From snow house to court house
A man with grand hopes of hiding out in an elaborate snow cave on the slopes of Mt Ruapehu has instead ended up in court.
Equipped with snow gear, a shovel and grubber, Richard David Parker headed for the Turoa ski area, in Tongariro National Park, looking for some peace and quiet away from city life.
During his three days there he made a front balcony and entrance way by one of the chair lifts.
‘‘I set it up late at night,’’ he said after appearing in the Ohakune District Court following his arrest.
‘‘Inside there was a big archway and the igloo roof coming over it for the snow layers and a big entrance with a main room and an opportunity for different entranceways and it was going to have a nice window down the bottom.’’
He was going to stay for a few days and experience a lost Kiwi pastime.
But that plan was scuttled when instead he was arrested for disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest.
Police also issued the 38-yearold Aucklander with a trespass order.
The keen camper was arrested last Sunday when a dispute occurred as Parker tried to move a public bench.
He was three hours away from finishing a snow shelter before being arrested.
With a limited supply of food the arrest turned out to be timely.
But Parker said his brief moment of escapism was stunning.
‘‘It was amazing. I had an epic view.
‘‘You wake up and the lifts aren’t going so it was the silence.
‘‘It’s not what you get from everyday life. At night you get the wind drift and it’s something that is getting harder for younger Kiwis to do.’’
‘‘It’s one of my favourite places. I love Ohakune.
‘‘It’s so accessible and one of the few places in New Zealand you can get to the snow.’’
Parker, a regular visitor to the tourist town, had hoped to return to finish the cave.
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He claims police had unlawfully arrested him and he’s hoping to get the charges dropped during a judge alone trial in October.
Ohakune police Sergeant Mike Craig said it was the first time police had removed a person hiding in a snow cave.
‘‘I’ve been here for 14 years and I’m not aware of another incident quite like this,’’ he said.
‘‘People do silly things and this was a bit out of the ordinary.’’
The Turoa Ski Area on the south-western slopes of Mt Ruapehu offers a massive 722m of vertical descent on New Zealand’s highest chairlift – The ‘‘Highnoon Express’’.
Temperatures have reached up to minus 5 degrees celsius overnight during the height of winter.
Mike Brenton, programme manager for the Hillary Outdoors
16,17,19,20 Education Centre in Tongariro, said sleeping in a snow cave was a serious undertaking.
‘‘It’s not something you do willy nilly and say I’m going to snow cave,’’ he said.
‘‘You’ve got to be well prepared and have good gear and know what you’re doing.’’
The not-for-profit charitable trust runs education courses working closely with the NZ Mountain Safety Council.
Students are taught how to make snow shelters from industry professionals.
He would not recommend anyone to go camping without being prepared and trained.
‘‘They need to have good clothing, good gear and know what they’re doing and to know where to go or it’s a recipe for disaster.’’
‘‘You could risk frost bite if you get it wrong.’’
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