Isolation is the main fear for Queenstowner Blair Whitaker, now living in a snow cave.

The 33-year-old is to spend 30 nights alone on The Remarkables ski field to raise money for an avalanche dogs charity.

And while he expects to handle the relative cold and discomfort, the long hours of eerie silence once the skiers depart will be tough.
“The isolation at night I’ll struggle with as the weeks go by,” Whitaker says.
“During the day it’ll be sweet. I can talk to people on the mountain about the charity, keep my spirits up, keep cranking.

“But it’s a long time between 5pm and 9am to be sitting around on your own. My friends have promised to bring me a Fergburger now and then.”

Whitaker, an NZONE parachute packer, hopes to raise $20,000 for charity Aspiring Avalanche Dogs. It provides the Southern Lakes region with a primary response avalanche search dog service. Amateur mountaineer Whitaker, originally from Waikato, chose the charity after 15 years of back-country snowboarding.

Follow Whitaker’s progress at www.facebook.com/TheSnowCaveProject

Article redacted from 'Brave Blair faces month in snow cave' on www.scene.co.nz