Winter Gardening

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Winter Gardening Andrew Chinn and Simon Wakeman It all started over a beer at the Malthouse some time in May. A small group of WT&MC punters rallied to Gabriel Ossenkamp': 's call for a ski touring trip to somewhere in the Southern Alps. Having spent a brilliant week the winter before ski touring at the head of the Tasman Glacier, he was keen to repeat the adventure. poured over maps and swilled beer as much shape, we elected to use a local farmer's W discussed the merits of various locales helicopter service to carry us as far in as possible and when we could all get leave before and justified it by saying we wanted to maximise finally settling on the Garden of Eden in August- our time on the plateau. For the return trip we September. organised the Erewhon horses to meet us at McCoy The fearless four consisted of Gabriel, Mark Ryan, Hut (where the Frances River flowed into the Clyde Simon Wakeman, and Andrew Chinn. We later River) to carry our gear back to Erewhon. enlisted Jeremy Tries and advertised for more but to However, even before this ill-fated trip had begun, no avail. The plan was to get up onto the Garden of the group was quickly whittled down to three when Eden, which along with the adjoining Garden of first Mark fell while on a practice trip at Ruapehu, Allah are two very impressive ice plateaux just to breaking several ribs, and then the following weekend the west of the Main Divide of the Southern Alps. Gabriel tore the cartilage in his knee in an apparent Our planned route (if we were to walk) started at judgment from the gods that he too was not fit to Erewhon Station, made famous by nineteenth enter the Garden of Eden. Soi it was Jeremy, Andrew, century novelist Samuel Butler who wrote about the and Simon who met in Christchurch on 2 September place named for N-O-W-H-E-R-E spelt backwards. 2000 to prepare for this perilous journey. The route goes from Erewhon some 20 km up the Sunday 3rd Sept Clyde and Frances rivers before branching up the After a late night furiously sorting gear and Colin Campbell and Wee McGregor glaciers and onto weighing packs, we made an alpine start from Perth Col at 2018m. From here in winter, with all the Christchurch for the two-hour drive to Erewhon, slots filled in, we understood it would be an easy passing through some spectacular country including sidle across and onto the Garden of Eden. Once the Lord of the Rings set of a full-sized medieval village there, we would base ourselves in a snowcave around on top of a rock buttress shortly before Erewhon. Adams Col at 1951m and explore the area on skis, We timidly introduced ourselves to Colin Drummond, perhaps climbing one or two easy peaks. the Erewhon farmer whose farmgate sported the sign Gabriel, who had taken the early lead in the "Forgive those who trespass? Not me Ishoot the organisation, presented us with three options: (1) bastards' " - Low cloud at Erewhon promised to delay walking from Erewhon Station (about 1-1° days), our flight for a few hours but after offering us a quick perhaps with the aid of horses from the farmer at cup of tea, Christine, the farmer's wife, called our Erewhon for the price of a dozen Speights and some pilot at Mesopotamia Station and thirty minutes later pocket money for his daughter; (2) flying from Jeremy and Andrew, with one pack dangling in a Erewhon, either in a "mini-chopper" belonging to woolsack underneath, were hovering above the thei farmer at Mesopotamia (next to Erehwon) at $150 middle of the Colin Campbell Glacier. It is quite a per person, although this would possibly only get us shock being SO quickly transported from the security as far as the lower slopes; or (3) with Mt Hutt of civilisation and set down in the middle of the helicopters in a proper machine" at about $250 mountains, and they were still getting to grips with per person right up onto the ice field. Being a winter thei new environment as the chopper reappeared with trip, we estimated we would have a considerable Simon and the rest of the gear slung casually amount of gear including skis, poles, avalanche underneath. transceiver, shovel, crampons and ice axe, rope and Low cloud had prevented the chopper getting up harness, not to mention nine days' food and enough to Perth Col, but no sooner had the chopper gone fuel to melt snow for water for that time (meaning than the cloud lifted off, leaving the daunting 700m packs which eventually weighed in at 30kg each, vertical climb in full view. A deep wet layer of snow plus 5kg of ski equipment). With none of us being in still covered everything after a big dump the week Tramping and Mountaineering 2000 before, SO the going was slow as we clambered his bedding and Jeremy went to put in a cooking around al big hole between the Colin Campbell and vent when "WHUMPF!" the roof collapsed. In Wee McGregor glaciers. Finally we were able to put depressed silence and failing light we hurriedly on skis and skins and travelling suddenly became pitched the tent, cooked some dinner, and set up the much more natural. Nevertheless, the slog with heavy mountain radio for the weather forecast. packs criss-crossing up the true-left side of the Wee Tuesday 5th Sept McGregor, being careful to avoid any avalanche With the weather predicted to deteriorate, we were territory, was a rude introduction for those who not keen to get alternate accommodation to the tent many! hours before had been sipping lattes with the sorted out the next day. Simon maintained the Kelty Wellington set. Windfoil was a four-season mountaineering tent, but After six hours we arrived at the Col, dug a being an American brand we were not sure what it platform, and pitched the tent as cloud began to drift would handle and SO we scrutinised the local terrain in. We then discovered that Simon had lugged up a for an alternative cave site using a basketless ski pole whole extra salami and al bottle of Mountain Thunder as a probe, but hit hard ice layers everywhere. There (mulled wine), which was only meant to be brought was, however, a cohesive 50cm layer just below the along if the chopper was definitely taking us all the surface that could be easily cut into large blocks with way to Perth Col. But all we wanted was water and a ski ideal for making an igloo. As Jeremy claimed quick energy replacement before our first mountain his heritage includes one-quarter Eskimo, he was put radio call, and then sleep. in charge of construction while Simon and Andrew Monday 4th Sept were put to work in the quarry. The cloud cleared The next morning the visibility was just enough during the morning giving us our best views of the for us to navigate onto the plateau along the route trip and at times we could see all the way to the we had picked the evening before, but once on the Great Unknown and through the Col down to the plateau the cloud cleared briefly to give us some Garden of Allah. It took most of the rest of the day spectacular views of monstrous white expanses but as the cloud came in that evening we ate in the strangely reminiscent of Antarctica. Back came the relative luxury of our fully finished igloo complete cloud and for the first time we put our GPS set to with below floor entrance. Since it was late and the work. In complete whiteout, even on skis with a tent was all set up we decided to move into our new compass, iti is virtually impossible to travel in as straight and much more spacious abode in the morning. line without someone walking some distance behind Ominously, the 7.30pm mountain radio forecast that correcting your path. We cursed Andrew for his evening foretold thunderstorms, gale force winds, wayward direction, accusing him of drunkenness as and heavy snow. he wandered left then right, but quickly shut up after Wednesday 6th Sept having a go in front ourselves. The route across the At 3am the terror struck. The advent of gale force plateau to Adams Col, our proposed camp, was winds turned the tent into a quivering piece of nylon, mostly flat, tending downhill at the end, and once clinging on for its life and those of its startled we had mastered walking in a straight line we made occupants. Despite being on the lee side of the Col, good time with the GPS taking us right to the Col. the wind still managed to come around the hill and We spent some time hunting for a good snowcave pummel the tent into turmoil. Together with frequent site, testing snow depth and trying to avoid avalanche flashes of lightning and snow building up around the risk we couldn'treally see, and chose a place on the tent, our comfortable sleeping vessel became a weak bank off the Col, just in the lee of the wind coming up shell barely separating us from the horror outside. from the Garden of Allah. Wel had spent a fewl hours Sleep was no longer an option but when daylight digging by the time we hit water ice and rock. Our appeared Andrew struggled into his frozen wet plans for a "walk-in palace" disappeared like the weather gear and escaped the cramped quarters of mountains in the mist but we still hoped to salvage a the tent to the storm outside. Tol his dismay, the high reasonable home with 21 people off one side and one wind combined with driven snow had severely eroded off the other. "A classic Ruapehu cave, " Andrew said. the igloo, snowblasting the windward wall SO thin "The roof may be al little thinner than we would like that sections of the roof had collapsed. Together we but it's only going to snow more and besides, attempted patching the damage but with little success, snowcaves never collapse. Famous last words! We and SO retreated inside the ruins of our igloo for a had it all decked out polished smooth sleeping council of war. With the drop in temperature brought platform, storage shelves, cooking platform, even an on by the storm, the snowl became dry and powdery igloo arch entranceway when al big crack opened and nothing would stick. We could still cut blocks in the ceiling. Dubiously Simon started setting up but they would not adhere. Tramping and Mountaineering 2000

Climbing on wet avalanche debris Andrew Chinn We decided our first priority was to shore up the with water. Andrew and Jeremy had bivvy bags to small wall around the tent, and SO we spent the rest protect their sleeping bags from the water but not of the day battling the howling gale to cutl blocks and Simon, and even with all his gear on he shivered stack them up against the windward side of our wall. interminably as the night plunged into the darkest At its peak the wind gusts were strong enough to hours. With the incessant flapping of the tent and pick us up and throw us back along the ground. By frequent intense flashes of lightning we could not evening though we had an impressive two-metre- sleep, and at lam Andrew decided we could hide in high wall that afforded the tent reasonable shelter, our pits no longer. He ordered us to pack our sleeping albeit that the tent seemed not to have noticed as its bags, don wet weather gear, and pushed our backs back end was still being hit by massive swirls coming against the walls, waiting for thei inevitable rip of the over the wall. tent and for the full force of the storm to envelop us. By evening snow and hail drifting in between the For sixl hours we sat, pleading for sleep but unable to tent and wall of the tent had bowed the tent sides stop thinking about the impending doom sipping alarmingly. This protected one end off the tent from lattes in Wellington seemed a distant and hopeless wind but the other end flapped and shook like it was dream. possessed with demons. The accumulated snow was Thursday 7th Sept also melting through the inner wall SO that, together But the tent held, and with the coming of daylight with the deluge that blasted through the door every our desperation abated and the wind also appeared time someone went in or out, the floor was awash to ease. We nervously awaited an extra radio call Tramping and Mountaineering 2000 we had scheduled with the mountain radio service, small avalanches below him and when we regularly and communicated our plan to "dig in" attempt heard the cracks of new avalanches setting off from another snowcave, only much smaller this time. the sides of the valley we waited anxiously to discover However, the forecast was for the northerly storms whether there was a barrage of snow coming our to ease the following day but with an immediate way. Therefore, it was with huge relief that we switch to southerly storms, lasting up till Sunday at reached the Colin Campbell Glacier without event least. and were finally clear of avalanche danger. The idea of four more nights stuck in what We were now below the cloud and put our skis on promised to be a miserably cramped snowcave was for our only downhill ski of the trip, down the gentle too daunting a prospect. Instead, we steeled ourselves slope of the glacier. Tired legs, a heavy pack, and for an escape across the ice plateau and down the soft mountaineering boots made it hard work and valley to the nearest hut. We made a mountain radio Andrew especially was often left cast in the snow call to notify our change ofintentions, buried all food with skis in the air. It was late afternoon when we and gear not regarded as essential (including a still- reached the flat ground at the glacier terminus where unopened bottle of Mountain Thunder and salami), it meets the Frances River. With all the new snow we and hastily struck camp. Everything was rimed with were able to don skins and ski down the true right of ice - we had to use insulation tape to hold the skins the river to where the Agnes Stream entered. When on our skis. For the poor stretched tent, just the extra the snow finally got too thin and the sky too dark, weight of us on the snow around it while trying to we continued on foot along relatively easy ground dig it out was too much. Two poles snapped, ripping with head torches on and our skis strapped on our the tent badly, and we gave up. It would have taken packs, clambering over the plenty of rocks and one another hour to dig it out of the ice and snow and it set of bluffs. The snow had turned to sleet and then was already 10am by the time we got moving on rain and we were all drenched through by the time what promised to be a veryl long day. we reached the point of our one river crossing and The route was simple enough retrace our steps staggered across to McCoy Hut at 11pm. A fireplace across the garden to Perth Col, down the valley to and dry wood awaited us, and after an hour of drying the Colin Campbell Glacier (where the chopper had out we were able to contemplate sleep for the first dropped us), down this to the Frances River, then time in 48 hours. another 7 km down to McCoy Hut. In the complete Friday 8th Sept whiteout, however, we were trusting the GPS to keep The next day we took a well-earned rest day, us on course and away from the icefalls along the apportioned our remaining rations, and prepared for side of the Garden. We made good progress with the final walk out. We got on the mountain radio the wind at our backs across the Garden and were letting them know we were out okay and sorted out soon over Perth Col. our horse pick-up for thei morning, the idea being to The valley of the Wee McGregor has steep slides start walking and meet them half way. While it and is the only real unavoidable avalanche terrain continued to rain, we huddled around the fire drying on the route we used. On the trip in, the snow had our gear or reading in our pits. been old and the chance of a slab avalanche much Saturday 9th Sept less than a point-release wet slide. Evidence of these The freezing level rose over night and all the snow had been all over the sunny slopes and indeed several that had been falling further up was now falling as slow-moving wet slides happened while we were rain, consequently the Frances River and McCoy there but we had easily avoided these by staying on Stream increased dramatically in size. We learned the shady side of the valley. However, now the whole through the mountain radio that there was no way valley appeared to be coated in a deep layer of fresh the Erewhon horses could get across the river and snow, which posed a significant slab avalanche risk, they strongly recommended we also stay put, SO and with almost no visibility we could only guess another rest day was forced upon us. where the avalanches might occur. We took the Sunday 10th Sept gamble and hurried down the middle of the valley as Byi mountain radio we discovered the Clyde River fast as we could, staying as far apart as the murk was still too high for Erewhon horses to cross down would allow. by the station, and they had problems of their own Due to thel low visibility and steepness of the slope, with a mini-hydroelectric dam washed out. But with skiing with heavy packs was not practical and SO the Frances River and McCoy Stream dropping and we staggered down on foot in snow that was waist- the rain easing off we decided to see how far we deep in places, dragging our skis behind. Jeremy, could get, and crossed the McCoy Stream outside who had bravely taken the lead, set off a couple of the hut with relative ease. Tramping and Mountaineering 2000

Viewup Clyde River with Lawrence River entering from right Andrew Chinn The plan then was to stay on the true left of the On arrival at Erewhon we discovered we were Clyde - the usual route is to follow the true right not the only ones whol had had bad weather severe all the way to Erewhon Station. The map showed flooding throughout Canterbury and tornadoes in our only major river crossing would be where the Hokitika had taken their toll, including washing out Lawrence joined the Clyde some 51 km from Erewhon all the fords on the road back to Mt Somers making Station. We had clear riverbed and fast walking all it impassable for Jeremy's Nissan Bluebird. The the way to the Lawrence River, where we found a Drummonds kindly offered us their shearers quarters wide braid and crossed this without too much and a big feed of bacon and eggs to keep us going drama. However, contrary to the map, from here until news came through at about 11am on Monday the combined might of the Lawrence and Clyde that the grader had done its job. As we drove down continually slammedi into bluffs on the true left of the the widening Rangitata River valley, surrounded by valley, forcing us to repeatedly scramble high up the majestic peaks, the sun shone brightly, and ironically, valley wall then drop back to the river. There were we could see clearly all the way up to The Garden. several heated discussions about the merits of going back across the river and then re-crossing by Notes: Erewhon Station, which didl llook tempting but would 1. Christchurch to Erewhon 2'hours drive. Good almost certainly have required a swim in what is gravel road but fords can be high or washed out. actually quite a fast flowing river. We stuck it out on 2. Christine and Colin Drummond run Erewhon the true left, staying high on the last scramble onto Station along traditional lines using horses instead steep farmland above the station. One compensating of tractors. You cross their land going into this factor with this route was magnificent views up the area SO must ringj first Ph (03)303 9739. valley and of the surrounding mountains as the 3. Laurie Prouting of Mesopotamia Station runs a clouds cleared. The last descent into the farmyard at small Hughes 300 helicopter that can carry. 2 Erewhon was a huge relief and we were ready to go passengers and gear, all up weight about 250kg. home. Cost around $500/hour Ph 03 96 3738. Tramping and Mountaineering 2000