Greetings from your new hosts

As your new hosts at Te Wanaka Lodge it is a pleasure to welcome you to our first newsletter for the year. While Andy and Graeme have been enjoying the sights of the world, and some fabulous skiing in Europe, we have been settling in to our new surroundings and life here in Wanaka.

Wayne and I shifted down to Wanaka last September from our previous posting of over 4 years, as managers of Tongariro Lodge, Turangi, located in the central North island of New Zealand. When presented with an opportunity to take over from Andy and Graeme we could not pass it up and ever since we have been thrilled with what our new business and surroundings have brought us here in the south.

The busy summer has certainly enabled us to gain an understanding of our guests needs, and it has been a pleasure meeting so many of you over this period. For those of you we have not had the pleasure of meeting yet, we look forward to introductions over winter and helping you enjoy the bumper season everyone is predicting.

With new faces comes change, but we won’t be looking to discard the things you already know and love about winter and the ski season at Te Wanaka. We will be having Tim, our regular ski instructor, from Cardrona come down each week to give you some pointers and fill you in on what is happening on the slopes. We also look forward to charging up those weary bodies after a days skiing with our apris ski evenings, including hosted cocktails, soup and massage nights and of course the homestyle cooked dinners.

To help get your mind starting to think about saying farewell to summer, and ushering in the winter, we have included some dates of interest for you below. There are exciting things happening at our local ski resorts which you will read about also; not to mention the weather predictions which the skiers and boarders amongst you will be pleased to hear about.

So if you have any questions about your winter holiday, please feel free to give either Mandy or Wayne a call as our priority is to ensure you feel like you are at home at our place, Te Wanaka Lodge.

So what’s new on the ski fields?

Treble Cone gondola application gets approval!

Press Release 10th December 2008

Snowline Holdings was given approval this week to build a $20 million gondola which will transport visitors from the Motatapu Valley floor to Treble Cone ski area in future.

The gondola to Treble Cone aims to provide Wanaka with a year round tourism attraction which already provides visitors with a world class alpine snow experience offering majestic views across Lake Wanaka and the Southern Alps.

Company Director Richard Hanson says the consent for the gondola will give the ski area the confidence to undertake a number of improvements which previously have not been viable. When the gondola is operational it will offer safety and efficiency improvements, as well as providing visitors with a greater level of enjoyment and customer service.

The proposed gondola will take up to 2,000 passengers per hour, up the 945m vertical rise from Cattle Flat to the Ski Area. The 3.2km trip will take around 10 minutes, a significant saving on existing drive times. No date has been set for the development to begin, but it would take 12 to 18 months to construct.

The proposal originated in 2003 and after extensive preliminary work, was officially notified in August 2006. 881 submissions were received in support of the proposal. In July 2008 an amended option was presented which conformed to the preferences of the Queenstown Lakes District Council.

Snowline Holdings and its parent company Treble Cone Investments, would like to thank the Wanaka community and the wide range of submitters for their support throughout the application process.

How is the weather looking?

Shotover predicted to freeze

Otago Daily Times 2nd February 2009

Sub-zero temperatures which could freeze the Shotover River have been predicted this winter by long-range weather forecaster Ken Ring. Mr Ring said he took into account the moon's effect on tides, and also the air pressure and land.

"There is a tide in the air that is as measurable as the tide in the seas," Mr Ring said. As well as the monthly cycle, he looked at its longer repetitive cycles, of between nine and 11 years.

"I'm looking at the last time it froze and the time before. People have short memories."

According to his calculations, winter in Otago would arrive suddenly, with temperatures below freezing from early May. He said the weather would improve on the Otago coast by the end of August, but Queenstown and Wanaka would remain in the grip of a hard winter - possibly until November.