Truth be told, I’ve been stuck on writing this post for quite some time. With a mixture of feelings towards not wanting the challenge to officially be over, COVID lockdowns and wanting to enjoy the accomplishment that was, it’s taken some time to get this done.
Apologies for taking so long to get this up, but I hope you enjoy and share in the pure elation I experienced summiting Peak #52. Mt Armstrong (2,174m).
To say this peak started when I began my drive south would be an utter lie. I stumbled upon Mt Armstrong while exploring topo maps over 4 months ago. Since then, I have planned, acquired information about the area, monitored avalanche forecasts for the region, watched weather patterns and dreamt of summitting this peak over 100 times. There was no chance I was going to let anything I could control, stop me from success.
After watching forecasts and waiting nervously, a small gap in the weather presented itself a week out. I got my final preparations done with the aim to drive south the minute I committed.
Over the next few days the weather forecasts intensified and my window was shifted 24 hours later which would see me summit on Tuesday 10th August. Five days before my deadline.
There was an absolute monster of a southerly storm that was providing A LOT of snow across the South Island. My plan still remained however, and on Sunday afternoon I drove to Lake Hawea. I had to come in via the Waitaki river as snow was so heavy it had closed the roads from Twizel through to Geraldine!
It was my first time driving through the Lindis while it was snowing and it made for a stunning backdrop!
Pulling up to Lake Hawea was a nice relief albeit being seriously cold! I had a stunning burger from the Hotel i was staying at and washed it down with a beer.
After a lazy start to the day, and some eggs benedict, I was packed and on my way to the trail head. The track starts on the Western side of Haast Pass at the tourist attraction Fantail Falls. A cute wee waterfall feeding into the Haast River.
For those of you who know me, know I hate wet boots. What a way to start my final peak than having to cross the Haast River, in August…..
I put my big boy pants on and crossed the river bare foot in order to save my boots from the drenching. It was also strategic so my boots didn’t freeze overnight from being wet!
Boots on, it was time to head up.
And up it was. The track was relentless in its gradient with multiple time having to clamber onto roots as hand holds to pull myself up with. Fortunately, the wild west coast bush was as stunning as ever and contributed towards distracting me away from the steepness of the track.
I passed a quartet of ski tourers on my journey. Also looking to stay at Brewster Hut then search for some lines tomorrow.
After two hours, I had made it to the hut, a stunning hut at that. Perched on what seemed to be the only flat spot on the whole mountain, this red shelter had the most amazing backdrop. Definitely one of those times you love the ability to get out and experience something like this.
There were two other guys already in the hut eyeing up the weather and winds as they had planned to traverse across to the Brewster Glacier, tent overnight then summit Mt Brewster and ski back down to the rocky traverse. They chose to pull the pin as the winds up top were to strong for their liking. Unknown to them, it stopped about an hour later and was utterly still for the remainder of my trip.
I settled in, unpacked my sleeping bag, put on my comfys and had a bite to eat. At this point my feet were freezing and I had major regrets about not bringing up hut shoes. With this hut being an alpine hut, there was of course no fire either to help me. My feet stayed cold from this point onwards and has taken four weeks post trip to get normal feeling back in my big toe…
The group I had passed arrived and we got chatting. They were an awesome group who were happy for me to pick their brains about avalanche knowledge and then join them in a small walk up the ridge we were to climb tomorrow. This gave us a great opportunity to see what the snow conditions were like after that storm and passed through. For me, the walk also allowed me to scope out my route for the following morning. Of which would be under headlight and look very different under darkness!
Back at the hut, I found a nice perch and began to photograph the sunset. The colours, and changes in light were stunning with no photos giving it justice.
After retreating to the hut, it was time for food. A tasty back-country meal hit the spot with desert being chocolate and red wine courtesy of my hut buddies (who carried a 3 litre goon sack to the hut! Talk about commitment!)
Tomorrow was summit day.
My alarms were set.
Gear laid out ready .
After an incredibly sub-par sleep, I was time to get up….3:30am had never been so cold.
We had gathered water into a 9 litre bucket the day before as the water inside the outside drums had frozen over. What I didn’t expect was for the water inside the bucket, inside the hut, to have a layer of ice on the surface…..safe to say it was cold.
Cooker on, I layered up ready to head out. Breakfast was a filling, dehydrated meal of scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, tomatoes, and beef strips. Breakfast of champions.
It was 4am as I left the hut under headlight. Travel was surprisingly fast and with the temps being cold it was nice to not over heat.
I reached the point where we got to the day prior and decided to put on my crampons. Better to have them on than to wish I had them on after a fall.
I would say the scenery was beautiful but it was pitch black and with very little moon light, even when I turned my light off, very little was distinguishable. The walk however was mesmerizing. My light made the icy snow glisten and sparkle like tens of thousands of diamonds.
I was making really good time and after two hours found myself 200 meters from the top. I had reached a bit of a crux in my journey at this point. The gradient increased and nearer the ridgeline there was a slight step (not a cornice) I had to navigate over. I cut away at the snow with my ice axe to create a step and with the aid of my crampons and axe clambered over it.
The final push to the ridge was a lot easier. I did however find myself on the ridge before sunrise, even before first light really. I had waited 52 weeks for the moment of summiting at first light, what’s another 20 minutes right? There was a slight breeze which made things cold, so I put my remaining layers on, dug myself a hole and proceeded to sit out of the wind waiting for daybreak.
20 minutes later, after some cold hard food, I grabbed my pack and axe and made my way across to my final peak.
At 7:00am on the 10th August 2021, I summited my 52nd and final peak.
I was stoked. I had done it.
52 peaks summited in 52 weeks.
The feeling was the best. I laughed, I cried, I smiled and I just took it all in.
After some time, I reached into my pack and brought out my celebratory gift. A bottle of my favourite, The Reid Vodka.
I cracked the bottle and poured myself a drink using ice from the highest point on the mountain to fill my glass.
Never had it tasted so good.
I spent the next hour atop my final peak taking photos, watching the sky change colours, sipping on my vodka and reflecting back on the year that was.
As I was packing up was greeted with a few others from the hut who had made their way up. We talked and I shared my vodka before I began my descent back to the hut.
Going down was fun. In the safer locations I slid on my bum then either let my momentum run out or self arrest myself to stop. It was good practice and made for a fun, fast descent back.
Back at the hut I delayered and smashed some food. As the others began to arrive back from their sumitting we all were sharing stories, food and plans for what next.
It was during this time that one of the late comers to the hut last night asked who’s car was the Yaris in the carpark and that they had left their internal light on! Fortunately it wasn’t me, but me being me had jumper leads in the car. So with that, Liam and I finished packing and began our final stretch to the cars.
It was nice having company as we chatted about a previous hikes, jobs, and more. Before we knew it we were back at the river. This time however, I didn’t bother taking my boots off but rather I ran through like a gangly teenager unable to control their limbs, trying to minimize the time my boots spent under water.
Happy to report, my feet stayed dry!
Liam’s car turned on without any issues and as thanks offered me some of the amazing birthday cake his wife had made.
We said our good byes and after changing clothes, organizing my food stash and making sure I had everything, I was on the road again.
I short pitstop in Wanaka to refuel the car and I was off on my way home again.
#52 Mt Armstrong – 2,174m, 10.2km, 9 hours 42 minutes
Job done.
There will be more as the mountains have always been a part of me so it won’t be long until I return. And hey, I might just have one or two more wacky challenges to take on so watch this space.
Till next time.
Thank you.
Cam