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Emphemeral signatures, a brief moment in time and history, erased as quickly as they were made but never forgotten. With @searlerdave and @bfredlund @blackcrows_skis

The mighty East Face of Aoraki (Mt Cook) which has deservedly earned classic status amongst the modern Freeride fraternity. To give an idea of scale it’s like one Col de Cristaux stacked on top of another. Legend has it that after Raki the Sky Father married the Earth Mother Pap-tai-nuku, the celestial Sky Children consisting of the 4 brothers Aoraki, Raki-roa, Raki-rua, Raraki-roa came down to earth in a canoe known as Te Waki o Aoraki. After cruising around Papa-tua-nuku they set out to explore but found no land. They decided to return to their celestial home but the incantation which was lifting their canoe failed and they fell back into the sea and capsized, turning to stone in the process. As the brothers clambered ontop and reached for the sky they also turned to stone. Aoraki is the highest peak, Rarakiroa (Mt Tasman), Rakiroa (Mt Dampier) and Rakirua (Teichelmann) making up the dividing chain. One man’s (or celestial being’s) loss is another man’s gain as they say and man certainly gained from the creation of these beautiful mountains. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

The first day in the zone after a week of heavy heavy west coast precipitation that landed several meters of snow. Intuitively we make the King Spine our objective for the day and stay far away from the big faces. They had way to much snow on them to make any progress in ascent, I was boot deep just standing on 108 skis on the flat. If only we’d had a teleporter to get us to the top of the Queen Spine on Tasman which was looking regal under that heavy winter coat. Such are the difficulties of skiing such radical routes in a ski mountaineering manner. Has anyone even repeated Syme after Rheim and Ruby’s early ‘90 descent before they went all out on the Triolet in ‘95??

We called this one the King Spine. It was our first run in the dream zone and after a week of heavy storm, cold bottomless powder awaited. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

When the day starts with psychedelic skies you know it’s gonna be special. Skiing the Bowie Couloir on Aoraki from its junction with Zubriggen Ridge offered a hard won 500 m of ultimate sweetness. The glacier below truly was the crystal maze that took a few tricks to pass on the way up and down. Andreas Fransson and Magnus Kastengren are the only others I know to have skied this so I guess that makes it a second descent. Thanks to @searlerdave for the 📸 and⛷ @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

Rockin down the East Face of Aoraki and a taster of how windy it was in the says before. I couldn’t stop laughing as @searlerdave initially couldn’t get the toilet door open with several hundred kilos of wind loading on it then after cracking it open got trapped between the door and frame. It was a shame the light dotted out but better than skiing in the cloud! @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

The Caroline Face of Aoraki - aka The Sky Piecer or Mount Cook. New route on a wild windy day with @searlerdave. One that I spied a few years ago and had stashed in the memory banks for future enjoyment. A massive thanks to everyone who helped me get this trip off the ground. Flo, Ennia, Evan, Mandy, Cam, Beau, Colleen, Davide, Miles, Paul, Corin, Chris, Stuart, Searle, Michelle and so many others. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

NZ’s Southern Alps were definitely giving us the ultimate in cold shoulder treatment these last weeks.We flew into Plateau hut at the 1st opportunity, ideally positioned under the gargantuan East Face of the Aoraki with food & supplies for 10 days.It was bitterly cold with bottomless snow having dumped 3 m since we arrived.The next day was forecast to be the only fine day for a week & I was excited to start skiing straight away.With multiple people unloading the heli, 1 compartment didn’t get emptied which included our sleeping bags & sat devices.FUCK!The hut airport radio was broken & we anxiously held our cell phones to the window praying for reception.Nada.Cloud levels were building outside & we knew if we couldn’t get the heli to come back straight away,not only would we be in for a cold night but also miss the only day of weather tomorrow. There is also a Department of Conservation radio-perhaps they could relay a message to the airport? 20 anxious minutes later we received a radio call saying the heli was coming back-phew! During the following week in the windiest periods the hut would vibrate. the noise levels would rise as if there was a jet engine outside combined with a shrieking pitch as air and snow got forced through the window seals into the hut making sure the temperature inside stayed around 0C.Days rolled by with a rhythm of eating, sleeping & exercises to keep warm.Another storm rolled through with 75 cm forecast in one dump but lightening flashes and useless hail stones fell.Another windstorm arrived stripping over a meter of snow near the hut.Dave looked sad not believing it could turn good.We went to bed only planning to see what dawn brought but then I woke at 430am & from my bed could see Aoraki Sky Piercer reaching for the stars & no wind. ‘Dave! Wake up! Its time to go dude, game time for the East Face’.A massive wallow fest got us up to the start of what would be a diamond studded run for the memory bank.That’s the magic & glory of NZ switching from nightmare to dreamstate in a heartbeat. More about our other NZ adventures later @blackcrows_skis @searlerdave #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #nz #newzealand

Kia Ora. New Zealand 🇳🇿 welcomes you. Hope you enjoy the powder. Great photos from @bfredlund @blackcrows_skis #plumfixation #petzl #scarpa #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #skitouring #freeride #powder

Instagram

Emphemeral signatures, a brief moment in time and history, erased as quickly as they were made but never forgotten. With @searlerdave and @bfredlund @blackcrows_skis

The mighty East Face of Aoraki (Mt Cook) which has deservedly earned classic status amongst the modern Freeride fraternity. To give an idea of scale it’s like one Col de Cristaux stacked on top of another. Legend has it that after Raki the Sky Father married the Earth Mother Pap-tai-nuku, the celestial Sky Children consisting of the 4 brothers Aoraki, Raki-roa, Raki-rua, Raraki-roa came down to earth in a canoe known as Te Waki o Aoraki. After cruising around Papa-tua-nuku they set out to explore but found no land. They decided to return to their celestial home but the incantation which was lifting their canoe failed and they fell back into the sea and capsized, turning to stone in the process. As the brothers clambered ontop and reached for the sky they also turned to stone. Aoraki is the highest peak, Rarakiroa (Mt Tasman), Rakiroa (Mt Dampier) and Rakirua (Teichelmann) making up the dividing chain. One man’s (or celestial being’s) loss is another man’s gain as they say and man certainly gained from the creation of these beautiful mountains. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

The first day in the zone after a week of heavy heavy west coast precipitation that landed several meters of snow. Intuitively we make the King Spine our objective for the day and stay far away from the big faces. They had way to much snow on them to make any progress in ascent, I was boot deep just standing on 108 skis on the flat. If only we’d had a teleporter to get us to the top of the Queen Spine on Tasman which was looking regal under that heavy winter coat. Such are the difficulties of skiing such radical routes in a ski mountaineering manner. Has anyone even repeated Syme after Rheim and Ruby’s early ‘90 descent before they went all out on the Triolet in ‘95??

We called this one the King Spine. It was our first run in the dream zone and after a week of heavy storm, cold bottomless powder awaited. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

When the day starts with psychedelic skies you know it’s gonna be special. Skiing the Bowie Couloir on Aoraki from its junction with Zubriggen Ridge offered a hard won 500 m of ultimate sweetness. The glacier below truly was the crystal maze that took a few tricks to pass on the way up and down. Andreas Fransson and Magnus Kastengren are the only others I know to have skied this so I guess that makes it a second descent. Thanks to @searlerdave for the 📸 and⛷ @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

Rockin down the East Face of Aoraki and a taster of how windy it was in the says before. I couldn’t stop laughing as @searlerdave initially couldn’t get the toilet door open with several hundred kilos of wind loading on it then after cracking it open got trapped between the door and frame. It was a shame the light dotted out but better than skiing in the cloud! @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

The Caroline Face of Aoraki - aka The Sky Piecer or Mount Cook. New route on a wild windy day with @searlerdave. One that I spied a few years ago and had stashed in the memory banks for future enjoyment. A massive thanks to everyone who helped me get this trip off the ground. Flo, Ennia, Evan, Mandy, Cam, Beau, Colleen, Davide, Miles, Paul, Corin, Chris, Stuart, Searle, Michelle and so many others. @blackcrows_skis @plum_officiel #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #freeride #skitouring #julboathlete #helmetup #petzl #nutrition #health #fitness #mountains #nature #outside #outdoors #adventure #weareifmga #ifmga #bmg #mountainguide #chamonix

NZ’s Southern Alps were definitely giving us the ultimate in cold shoulder treatment these last weeks.We flew into Plateau hut at the 1st opportunity, ideally positioned under the gargantuan East Face of the Aoraki with food & supplies for 10 days.It was bitterly cold with bottomless snow having dumped 3 m since we arrived.The next day was forecast to be the only fine day for a week & I was excited to start skiing straight away.With multiple people unloading the heli, 1 compartment didn’t get emptied which included our sleeping bags & sat devices.FUCK!The hut airport radio was broken & we anxiously held our cell phones to the window praying for reception.Nada.Cloud levels were building outside & we knew if we couldn’t get the heli to come back straight away,not only would we be in for a cold night but also miss the only day of weather tomorrow. There is also a Department of Conservation radio-perhaps they could relay a message to the airport? 20 anxious minutes later we received a radio call saying the heli was coming back-phew! During the following week in the windiest periods the hut would vibrate. the noise levels would rise as if there was a jet engine outside combined with a shrieking pitch as air and snow got forced through the window seals into the hut making sure the temperature inside stayed around 0C.Days rolled by with a rhythm of eating, sleeping & exercises to keep warm.Another storm rolled through with 75 cm forecast in one dump but lightening flashes and useless hail stones fell.Another windstorm arrived stripping over a meter of snow near the hut.Dave looked sad not believing it could turn good.We went to bed only planning to see what dawn brought but then I woke at 430am & from my bed could see Aoraki Sky Piercer reaching for the stars & no wind. ‘Dave! Wake up! Its time to go dude, game time for the East Face’.A massive wallow fest got us up to the start of what would be a diamond studded run for the memory bank.That’s the magic & glory of NZ switching from nightmare to dreamstate in a heartbeat. More about our other NZ adventures later @blackcrows_skis @searlerdave #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #nz #newzealand

Kia Ora. New Zealand 🇳🇿 welcomes you. Hope you enjoy the powder. Great photos from @bfredlund @blackcrows_skis #plumfixation #petzl #scarpa #newzealand #aoraki #mountcook #skiing #skitouring #freeride #powder

2019 Ross Hewitt Guiding

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