February 2001. In this
article he describes the classic alpine crossing and
changes. It's a physically tough journey and weather
dependent, requiring some mountain skills.
The actual Pass is glaciated, crevassed and bounded by
rock ridges being one of the highest non-technical routes
across the Southern Alps. In adverse weather the steep,
loose, scree slopes can be icy and treacherous; storm
conditions can make the crossing impassabl e. Yet, in
past summers hundreds of people have successfully crossed
the Pass, usually from east to west. For experienced
trampers unfamiliar with ice axe, rope and crampon skills
the crossing becomes feasible by hiring the services of a
professional mountain guide. Guiding companies have
stopped providing a two-day drop-off service to the west
of the Pass, however groups gain considerably from
guiding assistance for the whole four-day trip.
Over the past decade washouts on the Hooker Glacier
moraine wal l have made the route a more serious
mountaineering undertaking. Parties must have ice axe,
rope and crampon skills or the assistance of a Guide for
the whole 4-day trip. The rewards for the effort are both
spectacular and dramatic; from close up awe-inspiring
views of Mt. Cook to the immense rock walls, hanging
glaciers and turbulent streams on the Westland side of
the Alps. What it's like and how long it takes Details
included here are the main features and locations. The
times have been averaged over several trips over a
decade. A party should seriously consider whether their
fitness level is adequate for the crossing, based on time
taken to Fitzgerald stream.
Mt Cook campground (730m) to Fitzgerald Stream. (1,000m)
Time: 3-4hrs Elevation gain: 270m.
A well graded track leads past the Hooker river swing
bridges. After another 30 mins walking, the track reaches
the Hooker Glacier terminal lake. Here the track
deteriorates.
The old track along the terrace unusable due to large
washouts. Follow the western bouldered shoreline of Lake
Hooker travelling along the moraine covered glacier to
the outflow fan of Fitzgerald stream. The route involves
30 minutes of scrambling close to the splashing waves of
the milky lake water dotted with ice lumps. Above the l
ake looms a steep, unstable moraine wall, not a place to
linger or tackle when raining. The old Hooker hut sits
renovated but almost inaccessible on a vegetated terrace
south of Fitzgerald stream. Bounded by like moraine walls
like a Tibetan monastery, i t's future on the site is
short, bleak and lonely, the famed ghost of Hooker hut
possibly being it's only regular visitor. A five-six hour
alternative is possible via the east Hooker terraces and
a crossing of the Hooker glacier moraine.
Fitzgerald Stream to Copland Shelter (1830m)
Access onto the Copland ridge involves travelling further
up the glacier to the next stream to gain access via a
slumping terrace and steep scree slope. This was route
was used in the 1970's by climbers returning to Hooker
hut from the upper glacier. The long scrubby and
bouldered terrace at the base of the ridge is one of the
proposed new sites for Hooker hut. I appears relatively
stable and fulfill the removal of the hut to an alternate
close site and retain a strategicall y placed hut for the
Copland Pass crossing. Tenting or bivouacing is possible
here. A large scree slope leads to a steep, scrubby rock
ridge weaving up through outcrops and short faces and
scree leads to the Copland Shelter. The barrel shaped
shelter has bunk space for four and watertank. Built as
an emergency shelter it is sited just below the pass on
an exposed ridge. It now provides the only shelter
between Mt. Cook village and Douglas Rock hut.
Shelter to Copland Pass (2150m) Time: 1 hour Elevation:
320m
Ice Axe, Crampons & rope are used from here to the
Pass and crevasse conditions necessitate caution.
Traverse behind the hut to the snow shoulder and climb to
the north of the rock ridge. The actual pass is an
obscure low point in the jagged ridge a ccessed by a snow
traverse for 100m. Above a large bergschrund(crevasse).
Copland Pass to Douglas Rock Hut Time: 6-7 hours
Elevation drop: 1450m
Descend a 50m steep rock gully on the West Coast side,
followed by a long scree slope into snow basin. Cross a
large rock moraine at a notch and descend left into a
lower snow basin. There a large rock (Elev. 1700m) in the
basin which can provide some shelter and visual
reference. A long scree slope emerges into a cairned
route, which crosses the stream above a waterfall to the
zigzags (1100m) and alpine herbfields. A well-formed
track, apart from stream and avalanche washouts leads to
Douglas Rock Hut (700m) at the corner of the valley,
nestled in the first patch of fuschia forest. It is worth
regular stops to absorb the ambience of this part of the
valley and the superb seasonal flower showings.
Douglas Rock Hut to Welcome Flat Hut Time: 3 hours
Elevation drop: 325m.
Immediately cross the Tekano stream suspension bridge and
sidle on a slippery benched track a bove the Copland
River gorge. After 1-1/2 hr walking, the valley opens out
at the unbridged Scott's creek crossing. Some easy
walking under the rata covered ramparts of Mt. Sefton and
Scott's peak lead to Welcome Flat hut and it's hot
springs shortly afte r crossing the Copland River bridge
at the end of the Flat.
Welcome Flat to West Coast Road Time: 5-6 hours Elevation
drop: 355m.
The track improves steadily on the two-hour descent to
Architect Creek. Most of the significant streams have
flood bridges. Glimpses of the rugged peaks and shiny
quartz-patterned river boulders contrast vibrant and
enveloping forest growth of rimu kahika tea and lattice
of fern fronds. Shortly after the halfway point at Pick
and Shovel Flat, the track noticeably improves due to a
bygone era of horseback access. The Karangarua Bridge on
Highway 6 is first sighted 40 minutes from the carpark at
Rough Creek, which has a flood bridge 30 minutes
upstream. An intentions/signout box is available plus
camping for sandfly and mosquito hardened trave lers. A
vehicle track leads 100m to Highway 6 and bus shelter.
It's the end of the classic alpine tramp, finishing at
50m elevation and a mere 20klm from the Tasman Sea.
ACCESS The track commences at Mt Cook National village
which is serviced by daily b us and plane transport from
Christchurch. At the West Coast end of the track there is
regular north and southbound public transport. An
InterCity bus passes Karangarua Bridge around 2PM daily
heading North to Fox Glacier township (15 minutes)
INFORMATION: Pass and track condition can be obtained from the Dept. of Conservation Field Centre at Mt. Cook (Ph: (3)435 1818 or the Fox Glacier Field Centre - Ph:(3)751 0807. HUTS: Copland Shelter (4 bunks) $18/night. Douglas Rock Hut (benches/10 persons) & Welcome Flat Hut (Floor-mattresses/40 persons) (fee - $10/night) All the huts are radio equipped for weather updates and emergencies. Personal cooking equipment must be carried. Maps: NZMS 1S78 Bruce Bay & 1S79 Mt. Cook
References:
Shell Guide to the Copland Track - Philip Temple,
Whitcoulls. Mt Cook Guidebook - Hugh Logan,NZAC.
(see MailOrder Sales)