Woman’s Weekly New Zealand – September 02, 2019

PHOTOS:

ELISABETH

EASTHER

&MTRUAPEHU.COM

An insider’s guide

to... MT RUAPEHU

HIDDEN TREASURE: Lakeland

House Restaurant, fine dining

in Tokaanu. The views and

venison will blow your mind.

BEST TOUR: Adventure HQ

provides no-stress shuttles

straight to the top of the

the Bruce Road.

BEST PHOTO OP: On a

clear day the views from

the Sky Waka, New Zealand’s

longest and newest gondola,

are breathtaking.

alps

stopped on snow, keep your

skis parallel to the bottom of

the slope, so you don’t slide

down without meaning to. Rule

number two − be the pilot, not

the passenger; this is easier said

than done though. And then,

just like that, we’re off, following

Jasmine like obedient ducklings.

Unleashing ourselves on the

powder, the day passes fast.

Up and down we fly and fall,

trying various trails such as the

Goldilocks, and even giving

the Valley T-Bar a go. Although,

with limited visibility due to low

cloud, I am tempted to crawl

down that section, while Theo

declares it his favourite run.

When it’s time for a break, we

board the new Sky Waka. At

1.8km this is New Zealand’s

longest gondola ride.

Travelling at a smooth six

metres per second, aside from

some astonishing views, Sky

Waka also provides wheelchair

access to the highest dining

facilities on Knoll Ridge. Snug

inside the elegant capsule, my

tired thighs are grateful to sit.

Not wanting to waste our

snow time, we do a quick circuit

of the buffet before heading

back out to carry on skiing as

long as our legs hold out.

Winding up at Happy Valley

for one last run, the ‘Snoobs’

have a verdict: Everything

about snow is cool!

There’s simply snow better

way to pass the time than

snowshoeing (top) with Theo

(centre) before stopping

off at the delicious Pinnacles

restaurant (right) at Knoll

Ridge Chalet for a snack and

continuing on our merry way.

PACK

UP

THE

Kids