Ever since my first trip to the snow nine years ago, I have desperately wanted to return and give snowboarding a go. Despite this, most of my recent travels have been to stunningly breathtaking Summer destinations, that were blistering hot and the furtherest thing from a Winter getaway. I had also always dreamt of hitting the slopes with my brothers, but we had just never been in the “right place, right time” to go on a snowboarding trip together.
A trip is only as good as the company!
My brother, Chase, had been planning a trip to New Zealand with his girlfriend for quite some time. It included week of road tripping in a camper van around the South Island with the second week back in Queenstown hitting the slopes snowboarding. One night, a couple of months before they set off on their trip, my email started blowing up with a variety of sale flights to New Zealand. I had only just returned back from a trip to Victoria’s gorgeous Great Ocean Road and had not even considered where my next adventure would be.
It was too late, because the seed had been planted and I was on the phone to my brother and his girlfriend that night ready to go. I booked my flights in no time. I was going snowboarding in New Zealand in August with both of my brothers and our partners (plus my youngest brother’s best mate for good measure)!!
They always said the view was better from the top (of the gondola…)
My youngest brother was drawn to the window as our plane flew into Queenstown. We were soaring across The Remarkable’s. What a stunning way to enter a country; gliding across the snow capped mountains that we would soon realise surrounded our snowboarding destination. The trip was mainly about snowboarding so we had booked our entire stay in the one backpackers, Absoloot Value Accommodation, in Queenstown. We were central to both Coronet Peak and The Remarkable’s, giving us the option to go snowboarding on either mountain.
The Slopes
Coronet Peak
So. much. snow.
We spent most of our time on Coronet Peak, which we later heard the locals refer to as Concrete Peak. We learned this the hard way…. As we exited the chairlift on our first run down the mountain one morning, it became quite obvious that the slopes had all but turned to ice. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it wasn’t our second day snowboarding – ever!! It was a struggle to say the least. I recall two very unenjoyable falls on the way down – a face plant that knocked the wind clean out of me and a very firm thud to the back of my head. Good choice with the helmet after all…
My youngest brother learned the hardest lesson though, over-rotating his knee in a stack at the bottom. He ended up with a severely sprained ankle and he had to be carted off on the back of a snow mobile. Lucky we got that travel insurance!!!
Lucky we got a photo before his stack!!!
Despite our mishaps with “Concrete Peak”, we enjoyed every minute. We couldn’t get over how stunning everything looked up on that peak. There were so many rolling white hills with vast mountain ranges trailing off into the distance. This is what dreams are made of!
Fresh air never felt so good!
The Remarkable’s
We spent one day up on The Remarkable’s. They were certainly remarkable to look at but are probably more catered to skiing than to snowboarding. The runs had a lot of flat sections which you can glide across quite easily on skis. If you are snowboarding you usually end up doing that awkward one legged push. All in all, it was still a stunning mountain with gorgeous views and I would definitely recommend trying it out.
Awesome travel buddies – check!
Accommodation
After stepping inside the hostel, we soon realised how excellent our choice in accomodation had been. The hostel had a spectacular lake front view. It was located only metres from the best locations Queenstown had to offer. The best part is we only paid $35AUD a night for our beds in peak season. We were also only just around the corner from the bus we would be catching to the slopes each day.
Seriously, what sort of hostel give you these sorts of views?!
Gear Hire
We hired all of our gear from Snow Rental Queenstown, receiving 30% off on their online sale. When we collected our gear they suggested we also hire helmets. They even honoured the 30% off we had received online some time ago. All of the staff were amazing when we went into the store and I would definitely recommend hitting them up.
The gear served us well – even when we weren’t riding it…
I stepped off that plane hoping for a snowboarding adventure with my best mates and that’s exactly what I got. I can’t wait for the next snow adventure with this lot!
- Girl Seeking Purpose