Mitre Peak and Copper Point Climbing
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| Peter leading a pitch on Ship of Fools (Maddy Whittaker) |
We had only been home from our 9 days in the Darrans over New Years for half a week before we decided it was about time we went back. Incredible weather was forecast for the next weekend so it was decided - Mitre Peak and Copper Point it would be.
We were on the water early. It was a calm and glorious day. This serenity was shattered by the aggressive Sinbad gully sandflies. Onwards, upwards - full of sandfly induced fury we charged into the bush.
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| Peter on Mitre Peak, just above the camp spot. Sinbad Gully is visible on the right (James Adler) |
It was a hot day to be going up a 1700m peak with no water sources. As we emerged from the bush into the full sun, it became a slog. We dropped packs at our intended camp spot and carried on upwards. The tussock trudge became type one scrambling, with the warm granite falling away dramatically to the deep blue sound below. The views are exquisite. Magical. Unbelievable. It is not as exposed as it is made out to be. Everywhere where you want a handhold, there are ten bomber ones to choose from. It's definitely a scramble, not a climb.
At the summit, we were delighted to find a big snow patch. We lay in the sun on the warm rock, eating snowballs. Life was simple. Life was good.
At the summit, we were delighted to find a big snow patch. We lay in the sun on the warm rock, eating snowballs. Life was simple. Life was good.
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Conor just below the summit of Mitre Peak (Olivia Truax)
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| James and Peter on top (Maddy Whittaker) |
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| Unreal scenes from the summit of Mitre Peak (James Adler) |
We'd passed two other parties on our way up. One of these was Penny Webster and Jim, who were going to share the camp spot with us. They are truly wonderful people. As I lay there in my bivvy bag, the sound faded to purple and then blue and the stars and the lights on the moored ships below gradually flickered to life.
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Sunset over Milford Sound (James Adler)
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| Pembroke (James Adler) |
We were up at 4am, and back down at the kayaks a couple of hours later, paddling out to Copper Point. We decided the most efficient method of travel was to tow Mark in the packraft behind Peter and Jame's kayak.
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Dawn from near the bottom of the Mitre Peak Ridge (James Adler)
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| Kayaking to Copper Point, in beautiful still early morning waters. Mark being towed by Peter and James (Maddy Whittaker). |
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| The fish we caught with our bare hands out the side of the kayak (Maddy Whittaker) |
All we knew was that to climb at Copper Point, one has to find the seal platform. Turns out, that is plenty of information. A rock platform jutting out into the sea covered in seals came into view. Now came the fun part. Attempting to land and not fall in the water, while also not get attacked by seals was a challenge, especially with a light swell rising. Gradually we got everyone and the kayaks up and secured and headed up the roughly cut track to the start of the four-pitch Ship of Fools climb.
The 170m climb goes at 17, 18, 19, 19 on Climb NZ, but multiple people have said it feels like more like 19, 17/18, 19, 18. We found the second line up of grades to be more accurate. It's a mix of bolts and trad, but generally, only 2ish placements are required per pitch.
We split into two rope teams again - Olivia, Conor and I climbing first, followed by James, Peter and Mark. Conor led the first and third pitch, I led the second and Olivia led the fourth. If I'd thought the views on Mitre had been unbeatable, then I'd been wrong. The sweet exposure straight down to the Sound below was something else. Every now and then a tourist cruise rocked up, and we could hear them pointing us out to the passengers in their commentaries over the loud speakers.
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| Mark avoiding sandflies while waiting his turn to climb (James Adler) |
There was a lot of slab involved in the route. However because it's granite, you can smear on anything and it sticks. It was truly glorious.
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| Olivia belaying with flourish (Maddy Whittaker) |
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| Olivia climbing (Maddy Whittaker) |
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| Olivia, Maddy and Conor, on top of the climb (Conor Vaessen) |
Abseiling back down was not glorious. Mark, Peter and James got their rope stuck when pulling it through and then had to climb back up to get it. We got our rope stuck but thankfully they were above us and could free it. We were praying silently that the large swell and huge white caps in the sound below were going to calm as it became evening. That's what had been forecast.
It was 8:30pm by the time we got back to the bottom of the climb. The waves had not calmed. From the bottom of the climb we looked at the waves breaking onto the seal platform dramatically and envisioned our double kayaks packed with three people and trad gear capsizing. Suddenly we saw a boat in the distance. While Conor and I coiled the ropes, Olivia and James ran down the couple of hundred-metre approach (including fixed ropes and exposed scrambling) to the seal platform, waving at the fishing boat.
The boat looked like it was going to keep going. My heart sank as I finished coiling the rope. If it stayed this rough,, we'd be paddling back tomorrow morning. Bivvying with the seals. Hmmm not where I'd seen this day going.
Suddenly the boat swerved its course and approached the two down below. Olivia and a fisherman were yelling at each other but the wind was stealing their voices. I see Olivia launch James and one of the kayaks into the swell and see him struggle to the back of the boat where they pull him and the kayak up onto the back of the boat. Olivia explained her reasoning later "if James got on their boat, they couldn't leave without us."
The rest of us grabbed the gear and hooned down to the platform. Peter paddled the other kayak round to the back of the boat while one by one we jumped from the seal platform across to the boat.
Adrenaline was high as the lobster boat took off, bashing through the swell as if it wasn't even there. It was surreal to be standing on the back of a commercial fishing boat cruising back into Deepwater Basin. We are immensely grateful to Awesome Bluff Charters for rescuing us from an unplanned bivvy!
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| Olivia, Mark, Maddy and Peter on the lobster boat (James Adler) |
We decided to crash at Homer that night rather than driving back to Dunedin. We looked at the food in the back of Mark's car. One pack of lasagna sheets, one tin of tomato paste, one loaf of bread. Alright, we can work with that. After a carb heavy cook up, we went to bed, trying not to think about the fact the kayak-mobile did not have enough petrol to get back to Te Anau.
The next day we discovered miracles do happen. The car, with two double kayaks on the roof got back to Te Anau having been on empty at Milford Sound (the petrol pump there was out of order or we would have filled up there). It's been 2/3 full when we left Te Anau. Wow, turns out driving with two double kayaks guzzles fuel like crazy.
We decide to get breakfast in Te Anau and eat it on the lawn outside the library before the drive home. I look over to see James and Peter emptying an entire packet of muesli into a 2L tub of ice cream. That's one way to refuel after a trip.
This weekend was one of the bright, colorful and deeply joyful ones of the summer. A whirlwind of sparkling sea, starry skies, warm granite and wonderful people.
Mark and Peter, this shouldn't have been my last trip with you guys. It's been two months now and I'm trying to learn how to live with losing you in the hills. Maybe it's something I'll never fully figure out, but I'm immensely grateful to have memories like these to go back to - when together we watched sunrises and sunsets and stars and stood on top of peaks and talked about how moments like these were what it was all about. It's memories like these that give me the courage to continue to fiercely love the mountains and the people I share them with.
Rest easy up there xx
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| Peter |
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| Mark |
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