Ski Mount Hutt or Porter Height from Methven                            

Page updated: 4 October 2011

New snow blankets Mt Hutt

Between 20 to 30cm of new snow has blanketed Mt Hutt over the last two days, setting up the popular Canterbury ski area for a great New Zealand school holidays.

Mt Hutt ski area manager David Wilson said a storm cycle had delivered good snow to the slopes over the past two days, with more in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow.

“Unfortunately we’re closed today (Tuesday October 4) because of inclement weather and very low visibility, but there should be some good skiing and riding when this weather system clears,” he said.

“We’re looking at a much better weather forecast for tomorrow so fingers crossed!”

Mr Wilson said while it was “unusual” to receive snow in spring, it wasn’t unheard of.

“It’s great to have some new snow at the end of the season. When the sun makes an appearance and all our keen skiers and snowboarders come out to play, we’ll have some great snow days under blue skies in the build up to the Mt Hutt Spring Festival starting this weekend.

“Traditionally Mt Hutt’s often been the best place to be in the country for some end-of-season turns, and with new snow and sunshine it just couldn’t get better.”

Spring events coming up at Mt Hutt include the Mt Hutt Spring Festival which runs from October 8 to 14. The festival is a unique week of awesome events in Methven and at the ski area including a Pond Skim competition, Ski Joring, a unique competition where a horse and rider pull a skier at a fast pace through a course that has gates, jumps and rings, a music festival, ski racing and Kids Fun Day.

On October 15 one of Canterbury’s most renowned multisport events returns to the calendar, the Columbia Peak to Pub.

Now in its 12th year, the fun triathlon starts high on the slopes of Mt Hutt with a mass start run to skis or snowboard, followed by a giant slalom to the base area. Competitors then launch into a heart-stopping 19km bike ride down the Mt Hutt access road where individual racers or teams transition to an 11km run to finish outside the iconic Blue Pub in the centre of Methven.

Mt Hutt is scheduled to close on October 16, subject to weather conditions and guest numbers.

Spring family fun at Mt Hutt

Family fun is the priority at Canterbury’s Mt Hutt this spring and taking its family responsibilities seriously, the ski area has a brand new family package on offer.

The ‘Family-of-Four’ package is designed to entice families into the mountains during spring. In a family of four (2 adults, 2 kids) the second youth gets a lift pass for free* and, if the entire family are renting equipment, the second youth also picks up their rental equipment at no charge. The package is available for the whole month of September 2011.

Mt Hutt ski area manager David Wilson says the beautiful clear sunny days and nice warm weather are perfect for learners and the new package makes it an affordable day out for the whole family.

“As usual we are looking forward to some great spring skiing and riding at Hutt. Traditionally it’s been the best place to be in the country for some great end of season turns.”

“It’s a laid back, chilled out time of year to visit our mountain and just the best time to ski and learn as a family – sunny days are just stunning up here.”

The Family-of-Four package needs to be purchased in person on the mountain or in the Snow Centre in Methven.

“We’re encouraging people to come and make the most of the conditions which are particularly good later in the day,” he said.

Mt Hutt Snowsports School offers a range of lessons for the entire family.

Spring events coming up at Mt Hutt include the Streets Mini Shred on September 24, designed for keen young snowboarders and skiers, and the Mt Hutt Spring Festival which runs from October 8 to 14. The festival is a unique week of awesome events in Methven and at the ski area including Pond Skim, Ski Joring, (a unique, some say mad! competition where a horse and rider pull a skier at a fast pace through a course that has gates, jumps and rings) a music festival, ski racing and Kids Fun Day.

Mt Hutt is scheduled to close on October 16, subject to weather conditions and guest numbers.

*The four lift passes included in the package must be ‘like for like’, for example if parents get beginner lift passes the youth’s get beginner lift passes.

Mt Hutt ski area open after epic snowstorm

Canterbury’s Mt Hutt ski area is set to re-open (Thursday August 18) after New Zealand’s biggest snow storm in 50 years dumped 80cm of fresh dry powder on its slopes.

The mountain was closed for three days as the storm closed the access road and left huge drifts burying parts of the base building and lift stations.

Three ski patrollers, four groomer drivers, two custodians and a road contracting crew trapped on the mountain made good use of their time digging out doors and pathways. Today they were joined by more than 75 staff who finally reached them once the road access was cleared.

“The mountain’s looking absolutely great with 80cm of new snow especially in the inner basin and some wind affected areas,” said ski area manager David Wilson.

“The contrast has been huge with 2m to 3m snowdrifts around the lifts and base building, but in others the wind has stripped out the snow.

“This snowfall will change us completely for the rest of the season, it’s just fantastic.

“We still need to do a lot of work but we’re all steam ahead to be ready for at least a partial opening first thing tomorrow subject to weather and conditions.

“This has really set us up for the thousands of keen skiers and boarders from Canterbury and overseas who are just itching to get up here for some amazing first tracks in some serious powder.

“Now the storm has done its stuff, we’re looking forward to some glorious sunny weekend weather.”

Porters rocking along

The season rocks on at well covered Porters, and this week, with the high pressure system over the country, the sun was out and the temperatures began to rise, making for some fantastic skiing - if you knew where to find it!

The lower mountain, beginners and intermediate areas, along with T-bar 1, continue to be the place to be. The sun has emerged from behind the 'Don't Miss' ridge, and the Porters basin is now bathed in sunshine, including the Community Park terraces.

Park Manager Al and our groomer operators have been busy setting more features as we hit August, we now have a multi hit line from Tower 7 and the terraces on T-1, through and down to the base area and mini-park at the Intermediate area. Community Park 2nd and 3rd terraces

Further a-field, Big Mama has been the pick. So good, that every day this week, as the sun was out softening that side of the mountain, we've run a shuttle service from Pine Tree corner back to the base area. It proved very popular.

Porters all set!

From the crew at porters; Great news – the current storm cycle is delivering exactly what we need to get underway – snow, snow and more snow! Once it clears, predicted to be later this week on Thursday or Friday, we will be working day and night to open Porters, with Friday July 15th looking to be our probable opening day.

The cover at Porters is variable, with an average of 50cm so far. However as it has been very windy, there are pockets of snow up to 2 metres deep in some areas and less than 20cm in other areas. Our priority is to get the base area and lower slopes open, working our way to the top runs by the weekend.

Our long-anticipated opening day remains weather dependent. This is a mixed blessing for us as we are anxious to see you all up on the mountain, but further snowfalls will set up the ski area for the season.

We are anticipating an extremely busy school holidays. All the academy programmes will commence on Sunday July 17th. Kidsfest lessons begin the next day (Monday 18th) for a fortnight of fun and new experiences.

We have had great season pass sales this winter and look forward to seeing everyone get their first turns in. If you have not received your season pass in the mail, just come to the Customer Service office on your first day on the hill, and pick up your pass.

I would like to thank everyone for their understanding while waiting for the area to open. Our staff have especially had some long and frustrating weeks, and I appreciate their hard work and resilience. I would also like to thank you, our loyal customers, for your patience and am as relieved as you to finally see the mountain ready for the season.

Wilderness Heliskiing & Methven Heliskiing first in NZ to open in 2011

Alpine Guides (Aoraki) Ltd launches its 2011 heliskiing season on 01 July. The companies’ 2 heliski operations, Methven and Wilderness Heliski will be the first New Zealand helicopter skiing businesses to open this year.

The opening is limited, with some lower elevation terrain still not in ski-able condition. Managing Director Bryan Carter says, “The 2011 NZ Ski season has had a slow start, with mild temperatures and lower than normal snowfalls for June. But we have a distinct advantage in operating amongst the highest and most glaciated peaks in NZ. These mountains catch snow from every storm.”

Kevin Boekholt, Director of Methven Heliski says, “We still need more snow to open up all of our terrain, but that’s not uncommon for late June. This limited opening shows the inherent quality of our terrain.”

Ski The Tasman, Alpine Guides’ renowned glacier skiing operation on the Tasman Glacier also opens on 01 July.

Alpine Guides pioneered New Zealand heliskiing in 1976 in the Ben Ohau ranges near Mount Cook.

Methven Heliskiing is based in the Arrowsmiths Range, inland from Christchurch. Methven Heli opened in1986, in conjunction with the Todhunter families of Glenfalloch and Lake Heron Stations.

Wilderness Heliskiing started in 1995 and operates in the Mount Cook region. Wilderness is the only helicopter skiing with access to terrain within Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park.

For more info.
www.WildernessHeli.co.nz

Mt Hutt continues to invest in snowmaking, chairlifts and other developments

Skiers and snowboarders heading for Canterbury’s Mt Hutt this winter are in for a treat as developments have continued throughout summer at the high country ski resort.

Mt Hutt is adding its first automated snowmaking line with the addition of 16 guns on the International trail, which finishes at the bottom of the Towers Triple Chair. This means for the first time it will be able to make snow on all its main trails in the build up to and throughout the season.

More work has continued in this area with the electrification of the Towers Chair providing a more reliable and quieter service, and improved trail access from the bottom of the International Trail to the chairlift base, with new trailmaking it easier to negotiate for skiers and boarders.

A new 600 winch groomer will be added to what is already one of the most modern snow grooming fleets in the country, along with two new winch towers providing more reliable anchors for winch grooming through the season.

Stage 1 of development of the Mt Hutt access road is also underway with the installation of four new road barriers at various places along the road.

Mt Hutt has also been working with Metservice to install a new weather station directly linked to weather forecasters in Wellington to help provide more accurate and reliable forecasting for the season.

“All in all, we’re really excited about what will be on offer this year,” said Mt Hutt Ski Area Manager Dave Wilson.

“Our goal is to have all lifts operating on day one. In the past we could only rely on natural snow to get to the bottom of the Towers Chair and this usually means we open it late June or even mid July, but with the investment we have made into snowmaking this will give us a much better chance of getting this chair open with the rest of the mountain.

“Then we’ll be able to maintain the snow cover at a high standard throughout the season and especially into spring, where Mt Hutt has traditionally been the best place to be.”

Mt Hutt notched up a first for New Zealand last year with the fully enclosed Magic Carpet which improves ease of access and shelter from any weather when people are taking their first step in learning to ski or snowboard.

“Our enclosed Magic Carpet was a ‘first’ in New Zealand, and now it’s just fantastic to operate a fully modernised fleet where not a single lift operates on diesel,” said Mr Wilson.

“Even the lifties get to benefit from the fact that we’ve got power all over the mountain – we’re installing new operator huts at the top of the triple and quad lifts where they can enjoy the luxury of heaters!”

Mt Hutt is one of the largest and highest ski areas in the South Island with the most complete terrain mix, one of the longest snow seasons in New Zealand and an exceptional 10-year snow record.

It is scheduled to open for the 2011 season on Saturday June 11.

Proposed Porters Expansion (2010)

Porters Ski Area Ltd’s application to expand its existing operation and to build a year-round village at the foot of the ski area has been publicly notified by Selwyn District Council.

Porters is the closest ski area to Christchurch and has applied to Selwyn District Council for a private plan change to enable its Porters Expansion to proceed.

If the plans are approved at a hearing later this year, Porters expects its ski area expansion into nearby Crystal Valley would be open for the 2013 ski season.

The proposal represents the country’s biggest skiing terrain expansion in 20 years and would put Porters on a level with Coronet Peak and Cardrona.

The expanded ski area would be one of the largest in the South Island with 407 hectares of skiable terrain and three chairlifts. It would also feature the country’s first high-capacity gondola ski lifts to replace the mountain access road. There would also be extensive snow-making from 172 snow-guns to guarantee an early June opening.

The proposed village with an ultimate 3500 bed capacity would be New Zealand’s first dedicated on-mountain, ski-in, ski-out village accommodation. The village centre would be built over an underground carpark for 1350 vehicles, with escalators taking skiers to the gondola base stations.

Porters is majority owned by the Harvey family of Sydney and is the second South Island ski area after Cardrona to be majority owned in Australia.

The Harvey family, who are keen skiers, have so far invested about $7 million in purchasing the existing Porters operation, upgrading its facilities and commissioning a ski area and village masterplan by New Zealand and Canadian designers.

In North America and Europe, a key feature of such ski area villages is the wide range of slope-side accommodation types to suit all skiers. The Porters village would therefore feature backpackers, budget and upmarket accommodation.

In addition, a range of family apartments and chalets would be available for sale.

On opening day, the expanded Porters Ski Area alone would provide a total of 500 winter jobs. At completion Porters Expansion would generate nearly 1000 full-time-equivalent jobs in Canterbury and bring $126m a year into Canterbury.

Porters has applied to the Department of Conservation for a limited form of freehold to allow for the expansion of the ski area.

The investment required to expand the ski area into Crystal Valley would be about $80 million and building the core village infrastructure and some accommodation at opening day would be another $170 million.

To complete all stages of Porters Expansion would require an investment of $500 million over 15 years of staged development.

The Harvey family is currently talking with like-minded families in Europe who are likely to also invest in the project if consents are obtained.

Porters Proposed Expansion - Video

We've great pleasure in showing you our initial sketches and information relating to the Porters Ski Area Expansion and Alpine Village.

Click here to get a taste of your first day at the Proposed Porters and Crystal Valley Ski Area.

Help Make It Happen!

Now that the proposed Porters Expansion has been publicly notified by the Selwyn District Council, we need your support! There are several ways to do so...

1. Head online to the Selwyn District Council website to place a submission.
2. Via our website, get more information and place a submission.
3. When visiting Porters, head into the cafe to view the model of the proposed expansion, view more sketches and place a submission.

Local ski fields and status 2011 season Mount Hutt Just over 1 hour from Christchurch and 25 minutes from Methven. Status: OPEN Snowbase :80cm machine groomed ski vote & profile Snow report   Porter Heights Just over 1 hour from Christchurch. Status:OPEN Snowbase:80cm - 90cm spring lower slopes winter upper slopes Snow report ski vote & profile Club Fields (Aka the hidden stashes) And there is plenty of powder around! Great conditions.   Mount Olympus 1.5 hours from Christchurch. Status:OPEN Snowbase: 75cm - 230cm spring snow conditions ski vote & profile Snow report   Craigieburn 1.5 hours from Christchurch. Status: OPEN Snowbase:60cm - 160cm good coverage ski vote & profile Snow report Mt Cheeseman 1.5 hours drive from Christchurch Status: OPEN Snowbase:90cm - 150cm ski vote & profile Snow report  Temple basin 1.5 - 2 hour drive from Christchurch Status:OPEN Snowbase:86cm - 400 cm ski vote & profile Snow report Broken River 1.5 hours drive from Christchurch Status:OPEN Snowbase: 80cm - 170cm Spring excellent coverage ski vote & profile Snow report Mount Hutt Canty's premium ski area

Methven New Zealand Methven is the home of Mount Hutt skiing. Base yourself there for the season and you can get quick access to snowboard or ski Mount Hutt. Methven is a small but friendly town with a vibrant night life.You can also base yourself here to ski the local club fields or the other Canterbury commercial field - Porter Heights. These fields are actually closer to Christchurch than Methven but at Powderhound we like ski towns! So we recommend Methven if you have a vehicle. If you just want to rip it up at Hutt the local mountain transport is affordable.   Mount Hutt can have some huge powder days!