There is a distinct satisfaction in listening to the rhythmic sound of your ice axe and crampons biting into a frozen snow and ice surface. Jason and I could not see much that morning. We had begun in the dark, the colder predawn temperature reducing the risk of rockfall. As the sun rose, the thick fog was almost a whiteout, and it engulfed the Nuns Veil in cloud as we systematically worked our way up the glacier towards the summit.
We were moving un-roped as it is not a difficult climb—a Grade 1+ for those who mountaineer—and one I had done six years earlier in 2007. The route follows the Nuns Veil Glacier up the southern flank of the mountain, rising in a series of gentle steps. Occasionally gaps would form in the swirling mist, revealing a glimpse of the summit.
My passion for mountains and glaciers was instilled at an early age. On one of our few family holidays we went to Aoraki Mount Cook National Park when I was seven years old. I remember long walks with my family and crossing the Hooker swing bridge. We also went to view the Haupapa/Tasman Glacier. There was no lake in front of the Tasman Glacier then, and it was blanketed in rock, though you could still see bits of ice poking out. I could hear the rocks and ice creaking
