This experience is an incredibly scenic day walk along easy angled ridges overlooking the Mt Aspiring National Park. This alpine zone, usually only accessible by many hours of hard uphill climbing is made possible through the use of a helicopter to access this remote and pristine area.

You will meet your guide at 8am in Wanaka for a briefing of the day’s events and an equipment check. Your guide will drive you to road end at the entrance to the Mt Aspiring National park and the beginning of your adventure.

The journey up the Matukituki Valley is very scenic and you will be driving past Lake Wanaka and through farmland with deer, cattle and sheep in the pastures. The journey takes an hour to a point known as Raspberry Hut, named after a farmers hut nearby. Toilets are available at this point.

The helicopter arrives from its base and after a safety brief you are all aboard and flying into the mountains. The helicopter gains height quickly, traversing dramatic ridges and river gorges to drop you off on a saddle overlooking the beautiful Matukituki Valley with picture postcard views of Mt Aspiring.

You are now high in the sub alpine zones with a myriad of alpine flowers and grasses interspersed with colourful schist rocks. In the early season you will be walking on snow in places also.

There is no track as you traverse the summer snowfields on to the glacier scoured rock yet the walking is never too hard or strenuous. The route we trek is along low angled mountain tops with constant views of the heavily glaciated peaks of the Mt Aspiring region and there is plenty of opportunity to stop for photos or merely to admire the views!

The outlook from your majestic lunch spot is of hanging glaciers, waterfalls and a beech forest filled valley. The New Zealand mountain parrot, called the Kea, often come for a visit in the vain hope of tempting you into feeding them. These mischievous birds are extremely intelligent and spend much of their spare time investigating (and often in the process destroying) people’s packs and other items left lying around.

After lunch we continue our trek through passes and over small peaks to our helicopter pick up point in the afternoon. We re-board the helicopter for the descent into the valley below.

This experience voucher is valid for six months from date of purchase.

Venue:

Wanaka, 6 hours drive south of Christchurch and one hour north of Queenstown, in the South Island of New Zealand.

Session Length

1 day, starting at 8am finishing at 5pm. Summer (Oct- May) 2005. Minimum group size (three people) applies. The duration of your flight will be approximately 15 minutes each way.

Guidelines:

A good fitness level and some previous hiking or tramping experience is preferable to participate in this activity although the main asset one can have is a sense of adventure!

Numbers:

The group will have a minimum size of one guide and three trekkers and a maximum size of two guides and ten trekkers.

Weather:

The weather in the mountains can change very quickly so you need to be prepared. We utilise detailed Mountain Weather Forecasts when planning our trips. This trip requires a good forecast to proceed, in particular the helicopter flight demands fine weather.

Other Info:

The guides are qualified and experienced mountain guides. Included in your experience is: your guide, group equipment – radio, lunch & drink, land transport ex Wanaka and the helicopter flight.

Map

The map below gives you the location of this experience to allow you to plan.

Exact location, directions and meeting place will be available to you once you have purchased your voucher(s).