Elevation: 2039m

Elevation Gain: 1200m+/-

Distance: 15km return

Difficulty: 3rd class, with a very exposed 4th class ridge. You’ll need good route-finding skills and be comfortable with some decent exposure at times. The rock quality is mostly fantastic with the route being more fractured on the final ridge.

Access: Gertrude Valley Parking Lot, Milford Sound

Sam stares off toward Barrier Peak as we work through the slabs.

Description:

This is probably one of the quickest peaks you can hit in New Zealand that actually brings you into the alpine.

Barrier Peak is the obvious, prominent peak at the back of the Gertrude Valley. It’s been on my list to climb ever since I first saw it a couple years back. This was also Ruby and My last weekend to really get after it before the arrival of our new puppy so the pressure to get high was on. The Sunday of the long weekend had 50mm of rain but the Monday was supposed to clear up. This was also a rare case where the weather system was far enough north that Milford Sound had the best weather near Queenstown.

Sam, Ruby, and I loaded the car late Sunday afternoon and made for our favourite campsite, Cascade Creek, down in Fiordland National Park. The drive from Queenstown to Te Anau can feel long but I always enjoy driving from Te Anau to Milford Sound. We arrived at the campsite a little after 8pm, set up, and headed straight to bed as we had an early start.

We arrived at the crack of dawn to the Gertrude Valley trailhead just before the Homer Tunnel. We knew we were in for a great day as we watched the early morning clouds rise and burn off. The valley walls were seeping as they normally do down in Fiordland but we figured that by the time we reached the alpine the sun would have burned off most of the moisture.

Sam walks across the wet slabs toward Black Lake.

The thing I love about the Gertrude Valley is that the approach is incredibly short. You start around 800m of elevation and the track to the saddle is only 4km long. A quick walk through a well trodden track saw us at the back of the valley in no time. About an hour and a half after departing we had arrived at Gertrude Saddle.

We had been lucky enough to have a calm morning with virtually no wind but that all changed the second we hit the saddle. The cold morning breeze howled through the col. Thankfully, we came across a large boulder, which became our refuge from the wind as we took a quick water break and soaked in the views of Milford Sound. The view down to the sound is something that never gets old for me. The lush, coastal rainforest is broken by sheer, cold mountains that rise vertically from the valley floors.

Ruby making her way along the grassy ridge. Milford Sound in the background.

We departed from the saddle and made our way back into the wind. Ruby worried that we were going to be battling this wind the entire way to the summit. We zig-zagged along the thin, muddy ridge that connected Gertrude Saddle to the looming peaks. The rain had made an already damp, grassy ridge all the worse to climb. Every step was carefully placed as a fall from here could lead to a very serious situation.

Transitioning from grassy to alpine terrain. 

This grassy portion of the trip is shortly lived, however. Within about 20 minutes we were picking a well cairned route up the gritty diorite. The structure of the mountain features near vertically walls at the base followed by a more mellow series of slabs. Gertrude Saddle is a way to sneak past the steep walls and jump to the easier terrain. To get to Barrier Peak you can traverse below Barrier Knob, which is a very popular alpine trip in itself.

Walking along the slabs beneath Barrier Knob.

We made our way across the slabs of rock, slowly gaining elevation as we approached our objective. There is a col at 1796m that marks the start of the proper ridge of Barrier Peak. We basked in the sun and enjoyed the views of Lake Adelaide and the deeper Darran Mountains. The glaciated peaks of Mt. Tutoko and Madeleine broke stuck out in the backdrop. There is a route that travels from the Hollyford Valley through to Barrier Peak and down to the Gertrude Valley. I imagine it would be a fantastic outing.

Ruby stares down at Lake Adelaide and the surrounding peaks.

We began on the final leg of the trip. This sees the mountain transition from slabs to more fractured rock. There are cracks and channels in the rocks you work through as you make your way to the proper ridge. Staying low and hitting the ridge just before the sub peak is probably the easiest way to get there but navigating when to move up can be tricky. Once you’re on the proper ridge you need to negotiate between sections of large, broken boulders and short gullies of scree. This is mostly 3rd class scrambling but can definitely be exposed at times. We found ourselves on a steep crack system for about 15m with no ledges to rest. The final move was a balanced step up with very little hand support.

Ruby climbing the lower portion of the ridge. Barrier Knob behind.

Upon reaching the sub peak you descend steep, broken slabs to reach a thin ridgeline cheval. To traverse I would recommend roping up but bolder climbers may just solo this section. The thin ridge lasts about 50m laterally and we managed to find ledges below the ridgeline to traverse to avoid the exposure of this ridge. However, the rock on the Gertrude Valley side is mossy and doesn’t see a lot of sunlight so the terrain was slippery.

Sam tackling the typical bouldery terrain. Mt. Crosscut behind.

The final ridge is made up of easy scrambling and boulder hopping. It’s a little bit tedious but there is minimal exposure. We reached the summit and enjoyed the panorama. Continuing along the ridge was Marian Peak with Sabre Peak tucked behind. From what I’ve read, Marian Peak is an easy, but exposed, ridge traverse. Sabre Peak is a serious climbing objective and on the list of most alpine climbers I’ve met. We also used this view to scope out the exit for the Mt. Crosscut Traverse. From what we saw, this traverse looks quite daunting but sometimes perspectives can be misleading, especially in regard to mountains.

Enjoying the summit views Marian and Sabre peak behind.

We descended the same way we went up. Once on the slabs the travel is very quick and simple. A quick walk from Gertrude Saddle saw us back at the car and driving back toward Queenstown.

Lake Adelaide with the southern alps.

Taking in the views of Fiordland before making our way back to Gertrude Saddle.

Ruby doing her best to blend in with the foliage.