Whakapapa skifield is a commercial skifield on the northern side of Mount Ruapehu in Tongariro National Park, New Zealand. It is one of three skifields on the mountain, the others being Turoa, which is on Ruapehu's south-western slopes and Tukino on the eastern slopes. The ski season is generally from late June to late October, depending on snow and weather conditions. The terrain at Whakapapa Skifield is divided up as 25% beginner, 50% intermediate and 25% advanced.
The Waitaki River is a large braided river in the South Island of New Zealand. It drains the Mackenzie Basin and runs 209 kilometres (130 mi) south-east to enter the Pacific Ocean between Timaru and Oamaru on the east coast. It starts at the confluence of the Ōhau and Tekapo rivers, now at the head of the artificial Lake Benmore, these rivers being fed by three large glacial lakes, Pukaki, Tekapo, and Ōhau at the base of the Southern Alps. The Waitaki flows through Lake Benmore, Lake Aviemore and Lake Waitaki, these lakes being contained by hydroelectric dams, Benmore Dam, Aviemore Dam and Waitaki Dam. The Waitaki has several tributaries, notably the Ahuriri River and the Hakataramea River. It passes Kurow and Glenavy before entering the Pacific Ocean. The River lends its name the Waitaki District on the south side of the river bank.
Kurow is a small town in the Waitaki District, New Zealand. It is located on the south bank of the Waitaki River, 60 kilometres (37 mi) northwest of Oamaru. The name is an Anglicised form of the Māori name of the nearby mountain, Te Kohurau.
Twizel is the largest town in the Mackenzie District, in the Canterbury Region of the South Island of New Zealand. The town was founded in 1968 to house construction workers on the Upper Waitaki Hydroelectric Scheme. Today, Twizel is a service and tourist town for visitors to the area. It has a resident population of 1,890 ; during the summer, holidaymakers nearly triple the town's population.
Tukino skifield is located on the eastern face of Mount Ruapehu, in the central area of the North Island, New Zealand.
Lake Ōhau is a lake in the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island of New Zealand. The Hopkins and Dobson rivers fed into the northern end of Lake Ōhau. These rivers have their headwaters in the Southern Alps. The lake's outflow is the Ōhau River, which travels from the southeast corner of Lake Ōhau and feeds into the Waitaki River hydroelectric project. The Barrier range dominate the western side of Lake Ōhau, while the Ben Ohau range dominates the eastern side of Lake Ōhau. At the northern end of the lake, in between the Hopkins and Dobson rivers, lies the Naumann Range of mountains.
Invincible Snowfields is a private ski resort near Glenorchy in the South Island of New Zealand.
Broken River is a club skifield in South Island, New Zealand. Run by the Broken River Ski Club, it is located at about 110 km (68 mi) from Christchurch. The skifield claims to often have the longest ski season anywhere in Australasia. Also, by connecting with Craigieburn Valley, it claims to have the largest skiable area in New Zealand, at 900 hectares.
Craigieburn Valley Ski Area is a club skifield in the Southern Alps of New Zealand's South Island, about 104 km west from Christchurch. Catering only to intermediate and advanced skiers, it features a vertical range of 1308–1811 m, 400 Acres of skiable area and 3 fast rope tows, the first installed in 1949. In 1954 a project was attempted to install a T-Bar lift, with components airdropped from an RNZAF Bristol Freighter, but the tow suffered from engineering problems after only one season. The resort has several ski lodges but no gear hire. It is also the base for ski touring expeditions when conditions permit. It is immediately adjacent to the Broken River Ski Area, with which it shares a ski pass system. Skiing between the two is possible with backcountry ski touring involved.
Mt Lyford (1590m) is the home of an alpine village and ski resort in the South Island of New Zealand. It is 146 kilometres by road north of Christchurch on the Inland Kaikōura Road (SH70) between Culverden and Kaikōura. The resort is a 40-minute drive to Hanmer Springs and a 45-minute drive to Kaikōura. The nearby township of Waiau, Canterbury has a small supermarket, DIY store and petrol station. The Inland Kaikōura Road is very scenic and windy from Waiau through to Kaikōura and forms part of the Alpine Pacific Touring Route.
Porters, is a commercial ski resort just over an hour's drive (98 km) west from Christchurch, in the South Island of New Zealand. Originally functioning as a club skifield, it has one beginner magic carpet, one platter tow, one chairlift and three t-bars. The difficulty of the slopes is distributed as 15% beginner, 35% intermediate and 50% advanced. Modern grooming equipment is used, and snowmaking facilities operate along the main pistes along the chairlift.
In New Zealand, a club skifield is a small ski resort run by a ski club to provide affordable skiing to its members. While members of the public can ski, members of the club receive heavily discounted rates, in exchange for a yearly membership fee and usually several days of voluntary work maintaining the resort.
Cardrona Alpine Resort is an alpine resort in New Zealand's South Island. The ski field ranges from 1,260m to 1,860m. The distribution of slopes is 20% beginner, 25% intermediate, 30% advanced and 25% expert. There are 2 detachable quad chairlifts, 2 fixed-grip quad chairlifts, 1 detachable express chondola, 3 surface conveyor learner lifts and 1 platter lift to service the halfpipes and big air jump. Snowmaking supplements the 2.9m average annual snowfall. Freestyle Snowboarding and skiing are well catered for with 2 half-pipes and 4 terrain parks. There is also a "high performance centre" which trains more advanced skiers and snowboarders. Families with infants and young children can use child care facilities provided in the Cardrona Nursery and Ski Kindy.
Temple Basin is a club skifield in Arthur's Pass, in New Zealand's South Island. Operated by two clubs, the Temple Basin Ski Club and the Canterbury University Snow Sports Club, the ski area has 3 rope tows, two on-site lodges, two shelters and a ski school and ski shop. The tows cover an elevation range of 1326–1753 metres, for a skiable domain of 320 hectares. The field claim's to have the best big mountain and variety of terrain in New Zealand and has been highly recommended by adventure skiers on several occasions. The ski area is accessed on foot via a walking track from the Temple Basin Car Park within Arthers Pass. Temple Basin Ski Club operates a moterised goods lift to carry patrons gear and other equipment.
Roundhill Ski Area is a family owned and run ski area in Canterbury, New Zealand, in the Two Thumb Range near the town of Lake Tekapo, 1.5 hours from Timaru and 4 hours from both Christchurch and Queenstown.
Manganui Ski Area, located in Taranaki, in New Zealand's North Island is a club skifield. Like all club fields, it has accommodation onsite, in the form of the 33-bed Manganui Lodge. It has 3 rope ski tows and a T-bar covering a beginner-intermediate terrain of 59 hectares. The elevation ranges from 1260 to 1680 m.
Windwhistle is a small farming settlement in the Selwyn District of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 77 near the Rakaia Gorge. Windwhistle is 81 kilometres drive to the west of Christchurch and 22 kilometres north of Methven. Windwhistle's name comes from the way the wind sounds when the Canterbury north west wind blows.
Perisher Ski Resort is the largest ski resort in the Southern Hemisphere. Located in the Australian Snowy Mountains, the resort is an amalgamation of four villages and their associated ski fields, covering approximately 12 square kilometres (5 sq mi), with the base elevation at 1,720 metres (5,640 ft) AHD, and the summit elevation of 2,054 metres (6,739 ft) at the top of Mount Perisher. 4.4 square kilometres (1.7 sq mi) of this area is covered by 240 snow guns, which are used to artificially supplement the natural snowfall. Perisher was acquired by Vail Resorts, United States on 30 March 2015 for a sum of approximately AU$177 million.
The Waitaki Dam is one of eight hydroelectric power stations which form the Waitaki hydroelectric scheme on the Waitaki River in the Canterbury Region of New Zealand. The dam was the first of three to be built on the Waitaki River and was constructed without earthmoving machinery; over half a million cubic metres of material was excavated, almost entirely by pick-and-shovel. The Waitaki Dam's construction was followed by the development of Aviemore Dam and Benmore Dam, and importantly, every dam built in New Zealand since the Waitaki has benefited from lessons learned during its construction.
