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New Zealand
"InMyTree" wrote in message ... I think this might have something to do with it.. Mt Hutt, Coronet Peak and the Remarkables were sold the other year.. all for $12 million NZ.. thats about 4 million pounds! That sounds pretty cheap to me.. I think someone needed to be bailed out.. They were owned by Air NZ and following the downturn in passenger numbers on their most profitable route following the event of 11/9 (or 9/11), and combined with paying to much for Anset in OZ, nearly went bust until baled out by the NZ Govt and are still struggling, cutting routes, etc, so any non-core businesses (such as ski fields) were sold off... But I just wish when they were doing resort developments they had have planed in on something higher than a measly 2000m! Not really on. Remember that this is a 'young' country (Canterbury recently celebrated it's 150th birthday) and that the Southern Alps were unexplored before the Pakeha (non-indigenous New Zealanders) arrived. Maori (different tribes) did not live in the Alps either, unlike the European Alps where what are now major resorts started as hamlets for summer farming and had path access. NZ has a very, very strict conservation policy and it is very difficult to obtain permission to build in the Alps. Good skiing can be had in NZ, but be prepared to travel up/down to the fields as most commercial fields do not have on-field accom unless you ski at a club field such as Craigieburn (www.craigieburn.co.nz). Heliskiing provides an other dimension to skiing (try Harris Mountain Heliskiing from Wanaka or Queenstown - http://www.heliski.co.nz/). Mt. Hutt is too commercial and if the car parks at the lift base (a 45 min car journey from the bottom of the unsealed road) are full the road has been know to be closed to people still arriving (this has happened at 08:00 am after a large powder fall due to the amount of traffic already waiting at the base for the road to open at 08:00). Yes we are a long way from anywhere else, even Oz is a 3 hr flight (Christchurch / Sydney) but this does not stop Aussies / Asians / Japanese (especially) from skiing here. Quite a few Western instructors (Canadians / Americans / Brits) do come over too to work during the season having an Endless Winter, as do some of the national teams for some 'off-season' training. P. www.craigieburn.co.nz "Adrian D. Shaw" wrote in message ... Yn erthygl , sgrifennodd InMyTree : All these ski fields are very small compared to Europe/North America.. the longest run at the Remarkables would probably be about 2.5km, and its flat as you like.. Coronet Peak is even shorter.. what really gets me about New Zealand is that they have some mountains over 3000m.. they could easily rival Europe if they just built some lifts on them! Coronet Peak and the Remarables are less than 2000m asl! If they had another 1000m of vertical they would have some great fields.. That may be because they have a population nto much greater than that of Wales (if I remember my figures right), and they are a long way from anywhere else, except maybe Aus. They probably don't think it's worth it. On the other hand, if they could be persuaded that there are a mass of European skiers prepared to make the trek every European summer, maybe it would be. But somehow I doubt we all would. Adrian -- http://www.nspcc.org.uk/donate-4-free ais@ Adrian Shaw, Adran Cyfrifiadureg, Prifysgol Cymru, aber. Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Cymru ac. http://users.aber.ac.uk/ais uk |
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