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South Face

Type
Face
Part of
Aoraki Mt Cook Low Pk

The South Face of Aoraki/ Mt Cook, generally starting on or above the Noeline Glacier.

Aoraki- South Face
Aspect
South
Approach

From the old Gardiner Hut site via Noeline or Upper shelf

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Routes

Reference Title Grade Length Pro Quality Alert Operations
3.86 3.86The Creamer, III,4+ III,4+ 0m
0

Climb a gully 200m left of Sweet Dreams to join the West Ridge.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) III
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 4+
3.87 3.87Sweet Dreams, III,4+ III,4+ 0m
0

Ascend about 100m up Wet Dream and then head left up an ice smear to broken ground and onto the West Ridge.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) III
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 4+

Ascend two rope lengths up Wet Dreams and then head left up an ice smear to broken ground onto the West Ridge.

3.88 3.88Wet Dream, IV,4+ IV,4+ 0m
0

Start up a prominent gully 100m left of White Dream, which becomes quite narrow and angles back to connect up with White Dream at the edge of the upper icefields. Mostly 50 degrees but a few sections are steeper. The middle section on rock and water ice can be hard to follow. The final section before joining White Dream follows a prominent gully.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) IV
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 4+

Start up a prominent gully 100m left of White Dream. The route follows a narrow gully/ramp which angles back to connect up with White Dream. In places it narrows to one metre in width. Mostly 50 degree angle but a few sections are steeper. The next section on rock and water ice can be hard to follow. The final third of the route follows a prominent gully that joins White Dream near to where the NW Couloir joins. Harder variations have been done that traverse around very steep rock to reach the slope below the ice-cliff of White Dreams.

3.89 3.89White Dream, IV,4+ IV,4+ 0m
1.02

A popular classic, for good reason. This route takes the easiest (most obvious) line up the ice and mixed ground on the left of the upper south face, passing just left of the left-most icecliff (crux). Continue climbing up the left side of the icefields to join the West Ridge.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) IV
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 4+
3.90 3.90Slovenian Route, V,4 V,4 0m
0

From the shelf, head directly up the slopes beneath the two major icecliffs on the left of the face, up through a short rock band and between the cliffs. Then move left and up above the left icecliff, either to the top of the West Ridge or tending right again to Low Peak. The route has also been gained via an interesting ice runnel further left. ( Guy McKinnon, 2003)

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) V
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 4

From the shelf, head directly up the slopes beneath the two major icecliffs on the left of the face, up through a short rock band and between the cliffs. Then move back left and directly up above the left icecliff either to the top of the West Ridge or tending right again to Low Peak.
3.91 3.91Original Route, VI,3+ VI,3+ 0m
0

A long diagonal route which cuts between the two steep zones of the face. From Pudding Rock, gain the Noeline Shelf, climb up to the right across the face and then up beside the prominent rock rib on the right. Climb the rib or the slopes adjacent to it, then ascend diagonally across to the South Ridge below the fourth rock step.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VI
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 3+

From the prominent shelf gained from Gardiner Hut, climb up to the right across the face and then up beside the main rock rib on the right. Then gain the rib and ascend to the South Ridge below the final rock step.
3.92 3.92Direct Route, VII,4 VII,4 0m
0

From the Noeline Glacier, ascend an ice gully on the right of the main icecliffs (crux), then go directly up, turning icecliffs as necessary. Tops out near the summit of Low Peak.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VII
  • Alpine (Technical) 4

From the Noeline ascend 70 ice gully on the R of the main ice cliffs and left of Gates of Steel, then directly up turning the first prominent icecliffs on the left and the next cliffs on the R. Not the safest line.

3.93 3.93The Gates of Steel, VII,5 VII,5 0m
0
  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VII
  • Alpine (Technical) 5

Ascend the large buttress right of the Noeline Shelf icecliffs, then weave through icecliffs as necessary to gain the upper South Ridge. The buttress is reportedly fairly safe but the rock is of mixed quality.

3.94 3.94David and Goliath, VII,5 VII,5 0m
0

The prominent ice gully that finishes by turning left onto the top of the rock buttress of The Gates of Steel. Provides 600m of good ice in fat ice years.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VII
  • Alpine (Technical) 5
3.95 3.95Pounamu, VI,4+ VI,4+ 0m
0

A 13 pitch route that climbed five ice pitches to the left of Nerve Runner before traversing right on mixed ground (with a 30m abseil) past Romeo and Juliet. The upper half of the route climbed up and right on easier terrain, following natural weaknesses, to join the top of Sodom and Gomorrah.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VI
  • Alpine (Technical) 4+

13 pitches on R of face to join Hillary Ridge (South Ridge) just below the second step.
3.96 3.96Nerve Runner, VII,5 VII,5 0m
0
  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VII
  • Alpine (Technical) 5

Start on the buttress immediately right of David and Goliath. Fifteen pitches straight up mixed ground with steep ice runnels. Good rock pro. Exit 200 metres left of Romeo and Juliet through icecliffs. Aptly named. Unrepeated.
3.97 3.97Romeo and Juliet, VI,4+,5 VI,4+,5 0m
0
  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) VI
  • Alpine (Technical) 4+
  • Alpine (Mt Cook) 5

Ascend the ice gully on the right side of the face, just right of the prominent icecliff and exit onto the South Ridge.

3.98 3.98Sodom and Gomorrah, V,5 V,5 0m
0
  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) V
  • Alpine (Technical) 5

Start up Romeo and Juliet, then continue up and right on a ramp for 100m, then straight up for five rope lengths to exit at a prominent level section of the South Ridge below the third step.
3.99 3.99Remembrance, V,6 V,6 0m
0

A 550m climb that skirts up the left edge of the 2014 rockfall zone. A narrow ice gully through the lower bluffs turns to thin mixed climbing before reaching the right edge of a large snow ramp that splits the right side of the face. Climb to the top of the snow ramp into another corner system above, which provides a few more narrow ice pitches (WI4) and finally some left-trending mixed climbing (M5) to top out above the second step in the South Ridge. Ben descended the edge of the Caroline Face from this point after the first ascent.

  • P1
  • Alpine (Commitment) V
  • Alpine (Technical) 6

Images

Comments
This place appears in
Aoraki Tai Poutini: a guide for mountaineers, 2018
Buy this guidebook
UUID
 
66595cf9-09f8-4345-8619-e998f8eb0aa5