Skifield could become freedom camping site
Rainbow Ski Area wants to set up New Zealand’s highest freedom campsite at 1760m, with the goal of having it run through winter.
Rainbow hopes its lofty ambitions – self-contained campers up the mountain – can bring it into line with other skifields, which offer lodge-style accommodation on site.
Rainbow Sports Club general manager James Lazor said the freedom camping site would probably be the highest in New Zealand, and the first of its kind for a skifield.
Lazor said the club, which attracted just under 22,000 ski visitors this season, would submit a resource consent application to install a freedom camping site after the Christmas holidays.
‘‘We’d like to be similar to other club fields, to allow some sort of accommodation or staying up on the mountain,’’ he said.
‘‘Right now, our resource consent does not allow [people to reside on the mountain] other than our staff, so that will be something that we will look toward.
‘‘Long-term, maybe we’d have a partner or find someone financially to help us with a permanent structure . . . but in the initial stage, it would be selfcontained campervans.’’
Lazor said the club would initially look to install a freedom camping site for summer visitors, while working on the logistics of opening the site through winter.
‘‘We would have to look at whether there could be any big issues in the winter, like whether we could or could not do it [or] whether it will be comfortable.
‘‘Winter would be a lot tougher than summer. And for us, we want to be able to clear our parking lots and roads, and having vehicles there makes it a little bit more difficult.’’
LandSAR Marlborough chairman Peter Hamill said future freedom campers on the mountain would need to be aware that the weather could take a turn at any time.
‘‘The weather can change quickly when you’re up on the mountains. You can get belowfreezing temperatures at higher altitudes, even in the summertime,’’ he said.
‘‘We always just say take the appropriate equipment for the appropriate climate. Be ready for the unexpected, and have contingencies for that as well.
‘‘People need to have something like appropriate sleeping bags so they can keep warm. It’s about keeping dry and away from the wind.’’
Lazor said that although a winter site was still far off, its realisation would be ‘‘pretty impressive’’.
‘‘It would be a huge benefit for us. Hopefully, the council feels the same way,’’ he said.
Lazor presented the club’s plans to a Marlborough District Council planning and finance committee meeting on November 29.
The club also wants to spend $100,000 upgrading an 8km stretch of alpine road leading to and from the skifield, which has not seen improvements for four to five years.
The club recently purchased two new fan guns, worth $120,000, for its beginner area. The guns could cover the slope in snow in about 80 hours, Lazor said.
Rainbow recorded a record 86-day ski season this year, with the average around 72 days. This was in stark contrast to each of the past two years, which saw the ski area open for about 50 days.
‘‘We are really a hidden jewel within this region,’’ Lazor said. ‘‘We service one of the largest markets between Nelson, Tasman, Marlborough and Wellington, both in the winter time and the summer.’’
Council strategic planning and economic development manager Neil Henry agreed, saying Rainbow Ski Area was an ‘‘important community asset, not just for Marlborough, but for the Nelson and Tasman regions as well’’.
Tourism Industry Aotearoa communications manager AnnMarie Johnson said visitors should check its freedom camping website, camping.org, for information about camping regulations, travel and driving, and how to respect the environment and community.