Hiking, hiking, hiking

View from Siberia Hut

Well the blog is back.  Sorry I've been out of touch, but I've hiked 7 of the last 10 days! As you know, I accepted a job working in Paihia, in the Bay of Islands are of the North Island for a jet ski tour company.  Since that doesn't start until the end of this month (kinda), I decided to come to the South Island for a month to get some mountain time!  After a few days in Dunedin to catch up with my friends from last time, I hitchhiked to Makarora, which went surprisingly well.  It's normally a 4:15 trip and I made it in 5 hours, never waiting more than 30 minutes for a ride!  Anyway, I was staying with a guy and his granddaughter out there in a beautiful, but remote area, basically as a base for some hiking.  So, let's get into hiking.

Wilkin River Valley

I had planned to do the Gillespie Pass Circuit, but wasn't sure what the weather would be like, so had flexible plans.  The track starts off crossing a waist-deep river, so I had wet feet for the next 5 hours, which is always enjoyable.  There were a bit of snow flurries, but otherwise an easy walk in a big river valley (the Wilkin River).  I expected to have the hut alone, but I saw there was smoke coming out of the chimney, which meant someone was there and already had it heated for me!  It was just the two of us though--Tom from Christchurch and myself.  The next morning, we woke up around 9 and the water pipe for the hut had frozen over and all the grass and even the creek were frozen, which meant the pass would surely be icy.

Ice in the morning

We had decided that we would go to a lake nearby for the day, then back to the hut for the night.  Around 11 we got to where the track split for the pass or the lake, but by now it was sunny and things were melting.  Tom decided to go to the lake, but I decided to go at least part way up the pass, then turn back.  I got to just above treeline, but should have gone further--I'm still getting comfortable being out alone.  Anyway, we both got back, had some good laughs, then walked out early the following morning before the rain storm made the river impassable.

Me on Liverpool Hut's Deck

Tom was headed on a road trip up the West Coast and had some cool tracks in mind, so I ended up joining him for one more walk.  We had intended to go to a hut situated just in from the Tasman Sea, but didn't feel like crossing rivers and worrying about flooding, so picked another one.  The sign said 2 hours to the hut, but it barely took us an hour!  It was a cool little hut built in 1905 when people were herding cattle across the country.  Not the most impressive track though, and then I hitched a ride back to Makarora.

Liverpool Hut

Thursday I got to Wanaka, one of my favourite towns in the world, and was stoked for a good weather forecast.  I decided Friday I would go to the Liverpool Hut, which I planned to go to last year, but got nixed due to weather.  Anyway, Friday morning was beautiful, so off I went.  Unfortunately, I didn't go far too quickly because it took me forever to get a ride from town to the trail head.  I did eventually make it and had to go 5 hours up to the hut and by this point, clouds had moved in.  The first 14km or so are very easy walking up a valley, but the last 1km was basically like walking up a ladder of rocks and roots for an hour and a half!  Finally, I made it up above treeline and got to the hut to find one other person there too--an American of course.  I also saw 4 kea, the world's only mountain parrot, and am continually impressed by them.  After getting a surprisingly warm night's sleep, the sun was out in the morning showing the amazing views and peaks from the hut--not a bad way to wake up!  There is a magazine in the hut with a panorama picture of the hut--it's pretty cool to be sitting in a magazine!  Going down the mountain was just as obnoxious as climbing up, but I got to the trailhead by 1:30.  There is another trail that goes up to a glacier lookout, so I decided to do that too and saw two impressive avalanches (they're awesome as long as they aren't near you).  The sign says 3 hours round trip, but I did it in 2, then met a guy headed back to town, so I got a ride back really easily!  I think I may be done tramping for a bit as the weather is supposed to worsen now.  I'm off to Queenstown on Tuesday for only a couple nights, then to a friend's farm in Gore for the weekend before I go back north for work.

Rob Roy Glacier

I've learned a few things so far, such as:

• every pair of socks I own seem to be torn
• my boots are tearing already
• there are more hikes here than I even realised (and I realised there were lots)
• I need to buy a camp stove because I'm tired of cold meals
• I actually enjoy reading, but need a book

Love you all, miss you all, and talk to you soon!