Tasman Saddle Hut

21st-24th September 2022. Normally I'm pretty cautious about heading to the mountains with strangers. Still, when Luke Frisken reached out about heading up to do some ski mountaineering on the Upper Tasman I was instantly keen to join him, Adam and Eric for the few days I could muster off around work. The only problem was needing to share the Helicopter ride, so the whole thing nearly didn't happen until a last-ditch effort linked me up with Maz and then suddenly we were heading to the mountains for a few days!

We skied Darwin's Chair, Elie de Beaumont, Hochstetter Dome, ice climbed in the canyonlands and played Bananagrams on top of the block we climbed. On our last day we skied the headwall of the Murchison Glacier and the Mt Ackland on the Aida Glacier before it was time to head back to the real world. Time well spent in an amazing place.

Upper Tasman Glacier

Glacial tooth!

Evening clouds on the Upper Tasman Glacier

Tasman Saddle Hut, perched unexpectedly on a rock prow in the glacier

Light play on the Tasman Glacier

Approaching Tasman Saddle Hut

Glacial pattern

There's something magical about Alpenglow

Looking at tomorrow's plans in the Alpenglow

Maz putting in some sharp-looking tracks

Black and White on the Upper Tasman Glacier

Sunset at Tasman Saddle Hut

Sunset on Elie De Beaumont

Sunset on Aoraki

What a great tooth-brushing view

Sunset on Aoraki from Tasman Saddle Hut! It just gets better and better

All those ski tracks

Exploring the Canyonlands!

Inside the Tasman Glacier

It can be pretty cramped in Tasman Saddle Hut at times but you also never know which amazing people you might meet

And there is an excellent view out the window

Make the most of every last inch, drying gear and hanging out swapping stories.

Sunrise at Tasman Saddle, about to drop the Murchison Headwall

I love the way the sun is catching the ripples of snow on Tasman Saddle

The view from Mt Ackland on a perfect day - so still you can see the reflection three glacier lakes over. Such epic country to explore.

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