Mt Hutt 50th birthday brings big events, sustainability focus.
Canterbury’s Mt Hutt ski field isn’t resting on its laurels as it celebrates its half century — it’s looking forward to operating sustainably in a future challenged by climate change.
Mt Hutt, in the foothills of the Southern Alps, was one of New Zealand’s first public ski fields, opening its slopes in 1973 after locals blazed a road up the mountain with a bulldozer. It’s now a lively commercial field offering 683 metres of vertical fall and a reputation for reliable snow and exciting, steep pitches.
Ski area manager James McKenzie, who has worked at Mt Hutt for 16 years, says while the field is popular with Canterbury locals — around 85 per cent of guests are from around the region— it has also gained a wider reputation. It’s been voted New Zealand’s best ski resort for the past eight years in the World Ski Awards.
“It started very much as a local endeavour, and it’s still a big part of the local scene — people really feel part of it, and it has a big impact on the local economy. Everyone shares in our successes, and our challenges,” McKenzie says. “Geographically, it’s in a good spot — it sticks out onto the Canterbury Plains and catches a lot of the southerly and south-easterly storms that come up the plains. We can get snow pretty much any month of the year.”
Over its 50 years in operation, there have been many improvements to the field, including the installation of its first chairlift in 1982, after commercial investment was brought in to fund development of the field; 2005 saw the addition of the high-speed, detachable six-seater Summit Six chairlift, along with a quad chair.
“So you could get to the top of the mountain in comfort, as opposed to going up on T-bars — you could sit down, take in the views and relax,” McKenzie says.
The quad chair was replaced by the massive eight-seater Nor’West Express in 2021, cutting the ride time up the mountain to just two minutes and doubling carrying capacity to up to 3000 people per hour. “That has significantly changed the way people access the mountain and the efficiency of our whole operation,” he says.
Mt Hutt is organising a range of activities in August to celebrate its 50th birthday. Events include a 50,000m vertical challenge — in which skiers will have to “come up and go hard for five days” — a 50-hour endurance challenge, which will see hardcore skiers do at least one run every hour, and a 50-gate slalom challenge on the slopes, along with fun events at the field base and in Methven.
There’s a parade and party featuring iconic Kiwi band Dragon, live music on the maunga, a Mad Hatters’ Tea Party with Methven Lions, and the Whiteout Winter Festival on August 26.
“We’re wanting to do a whole range of events to really acknowledge the milestone that is 50 years, which is pretty significant, considering the challenges,” says McKenzie.
Looking forward to its next half century of operation, Mt Hutt’s owners NZSki have made a commitment to reaching carbon zero status by 2030; big changes are already under way to how the skifields operate.
NZSki has committed to reduce net carbon emissions by 50 per cent this year – laser-focused on engraining carbon reduction initiatives into its business and investing in the latest green technology.
This includes the likes of GPS technology to ensure snow making is targeted only where needed, company-wide fuel efficiency initiatives and lower-emissions snow-groomers.
On top of this, they are purchasing New Zealand carbon credits from Carbonz and purchasing 100 per cent certifiable, renewable power in a partnership with Meridian Energy.
“As a business, we’ve made a step change in our thinking, looking what we can do to make a big impact, especially with reducing diesel and power usage. That’s where our focus is, and we’re working with local businesses to share our knowledge with them and help them too,” McKenzie says.
“There’s lots of little evolutions and some bigger stuff going on all the time. Our guests appreciate that — they can come back each year and see something different, and that we’re keeping our business growing in a sustainable way.”
See Mt Hutt’s 50th birthday events from 20-27 August here.
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