Mt Aspiring was named Tititea ‘glittering peak’ by the indigenous Maori and is often referred to as the ‘Matterhorn of the South’. This beautiful mountain is the highest peak outside Mt Cook National Park in New Zealand's Southern Alps and is the centre piece of Mt Aspiring National Park.
After accessing Mt Aspiring National Park by helicopter we spend the initial part of the week learning mountaineering techniques before turning our attention to climbing to summit of Mt Aspiring, 3,033m.
Our route we usually take is the North West Ridge either via the ‘Ramp’ or alternatively by the full NW ridge. Climbing the Ramp involves moderate angled snow climbing that requires the use of two ice tools on the steeper sections.
The route meets the NW ridge about half way up and is technically straightforward climbing for the last 300m to the summit. Great views abound as we look into the deep and glaciated valleys to the West and beyond to the Tasman Sea.
The full North West Ridge is a classic route that we generally climb later in the season once it is free of snow. This route follows the long NW ridge requiring exciting traverses around rock towers with fabulous exposure!
This is one of our most popular private instruction courses and summiting Mt Aspiring is an achievable climb on one of the most beautiful peaks in the southern hemisphere.
Our special private guiding programme of instruction in mountaineering followed by a guided ascent of Mount Aspiring:
Dates: Summer, November to April
Duration: 7 days, fly in / walk out
Departure: ex Wanaka, New Zealand
Price: NZ$5,350 for 1:1 guide ratio,
includes helicopter flight into Mt Aspiring National Park
Note: we will only guide Aspiring at a 1:1 guide : client ratio
You can view the trip notes for our 7 day Mt Aspiring Guided Ascent trip online or download a pdf using the links below;
 | Aspiring 7 day Course & Guided Ascent Notes 13-14 Adobe Acrobat Document: 557 KB, 82 seconds @ 56kbps |
Click to view a map of the region:
Get an overview of the trip on our Virtual Tour of climbing Mt Aspiring.
Photo below: View of the 'The Ramp' leading to the NW Ridge of Mt Aspiring. Photo Eric Napier
