Cruising south with Matt at the helm, before Matt found out about the Bourbon & Coke stockpile in the back seat.

Friday morning skiing: Twice as enjoyable in the knowledge that most people are toiling away in their offices.

A few idle minutes in the sun between every run. Bliss.

You don't want to be any closer than this to the crater of an active volcano.

One of Mt Ruapehu's icy peaks.

Skiing in a world of white, with puffy clouds covering the landscape around the mountain.

Grant, trying out some horizontal stunts.

Katherine among the clouds.

Trails disappearing in the afternoon cloud cover.

Grant, just about ready for another daredevil descent.

And the fun had only started...

...really.

The team assembled for dinner.

Matt applying himself behind the camera, shooting portraits of Grant "Joseph Merrick" Harding...

...as well as in front of it, showing off his one day stubble.

Every skier needs to wind down by a log fire.

Katherine, managing to read the dessert menu while warming her bum in front of the fire.

Heading up the mountain on day two, with spirits soaring.

Team Orange, just before unceremoniously colliding while getting off the lift.

Grant was worried about his hat hair. Others might have been more concerned about his sanity.

A high cloud pulling through, playing with the sunlight.

How we like our ski fields: Wild, gorgeous and empty...

...although just gorgeous and empty will do.

Chair lift to heaven. (Sorry. Couldn't help myself.)

Mt Taranaki making an unscheduled appearance on the horizon.

Snow cannons doing what snow cannons do.

The team at the end of the weekend, showing off a profound lack of broken bones.

Matt and Rochelle, of the Olympic snowboarding team.

An hour later, on the way back to Auckland, the skiing nerve starts to itch again.