Ski Challenge @ Mt Ruapehu

Our Ski Challenge in August was a FANTASTIC trip and it would rank with one of the best times  to date that I've spent in Tongariro National Park. 

Highlights for me included: 

Visiting the National Army Museum

Walking around Lake Rotopounamu

A bluebird day up on the slopes at Whakapapa

On our first morning in the National Park we made it to the base of Ruapehu where many of the students experienced their first snowfall. With the picturesque Chateau in the background, we had fun catching snow on our tongues and taking photos.

Due to some not-so-favourable weather, we left the mountain to explore the National Park. Our warm welcome into the National Army Musuem was the start of a couple of hours of fun and exploration with their fantastic education team. Many of us would have been keen to stay for another hour or so, as there was so much more to see and learn!

Lake Rotopounamu sparked hilarious fun - with an in-joke regarding the excited call of "WA-TER!!!" (as if these students had never seen H2O before), and very creative names signposted for the various beaches: 5 minute beach, 10 minute beach, Long Beach.  

Lake Rotopounamu is an relaxing, quiet (unless you have a bunch of noisy Pikelets along), easy 2-hour walk around a stunning lake, and the varied sounds of the birdlife create a beautiful soundscape.  

On Wednesday the weather cleared, and I made sure to get a snap photo wearing a t-shirt in the snow!  It felt great to get back on skis and spend the day with the students out there. Skiing presented various levels of challenge for us all, and it was great to see the improvement in skill over the day. 

Super impressed with the commitment of the students to persevere on the skis, help each other out, and push themselves to make the most of their time on the slopes. 

It was a challenging, fun, exciting two days... and we brought some great memories home. I was surprised on the night of my birthday to find out that my precocious Pikelets have spent the last few weeks planning a birthday surprise for me - a signed WPCA t-shirt and a powerpoint presentation. You guys are certainly making yourselves a memorable bunch. 

Thoroughly enjoyed spending those two days with you in Tongariro National Park. Making lots of memories...