My First NZ Sumit! (just a baby one though!)

Me and Sarah had made some big plans for some alpine climbing this weekend, however the weather was not on our side, and avalanche risk too great (see Mum, safety first!). We decided to do a small peak named Mount Thomas, just 45 mins drive away. It was rainy and grey in Christchurch, so we packed our waterproofs (and sadly left our crampons and ice-axes behind). We went with Carolyn, one of Sarah's friends, who is breaking herself back into hiking gently, following ankle problems. We set off in light rain, and followed the trail through beautiful forest up to a col, where we branched off up a gentle, rounded ridgeline to the summit. As we approached the final Kilometer, the trees fell away to open hillside, with patches of snow. The cloud disipated, and we had sunshine! We had climbed above the cloud, and were in bright blue sky with warm sun. We talked about how amazing it is that you can set off in poor conditions, and have no idea of what awaits you at the top of the hill. So many times you might decide not to climb that day, and miss out on such a treat. Just that small hill of 1026m had completely different weather to the valley below it. We had lunch on the summit, and left just as the cloud began to reach us. We walked back down into the mist. The way back down was quick, but my boots were playing up again (actually, I think its my feet that are the problem!), so I actually walked some of the descent in bare feet. The gorse and stones became too much though, and on went the boots for the last bit. All in all, a fab day, and a new friend too! Back home for a glass of wine :-)