“On a Mish” #9 It’s Bigger Than (Part One). Cecil Peak(1978m). Cecil Peak Station. Eyre Mountains. 13.3.2014. A hidden summit or false peak can be very demoralising to someone who has spent the day fighting gravity in order to stand on a summit. It is like the finish line was in sight and then somehow it moves further away. Since early Māori and then the discovery of gold that led to the birth of ’the town fit for a Queen’, people have looked across Lake Wakatipu at a mountain most believe to be Cecil Peak, however the true summit is hidden and is much bigger than the one seen from Queenstown…
Ever since I moved to Queenstown in 2008, I have wanted to climb Cecil Peak. However, the mountain is a mish that is not as easy as driving to its base and then climbing to the top. Between the town and the peak’s summit is a large body of water. Along with the sorting of a crossing of Lake Wakatipu, permission is also needed as the Cecil Peak Station needs to be negotiated in route to the top.
After studying the different routes up the mountain in guidebooks, my girlfriend and I decided to attack it via Bare Spur, it would be at the top of this spur that we would find out the peak is much bigger than what is seen from Queenstown. At the base of the spur is an old hut, so the plan was to spend a night here before climbing the spur to the true summit. The plan seemed foolproof, apart from the fact that there was Lake Wakatipu between us and Cecil’s hill.
After organising tickets on the historic TSS Earnslaw and contacting the owners of Cecil Peak and also Walter Peaks Stations, we prepared our kit for a mish and then headed down to Lake Wakatipu to board the big boat that has cruised the lake for over 100 years. Talk about starting a mish in style!
The cruise across the lake was a relaxing way to not only see our objective, but also Queenstown’s incredible scenery. No wonder so many people flock to New Zealand’s adventure playground each year, there is so much to look at. As the boat approached the wharf at Walter Peak Station, we caught a glimpse of the true summit standing much taller than the mountain’s more visible minor summit.
We disembarked the Earnslaw and left the masses at the iconic High Country Station / Restaurant / Farm-Show Arena then started our hike to the base of Bare Spur. It didn’t take long before we were solo trekking alongside the lapping water of the lake. While many wandered the busy streets of Queenstown, we walked alone with what seemed like an entire side of a massive lake to ourselves.
After a comfortable wander we arrived at the hut and made ourselves at home. Part one of the journey had been completed and after a delicious meal and sleep it would be our time to tackle the mountain much bigger than the one, we had looked at from Queenstown for so many years…
