Methven is around a one-hour drive from Christchurch, across the wide Canterbury Plains. Here green and gold paddocks edged with hedges and studded with impossibly fluffy sheep sit alongside wide braided rivers, all grey rocks and glass-green ribbons of rapids. In June, the plains are blanketed in snow and it feels like we are driving through a gigantic Christmas card, especially when we see tall stags and dainty deer foraging through the snowdrifts which, with a bit of imagination, could almost be reindeer.

Keen to get in as much ski time as possible we decide to travel to the slopes in style with a helicopter transfer up the mountain from the centre of the town, saving the half-hour rather torturous drive up the mountain on the twisting ice-slippery dirt road. We zoomed over the township and high up into the alps, circling around the mountain tops on a stunning 15-minute scenic flight before landing in the heart of the carpark right outside the ski resort.

But now it was time to hit the slopes, the part of the weekend I'd been dreading. I'd been assured that Mt Hutt is a great place to learn to ski. But as I surveyed the mountain maps I realised it has the highest vertical drop of any ski area on the South Island, and several double-black-diamond ridge-top and south-face runs which my ski bunny friend described as "awesome". It has the longest skiing season in the Southern Hemisphere, traditionally opening in early June and running right through to late October and receives some of the lightest and driest powder in Australasia. Home to international snowboarding and skiing competitions, it's a favourite among the serious snow hounds.

Which is all fine for the experts. But now, thanks to an $8 million development last season that included a new novice quad chair, a 1.2km novice run and a fantastic 140m magic carpet, Mt Hutt's ideal for learners. As good as its name, the magic carpet is perfect for first timers and young kids, all you need to do is slide gently onto the non-slip conveyor belt and you're gently whisked up to the 'top' of the beginners slope. You can't fall off even if you try — or at least, you have to try very, very hard.

There's even a great value Starter Pack, which includes beginner lift pass, two 1.5-hour lessons, ski boots and poles and a similar package for snowboarders. You can also hire pants and jackets as well, which means if you're a one-time skier like me you don't need to fork out on the gear, or worse, turn up wearing and assortment of begged and borrowed out-of-fashion ski gear that is guaranteed to make you look like you belong anywhere else but on the slopes.

So how'd it go? Well I do admit to spending a lot of the time beside the open fire with a hot chocolate inside the resort complex. And I have to say that lunch at The Sky High Cafe, a fast food cafeteria with burgers, pizza and lots of fried foods, was decidedly unromantic, but once I got out there it was much more fun than I expected, despite some decidedly inelegant tumbles. Having a lesson first off is the key — the group I was in was small enough to give lots of one-on-one time with my instructor, Reido, so by the end of the day I felt ready to master the novice slope, which in retrospect was probably a little too ambitious given the amount of out-of-control falls on the way down. Thankfully, a blizzard closed the slopes just as ski bunny returned to see how I was getting on.

Details

Mt Hutt is 118km from Christchurch. If you don't want to drive the 13km unsealed access road up the mountain, leave your vehicle in Methven and catch the shuttle, or go in style with Mt Hutt Helicopters.

More information: www.mthuttheli.co.nz