Mt Murchison 2408m

1st-2nd Feb 2010
After finishing work on Sunday at 5, jumped in the car with Axel and Peter and we headed back to my second home, the CMC hut, Kennedy Lodge, in Arthur's Pass. We had some beers as we made plans, deciding on Mt Murchison, an easy climb but a long walk in and the highest peak in Arthur's Pass.
We got up and drove to the Bealey pub, where we left the car and walked in along the Waimakariri river bed, occasionally leaving the bed for forested areas. 15km into our walk we passed the Carrington hut, a large hut, where we had some lunch and a rest, and cached some stocks for the return trip. we carried on, boulder hopping along the white river, getting wet feet on the necessary crossings. After a while the river turns into a gorge, so we left the bed for steep scree and tussock slope on the true left. Hard work, especially with big packs! After a couple of hours we did some scrambling on loose scree/rock up to the Barker hut where we would spend the night. It was now 7.30 pm, a long day! We basked in the sun next to the hut. The hut is tiny, and perched high on rock, surrounded by huge mountains. You could see down the valley to Rolleston. The sky was blue, and we were happy to be resting, so we brought the matresses outside and made a fantastic couch, with the best view in the world. We drank a little bourbon, and ate dinner, chatting into the night. The sky was so clear, with millions of stars, and a bright moon that lit up the snow on the mountains around us. The sunset over Rolleston was amazing. It was a mild night so Axel and I slept out under the stars in our sleeping bags. An awesome experience.
We woke at 5am and set off up Murchison. it was an easy snow plod up a moderately steep slope, with some loose rock to climb at the end. We took a bit of a detour, and gave ourselves a slightly more challenging, and way more fun, rock route. On the summit you could see for miles and miles you could even see Mt Cook, and the sea of the west coast. It was one of my favorite moments ever. It was perfect, perfect blue skies, and mountains as far as the eye could see. I really felt that this was exactly what I came to NZ for.
Happily we descended after lunch, bum sliding the slopes (avoiding the crevasses!) and practiced a bit of ice-axe self arrest. Back at the hut, we packed up and began our long walk out. After four hours we reached the Carrington Hut, and picked up the rest of our food, but decided to walk the remaining 15km out that night. It went on forever! We happily reached the Bealey pub at 9.20 pm, had some beers and went back to the CMC hut. We didn't even manage much bourbon before falling asleep! What a fantastic couple of days.