Mt Liverpool
Women in the Wild: Learning on Liverpool
Walking towards Islington Dome, with a view of Tititea in the background.
A goal for me this year was doing more alpine trips with other girls. So my friend Jenna and I planned to take two other women up Mt Liverpool via Cascade Saddle, to teach alpine skills and support other adventurous wahine. Our journey began at the Raspberry Flat carpark on a crisp Friday morning, armed with determination and a two-day weather window. With backpacks packed and spirits high, we eagerly set off at 7am. The initial 10-kilometer slog to Aspiring Hut, a familiar path for some of us, was filled with excitement. However, recent rainfall had transformed the trail into a muddy adventure. Dry feet became a distant dream as we trudged through the boggy terrain.
Top tip: Invite a mate with a 4wd (with land owner permission) or hop on your mountain bike to make the trip in to Aspiring Hut more enjoyable. You can store you bikes in the bush around the hut and doc has started providing netting to try fend off the kea - you may still loose some handle bar tape though!
After a quick snack at Aspiring Hut we set off up cascade saddle. The cascade saddle track is 6km, and climbs 1300m. Doc time estimates 4-5 hours, but depending on how much weight you are carrying and the track conditions this can vary from 2-8 hours so make sure you take fitness, gear, and weather into consideration when planning trip times!
Looking back along the Matukituki towards Raspberry Flat from the Cascade Saddle track
The track is clearly marked and easy to follow through the bush line, however fallen trees and slippery roots can make it challenging. After the bushline it is still clearly poled, but the terrain does get a little more exposed and there are more scrambly sections up schist. The views are truly outstanding though out over the west Matukituki, and we were lucky enough to have beautiful sunshine on the way up. At around 1300m there is a Roys Peak look alike photo spot except without the crowds and with an even better view out over Mt Aspiring! It was here that a group of eight kea began circling us - a warning sign of what was to come once the sun set.
Jenna, Eve, & Alli at the perfect photo spot.
Spirits were high as we crested the high point of the cascade track and reached the pylon at 1770m. We then followed the poled route dropping down into the valley below Mt Ansted. This track was a little tricker with light snow covering slippery sections of Schist so we took our time down here and a pole definitely helped. There's a camping site with a toilet near Cascade Creek, this a great camp spot with easy access to water and the bonus of a bathroom. We decided to continue along to the saddle itself though to have a more direct start up towards Mt Liverpool the next morning.
Camping at the saddle itself was pretty magical with a beautiful view out over the dart glacier. However we did end up having to melt snow for water, and the kea decided ruin any hopes of a good nights sleep. A group of five kea descended on our tents at sunset and despite our best efforts they still managed to put a tole in one tent, and escape with a shoe and a hiking pole. Luckily we were able to retrieve this (covered with bite marks) in the morning. But definitely keeping all gear in the tent, even sharps, and building rock walls if possible is the way to go! Or better yet just don’t camp at cascade.
The Dart glacier from our camp site at Cascade Saddle
After a night of limited sleep our crew of girls were feeling a little worse for wear and our aspirations of an alpine start were tossed aside in favour of rising spirits and getting everyone warm and happy again. It’s super valuable to remember in these moments what the point of being in the mountains is and also what will set your team up for a better day. Yes we could have still pushed on at 5am, but everyone would have been sleep deprived, cold, and not in the right head space for learning glacier travel and snow skills which was our main objective. So we decided to set a later alarm and heat up some more water for everyone to start their day with some hot electrolytes. A hot drink can make all the difference to peoples mood, and the team was feeling stoked again as we set off towards Plunket Dome.
From cascade saddle there is a rough track up towards plunket dome following the ridge on climbers right. We ascended first through tussock and then onto loose rock, which at this time of year was was covered in patches of snow. At the end of the rock rib we transitioned into crampons and as the glacier was still pretty bare decided not to rope up on the way to plunket dome. We quickly went over basic crampon skills and the awesome wahine I was with just powered up the slope despite exposure! Probably not the most ideal place to teach beginners, but they handled it with style. After a quick snack break we roped up on plunket dome before setting off again. Roping up here was pretty essential as we crossed a few interesting snow bridges on the way towards Liverpool and each fell at least one leg deep into covered crevasses. Everyone handled the falls like a pro though, and pulled themselves out after moments of laughter.
Crossing a snow bridge between Liverpool & Islington Dome
We had set a hard turn around time of 3:30, which would allow us enough daylight to get off the snow before it fully hardened. Checking in with the group on how energy levels are, what terrain everyone is comfortable navigating in different levels of light, and setting turn around times and goals accordingly definitely helped make this trip safe and enjoyable for everyone. We didn’t know if we’d make it up before 3:30 after our late start, but we crested the summit ridge at 3:28 and were rewarded with beautiful views out over Aspiring and down into the dart valley. The cloud was pouring over Mt Barf and into the Matukituki and it looked absolutely magical. Heading down was a lot faster than heading up, especially as we now knew were the crevasses to avoid were, and we managed to reach the rock ridge below plunket by sunset.
Navigating rocks in the dark was a bit challenging, especially with a few of our headlamps running low on battery. However, having a back track feature on the topo tracker and GPS proved to be a lifesaver. We could clearly see our previous tracks and follow them back to Cascade Saddle. By 7 pm, we made it back down to Cascade Saddle, relieved to be back on flatter ground. We uncovered our buried gear (kea hiding tactics) and walked back to Cascade Stream to meet up with two friends and set up a little tent city. Fortunately, the kea left us alone this night, allowing us to catch some much-needed rest.
The next morning, we woke up to a light snowfall, creating a serene and beautiful atmosphere. As we began our journey back up to the pylon, the snow mixed with sunshine, painting a picturesque landscape. A snowball fight made for even more fun and we were all feeling hyped after summiting the previous day. However, as we descended back into the Matukituki, the snowfall intensified, making the scramblier sections of the track a bit slippery. We had to exercise caution to avoid any slips or falls. Reaching the bushline provided a sense of relief as we found shelter from the heavy snowfall. Luckily, we managed to convince our friends to drive us out from Aspiring Hut in their 4WD van, saving us from tiring walk back to Raspberry Flat carpark. Cramming all our gear and ourselves into the back of the van was a very wholesome end to the journey.
Overall, it was an incredible trip, and incredibly empowering to be able to explore with and teach alpine skills to a group of supportive and adventurous women. Climbing Mt Liverpool together strengthened our bond and created lasting memories and we returned with a sense of accomplishment and a renewed love for the mountains.
Our route from Raspberry Flat to Mt Liverpool via Cascade Saddle