Paul Petch

Snowboarding and climbing at Porters Pass

Spence and Ben headed off to snowboard and ski at Porters Pass in Arthur’s Pass yesterday so I tagged along. I had plans to do some walks so took a heavy pack and walking poles. Once we got there I discovered that I could hire some gear and do some snowboarding lessons so that was that! I opted for a 2 hr session with an instructor and small group. I had skied before when in my teens, but the boarding was something else! My arse now hates me :D

I kind of picked it up quickly though considering I’ve not been on the snow since childhood, and after the two hours I was “doing ok” and able to do some turns. I could have done with an extra few hours of instruction though. Come lunchtime the lure of hot food and coffee was enough to pull me away from the slope and after meeting up with the guys for food I went for my planned walk while they headed back up on the ski lift. I’m keen to do more snowboarding if it works out for the rest of the season as It was a lot of fun (read if I can get there!). So let’s see.

I chose a ridge high up the mountain just to the left of the main ski field and just walked up the snow covered scree. I just had to get up the top after being on the lower slope all afternoon to see the views.  But 1/4 the way up I seriously re-considered the plan! It was really hard going with the pack and the snow was like walking on marshmallow. Thankfully I kept on walking though and the view from the ridge was just amazing. It really did feel like I was on top of the world! It took 1.5 hrs to climb up and 20 minutes to get down!! And boy it was fun running down the steep scree! Once again…I would have not made it without the poles…..what a life saver! And what a day!

Anyway, here are some photos. What a beauty.

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Related posts:

1. The Poulter Valley Track – Arthur’s Pass National Park
2. Birthday bash at the Bealey Spur
3. Last of the summer mountain biking – Craigieburn
4. Richard’s visit. Ride four. Craigieburn (Photo rich!)
5. It has been a wee while…

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 25th, 2010 at 9:04 am and is filed under Runs & Walks and tagged with arthurs pass, climing, porters pass, scree, snow boarding, stupidity, walking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.