Spring snowstorms bring late-season boost to South Island skifields

Thursday, 11 September 2025

Mt Cheeseman pictured in mid August, left, and again on Wednesday after another spring snow storm. (Composite image)

A series of spring snowstorms has given South Island skifields a late-season revival.

Mt Cheeseman, which had abandoned its 2025 season, announced it would run a “pop-up” long weekend from Friday to Sunday following snowfalls last weekend and on Wednesday.

Temple Basin confirmed it would also open again this weekend, after managing to spin lifts last week following its earlier decision to cancel the season.

“We’ve rounded up key staff and volunteers, and conditions are good enough to get people on the slopes,” Mt Cheeseman operations manager Cam Lill said.

Running a scaled-back operation, Lill asked skiers to “bear with” the team in terms of service. “But the name of the game is to get [people] skiing and riding.”

The mountain received 30cm of snow over the weekend, with another 8 to 10 cm falling on Wednesday, which Lill described as “the icing on the cake”.

Coverage was still “very thin” across the mountain, so riders were advised to cruise with caution.

Temple Basin pictured mid August, left, after announcing it would not open for the season, then pictured right on September 3 after 50cm of new snow. (Composite image)

Lill added the weekend’s weather could be variable, and urged skiers to check the club’s website for updates. After the weekend, the team would assess how the pop-up runs and decide whether to open again the following weekend.

At Temple Basin, last week’s snow dump of about 50cm allowed the field to run all three lifts at the weekend.

Wild squalls of wind and rain buffet birds on the Avon Heathcote Estuary in Christchurch.

Peter Marriott, Temple Basin Ski Area president, said bringing back five staff to run the lifts was a “massive effort”, but it was “simply fantastic” for the roughly 50 visitors who enjoyed powder skiing.

The ski area would reopen this coming weekend if the weather allowed, and had seen a decent amount of snowfall by Wednesday afternoon.

Thursday is expected to be calmer after the weather brought strong winds, thunderstorms and travel disruption to Canterbury on Wednesday.

A two-car collision on Opawa Rd in Christchurch left one person seriously injured and another with minor injuries, police said. Both were taken to hospital, and the road was briefly blocked before reopening.

A streetlamp fell on Blenheim Rd in Hornby, blocking both lanes of the roundabout. Police said the Christchurch City Council was notified and sent technician, with traffic managed around the area until the road was cleared.

Snow on State Highway 73 below Temple Basin Ski Area, near Arthur’s Pass.

Meteorologist Samkelo Magwale said Christchurch was experiencing gusts up to 82 kph on Wednesday, with peaks hitting 90 kph.

“It will behave at times, but this will continue through the evening before easing overnight as the system moves further east,” Magwale said.

“Most thunderstorms are easing, but wind gusts could affect power lines and lead to outages.”

In alpine areas, September snow affected travel in the central South Island, with State Highway 7 between Springs Junction and the Hanmer Springs turnoff closed from just before 4pm until about 9pm.

State Highway 73 closed between Otira and Arthur’s Pass about 1.45pm due to snow, and eopened about 5.30pm.

Milford Rd (State Highway 94) from Hollyford Rd Junction to the Donne River Bridge closed again at 5 pm on Wednesday, with further closures possible over the coming days.