In January of 2001, Jamie, Nick (a friend from Elbrus and the Matterhorn) and I headed down to New Zealand to do some climbing in the Southern Alps.

 

I was short on time, so Jamie and Nick went early and climbed the impressive Mount Cook via the Helen Glacier. Afterwards, I met up with them in Wanaka at the Matterhorn South lodge. From there we took a bus to Mount Cook Village where we would begin our traverse of the Southern Alps via the Copland Pass.

The Copland Pass (Class 3) traverses the Southern Alps and is the most challenging "walk" in New Zealand. For me, it qualifies as a technical trek. It is unique because it is a true mountain-to-the-sea adventure where you experience  5 different climatic zones along the route: the meadows of Mount Cook Village, the glacial moraine at the bases of Mount Cook and Mount Sefton, an alpine environment as you ascend the pass, snow and ice as you cross the Copland pass itself, and eventually a rainforest environment as you descend the west side of the pass and head to the ocean.

Because the Hooker hut is condemned and falling into the moraine, we opted to ascend all the way to the Copland Hut near the top of the pass. being very tired, I managed to light my stove upside down and nearly set fire to the shelter that night. In the morning, we climbed the snowfield, repelled over the wall and headed down the west side of the pass. Our second day was also long as we opted to not stop at the next camp, but instead headed all the way out to the hot pools for a good soak of our tired and sore bodies. The third day was comparatively easy as we hiked our way through the rain forest out to the sea where we caught a bus back to civilization.

  See the pictures of this trip

  See recommended reading for this trip

  See a gear list for this trip

For a guided trip across the Copland Pass contact: