Ball Pass Day 1

After a week of recovery from the cuts and futile attempts to dry permanently sopping wet boots, we decied we had to do something more extreme than Twalk. Caitlin had been wanting to do Ball Pass in Mt. Cook national park for awhile, and I knew I needed to do at least one mountaineering trip down here. It happened! We ended up having 2 groups of 5 - quite a few more than we were planning really. We had 2 cars and parked one at both ends so we could get out!

Night before. Don't worry this is not a hobo stealing our food. We just have good friends 

Sunrise on the way to Tasman lake for the start of the hike

Lateral moraine of the Tasman Glacier a few miles in. Walking along a narrow strip of land on a steady incline up next to this giant mass of ice. Biggest glacier in NZ! The next bit of ice this large would be in Antarctica, 2000 miles away. Unless of course all of an Ice Shelf decided to float off :/

 

Tasman Lake
(Note: Henry's Leggings)

Those hills are rocks... sitting on a LOT of ice. You would have no idea, but there are 100'+ vertical cliffs at the start of the lake and a huge river of ice running down from above.

Navigating the real way. Very glad I bought and brought that map. We needed it.

Decided to take the alternative path up the hill. Background: Tasman Peak and Glacier, Mt. Cook not visible to left (just 5k by air from here!)

Swim trunks. Classic mountaineering attire.

Up toward Caroline hut. Pretty spot on with the navigation.  I thought it was on the flat we're approaching, but we all were too blind to see it. I finally spotted it, long after we could see it. Somehow galvanized steel blends in well with brownish rock. We got there and received a nasty weather report by the radio in the shelter... should have been hiking faster.

Bobby, Kelly, Thomas, Henry, Luke

Up above the hut a little ways. Ball Pass is on the far left. Glaciers run right down from it. We heard /saw some solid avalanches on the way over - not near us, but it was awe inspiring to be surrounded by real mountains. 

The other group made it! We were getting pretty curious.

30k wind was enough for a balaclava. Up on top of Ball Pass at 2121m. It was getting darker, but we got to glissade down!

Some fun glissading! Those possum fir gloves I got last time I was here did great. Wouldn't guess it, but so warm when soaking wet and tough enough to cope with sharp snow.

We ended up sleeping here. Tiny little space for 5 people, but it was cozy as could be when you consider the side of a mountain in the middle of a thunderstorm with snow falling all over. We got the hard way up and over! The other group had a hut! But my oh my this was an adventure. Easily in my top three trips here! 

Day 2 coming soon!