Press Release from Treble Cone. The major summer earthworks at Treble Cone (Wanaka, NZ) to increase and enhance the intermediate ski terrain and experience in the Saddle Basin are nearing completion. A new intermediate trail to be named Side Saddle has been created through earthworks and snow fencing, and will become a regularly groomed feature in 2015.
This new trail will be located between Raffills Run and Bullet in the Saddle Basin, an area that collects good natural snow and has been under-utilised. At the bottom of this new intermediate trail a new exit has been created to provide a safer and easier transition back onto Pete’s Treat to return to the chairlift.
Previous advanced trail Saddle Back has received the attention of two large excavators to widen its entrance off High Street and will now allow for regular grooming, plus earthworks have widened a narrow bottleneck in the early section of the trail above Shooter, converting this previously difficult to find advanced trail into an easier to access intermediate trail, destined to become a favourite for many guests.
On nearby intermediate trail Raffills Run with it’s even pitch and sweeping views over Lake Wanaka and the snow-capped Southern Alps, an extended and re-aligned entry to this popular intermediate trail has been created and now offer a new wide and even entrance to replace the previous narrow bottleneck into this trail. The new entrance will match the pitch and width of this key trail.
These earthworks projects are being completed by local contractors Maungatua who have been on site at Treble Cone this summer since early February and who have been involved in and managed earthworks on the mountain and the Treble Cone access road since 1977.
The enhanced intermediate terrain will be complimented by additional improvements which include new snow-fencing in key areas to collect and hold snow and with the additional benefit of helping new visitors navigate the mountain, along with the introduction of a new open-air cafe at the top of the Home Basin at a site that will be easily accessible to skiers and snowboarders lapping the Saddle Basin via a quick loop around High Street.
The new cafe will offer barista made Allpress coffee, lunches cooked to order, and one of New Zealand’s most spectacular locations to sit and enjoy a drink.
Join the SnowsBest @misssnowitall social chatter on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
