Mount Lyford is about 2 hours north of Christchurch- it is a privately owned ski field. The road going up was among the worst I've ever seen- very narrow, snaking along the side of the mountain, with jagged rocks everywhere. Like many of the privately owned ski fields, Mt Lyford doesn't have a chairlift- it just has a t-bar, a poma (which is like a t-bar but has a little circular disk instead of a t-bar) and rope tow. Not just any rope tow, but a rope tow that utilizes a New Zealand invention- "the nutcracker". The nutcracker is a story for another day. I didn't have the guts to try it just yet- it looks very difficult and a bit dangerous on a snowboard.
It snowed a lot last week, and there was a base of over 100 cm of snow. Maybe not much for the Canadian Rockies but it is quite good for New Zealand. The ski hill was quiet, and it was a beautiful day!
