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Lodge Work Parties

There is a lot of work to be done relating to the lodge alterations, and we'd appreciate your help. Please contact the Lodge Manager, John Lyttle, to find out more details and to let him know you are available. The scheduled work party dates are:

• 15,16 Dec 2018
• 19,21 Jan 2019
• 2-6 Feb 2019; 23,24 Feb 2019
• 16,17 Mar 2019
• 6,7 April 2019; 19-22 April 2019

Summer Trip Card - 2018-2019

The latest trip card is now on line! See:

MTSC Summer Trip Card

Summer at the Lodge

Mt Ruapehu is a nice place to be in the Summer. Make your lodge bookings early to ensure your place on the dates you want.

NOTE: Access to the Whakapapa Ski Area is limited while a new Gondola is being constructed. RAL says "there will be major construction areas from the base area to the Knoll Ridge Cafe. ALL Cafes, Lifts and Summer Sightseeing operations will be CLOSED this summer."

Photo Competition

This annual event was held on Tuesday 7 August 2018. Here are the results.

MTSC Lodge

The lodge at Ruapehu is a great launching pad for your Winter and Summer adventures. See the lodge page for further details.

Coming up...

Dr Catherine Knight

Ravaged Beauty: An Environmental History of the Manawatu

Rose City Aquatic Club Rooms (Next to the Lido) 50 Park Road, Palmerston North.

In this talk, Dr Catherine Knight will trace the history of the region using the Manawatu River as a lens. Beginning when the region was first settled by tangata whenua and the river (along with its lagoons and adjacent wetlands) were a vital source of food and other resources as well as being an important means of transportation, through the era of European settlement, when the wholesale clearance of lowland and hill country forest led to erosion and flooding. And finally, to more recent efforts to address pollution and embrace the river as the city's "artery".

Dr Catherine Knight is an environmental historian, policy consultant and author of four books. Her first book, Ravaged Beauty: An environmental history of the Manawatu (Dunmore Press, 2014), won the J.M. Sherrard major award for excellence in regional and local history, and Palmerston North Heritage Trust's inaugural award for the best work of history relating to the Manawatu. New Zealand's Rivers: An environmental history (Canterbury University Press, 2016) was long-listed for the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards 2017 and was selected as one of the Listener’s Best Books for 2016. Her third book, Beyond Manapouri: 50 years of environmental politics in New Zealand (2018) was a finalist in the Heritage New Zealand Book Awards. Her latest book, Wildbore: A photographic legacy (2018), was published by Totara Press, which Catherine and her husband established in 2018. Its popularity exceeded expectations and the first printing sold out within 6 weeks of its release. Catherine is a policy and communications consultant and lives with her family on a small farmlet in the Manawatu, where they are working towards restoring the totara forest that once thrived on the river terraces. See Catherine's website for more information about her work: http://www.catherineknight.nz

Copies of Catherine's books will be available for sale (cash only) on the night.