Innehållsförteckning för December 2017 från Wilderness

After becoming struck by the growing quiet of Fiord-land’s forest, an Auckland tramper has launched a project to bring back the birdsong. Michael Fisk, a regular to Fiordland, wants to create a trapping network in eight Fiordland valleys, but he needs help to bring it to fruition. “The place gets quieter and quieter,” Fisk said. “Vast areas of Fiordland don’t get any conservation work at all, so we’ve got to take matters into our own hands.” Working with DOC, Fisk has completed a six month trapping trial in the Cozette/ Camelot Valley, west of Te Anau, which has 20 whio/ blue ducks. Fisk and a group of volunteers installed 250 self-resetting traps along 13km on the valley floor. The traps, which target rats and stoats, recorded 750 hits in six…

The Ben Lomond Track is an idyllic day walk from the centre of Queenstown, but it’s also responsible for nearly half of all search and rescue operations in the Wakatipu region CLIMBING ABOVE THE Queenstown gondola, with views of Lake Wakatipu and the eastern flank of the Southern Alps, the Ben Lomond Track is an accessible portal into the mountains. But at 1748m, its accessibility belies the risk and the popular alpine trail has become the biggest cause of search and rescue callouts in New Zealand’s adventure capital. Wakatipu Search and Rescue committee member Ed Halson says the walk accounts for 39 per cent of call outs in the region, of which there are about 50 a year. The trail climbs 1300m over just 4.5km of track, and it’s a…

KAIKOURA’S LANDSCAPE AND seabed was changed dramatically by the November 2016 earthquake, but most of the regular hiking trails have reopened. The following walks provide the opportunity to explore idyllic coastal trails and spectacular mountain tracks. Mt Fyffe and Seaward Kaikoura Range The eight-hour return Mt Fyffe Track to Mt Fyffe Hut and onto the summit offers rewarding views over the Kaikoura plains and peninsula. On a clear day, the view from Mt Fyffe extends to Banks Peninsula and the North Island. From Mt Fyffe car park, follow the 4WD road up the mountain’s long south-west ridge. The road goes right to the summit. Those wanting a shorter journey could go as far as Mt Fyffe Hut (5hr return) or the lookout point near a fire-pond, which is just an…

THE ROUTE TO Brewster Hut requires an immediate crossing of the Haast River, a trickle in low flow. The marked track on the opposite bank then begins its gruelling climb. Running parallel with Fantail Creek, the route follows a ridge through beech forest to the bushline at 1160m. I climbed the ridge steadily for an hour until a chilling wind whistled through the anorexic tree canopy. Snow flurries fell – even though it was summer – and I felt exposed in my sweat-soaked t-shirt and shorts. By the time I donned full storm gear, the sun was out again, blazing. The bushline is clearly delineated, switching from stunted beech to snow-grass. As I cleared the bush, I looked down to the Haast highway below, with its plethora of cyclists pedalling…

This is a hearty meal that is lightweight, super delicious and protein-packed. It makes a regular appearance on our tramping trips and feeds a small group, especially if you add a serving of rice. It works especially well when cooked on top of the fireplace in the hut. PROFILE Prep time 10min Cook time 30-40min Serves 3-4 Cost $8–$10 INGREDIENTS 1.5 cups split red lentils 100g packet of dehydrated peas 2 sachets of tomato paste (100g) 1 tbsp stock powder (or two small cubes) 1 tbsp garlic powder 2 tbsp dried onions ½ tsp chilli powder 1 tsp salt plus extra to taste 2 tsp ground coriander 2 tsp ground cumin 2 tsp smoked paprika 1 tbsp coconut sugar 4-5 cups water Boil in the bag rice or couscous (optional)…

TALK TO THOSE WHO WORK ON THE CROSSING and there’s a recurring word: ‘CHAOS’ Tongariro is glowing red. Ngauruhoe, fingers of snow clinging to its perfect cone summit, is picture-postcard perfect. In the distance, Mt Taranaki puts on a light show of its own, silhouetted on the horizon. I’d arrived at the start of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing at sunset on the eve of Labour Weekend. After a 20 minute stroll from the Mangatepopo car park, I pitched my tent among the tussock outside Mangatepopo Hut – the hut itself was full with trampers, but the campsite was quiet, and I watched as the stars emerged. With the holiday traffic far behind me, it was another world – deserted and awe-inspiring. But it’s an experience which is becoming harder to…

Aspiring Hut will be closed from April 9 until mid-June next year for earthquake strengthening work and other maintenance. The 38-bunk New Zealand Alpine Club hut is just a two hour walk from the road end in Mt Aspiring National Park’s Matukituki Valley, making it a popular destination. Alpine Club general manager Karen Tait said the work was being undertaken when the weather would be best and avoided the high season. The hut, built in 1949 from schist, will have its stone work strengthened. The job requires the roof to be temporarily removed. The hut will be unavailable while the work takes place, but the adjacent campsite and toilets will be open.…

Instances of drunk and abusive jetboaters in the Hollyford Valley have surfaced, causing DOC to issue a statement saying obnoxious hut behaviour will not be tolerated. DOC put out the warning in November after a tramper laid a complaint about rude jetboaters at Alabaster Hut on the Hollyford Track. The jetboaters allegedly went hunting at night while drunk. Another complaint has surfaced involving abusive booze-fueled behaviour at McKerrow Island Hut, also on the Hollyford Track, over Labour Weekend. University of Otago researcher Joseph Nichols said there were several groups of jetboaters drinking throughout the weekend which “ruined the entire tramping trip”. Some of the group became aggressive, breaking furniture and swearing in front of children. “We spent three nights in huts at double capacity and there was so much alcohol…

THE TE AU TRACK starts in the aptly named Tui Crescent – where we were serenaded by tui swooping, diving and chortling. It involves some road walking between track ends and this initial 20-minute walk was remarkable for the extraordinary amount of bird life in the gardens that back the reserve. From Huia Street, a narrow right-of-way leads between two private properties to the Te Au Track. Once in the reserve, orange triangles direct walkers to the beginning of the climb. The steep track leads up rugged root staircases, the kind of terrain that those with dodgy knees find easier to climb up than down. It was slow work and we paused occasionally in the green shade of the kohekohe forest that arched over us. Where the track levels off,…

ON A RECENT TRIP, a friend was a little embarrassed that she had to sit on her bum to work her way down steep terrain. But there was no need for her to be embarrassed. Sitting is a perfectly reasonable way to descend tricky slopes. It can give you more control and confidence. Sliding: Sitting on your bum or back and sliding down also works on slippery mud and gentle snow slopes. On snow or in canyons, you’re more likely to slide faster. You’ll need to position your body so you don’t catch arms or your lower limbs on sticks or rocks, or catch your crampons in the snow. Most importantly, you need to know where, when and how to stop. If the path or stopping point isn’t clear, don’t…

THE LITTLE OWL was introduced from Germany between 1906 and 1910 in the hope it would control the increasing number of introduced small bird populations, which were becoming a pest for food and grain crops. Several releases were made in the South Island and only one pair in the North Island. Today, they only exist in the south. Conservation status Introduced and naturalised Features Little owls are smaller and paler than the morepork, weigh 170g and are around 23cm long. They are a grey-brown colour with white mottles, streaks and spots. Their legs have thick white feathering all the way down to the toes which are pale yellow-grey. Compared to a more-pork, their head is wider in relation to their body but they do have the same bright yellow eyes.…

Buy a subscription to Wilderness in December or January, and you’ll be entered into the draw to win $5060 worth of top-of-the-line kit from MSR, Vasque, Therm-a-Rest, Biolite and Light My Fire. Find out more about all this fabulous gear at www.ampro.co.nz 1- Therm-a-Rest Questar Sleeping Bag $549.99 each Win two 650-fill Nikwax hydrophobic down-filled Questar sleep bags, zoned to provide extra insulation where you need it most. Loaded with warmth-trapping features, plenty of room and weighing 1000g. 2- Biolite SiteLight $59.99 Define a sense of space and place with the SiteLight, a coupled daisy-chaining light system that provides warm and highly functional light at your site. 3- Biolite Baselantern $199.99 The Flatpack lantern combines breakthrough edge-lighting with Bluetooth connectivity. Featuring a 7800mAh rechargeable…

CLOSURE Velcro is simple, reliable and durable. Pull-cord laces and straps provide a better, more adjustable fit along the length and width of the foot. Upper materials Depending on the sandal’s intended use, uppers may be waterproofed leather, synthetic and/or a type of webbing. Leather is best for travel, casual and light hiking use. Synthetic and webbing uppers dry quickly and are often used on sandals designed for water use. It’s common for uppers to fully enclose the foot to provide protection. Outsole The lug pattern and outsole compound determine how grippy the sandal is and in which conditions. Harder compounds will last longer but don’t provide the same level of grip as softer options. Widely-spaced, multi-lugged soles are great for muddy trails, while narrower spacing is better for water-slicked…

GET YOUR PHOTO PUBLISHED HERE TO RECEIVE AN OPINEL NO.5 FOLDING KNIFE WORTH $20. Learn more about Opinel at ampro.co.nz . Last Weekend submission criteria can be found at wildernessmag.co.nz…

The authors of the Canterbury-Westland Alps Guidebook are calling for information ahead of a second edition, set to be published next year. The guidebook details the mountains between Aoraki/Mt Cook and Arthur’s Pass national parks, providing a record of expeditions and detailed route information. Co-author Geoff Spearpoint said the second edition needed to include changes that have occurred in the 10 years since the first edition was researched. The authors are requesting information, such as: » Errors and omissions in the first edition » Changes to access » Existing routes that have become easier or harder, and new routes “Any information or comments would be greatly appreciated,” Spearpoint said. The guidebook is produced by the NZ Alpine Club and Canterbury Mountaineering Club. For information on the area east of the…

Many a tramper has admired the squiggly, fingerprint-like patterns and undulations while poring over a topomap, but a Wellingtonian has turned this aesthetic into an artform. Sam Caldwell has been making handmade 3D topomaps for a decade, creating the maps out of stacked coloured card, showing contour lines in a new light. Caldwell has completed maps of landforms around New Zealand, including Milford Sound, Otago Peninsula, Bluff and Kapiti Island. He is now working on a model of the Kepler Track and is planning to do a series on the Great Walks and the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. He says reducing the terrain to its most basic components helps to show the landscape in a new way. “You gain a whole new appreciation for the location,” Caldwell says. “The way light…

SUMMER HAD NOT BEEN good to us and we were itching to get out again. With one stormy weekend after the next, we had planned, attempted and abandoned numerous trips due to adverse conditions. Rain without gale seemed to be a rare occasion on the Divide. So when a wet, yet windless forecast finally overlapped with a weekend, we grasped the opportunity. The Kelly Range near Otira was the ideal destination. Our research showed an easy tramp through native bush. The wide, rolling ridgeline that followed was supposed to be sprinkled with small tarns. We had visited the area a few winters back, when a cold change forced us to abandon our plans to camp and we opted for the warmth of Carroll Hut instead. If the weather decided to…

TRACKING THE COASTLINE at the top of the Coromandel Peninsula, the Coromandel Walkway has spectacular views out to Little Barrier and Great Barrier, and winds through lush native forest and farmland. With four DOC campsites at the end of the peninsula, the walk is a great addition to a weekend getaway. The track offers a one hour walk to Poley Bay, or for a longer trip, the full track is a seven hour return trip, which could be completed as a two-day loop by staying at the beachside DOC campsites at Stony Bay or Fletcher Bay. Starting from the Fletcher Bay campsite, the trail soon heads over a small hill, providing views over the campsite and onto a number of beaches heading out to the Sugar Loaf headland (220m). It…

A LITTLE-KNOWN WANAKA VIEW Isthmus Peak Track, Otago WHILE WANAKA’S Roys Peak has become a parade of trampers, Isthmus Peak Track, 32km north of the town, offers the same majestic views but with fewer people. A parking area is on the right, just before traversing The Neck between lakes Wanaka and Hawea. Take care here as this is a hotspot for oblivious drivers, concentrating more on the scenery than the road. The track is marked through farmland and forest with fences and stiles. It’s a constant, steady climb through paddocks with cattle and stags. Merinos graze in the shadows of the schist cliffs. On nearing the tops, keep right and traverse the tussock studded summit ridge to the marked peak. Big views stretch over lakes Hawea and Wanaka, with the…

All search and rescue operations have a serious overtone because they involve some degree of human distress or even loss of life. For an operative to have the ability to take the edge off the situation, a sense of humour can be a great addition to their skill set, especially when there is exposure to high risk or trauma. It can temper the headspace of both rescuer and patients – even if they are relatively uninjured. But one thing all rescue operations have in common is that in one terrible moment, a fun and exciting day on a mountain has turned to custard and the victim just wants out of that threatening environment. That’s the job, no matter what. HOLD ON TIGHT One of my first pickups on Mt Taranaki…

Vasque Breeze III GTX $349.99/1198g (m), 978g (w) FEATURES: This is the third generation of Vasque’s mid-cut hiking boot. At around 1200g for the pair, the Breeze III is positioned as a mid-weight boot. With an outer of mottled nubuck leather and ventilation mesh, it provides good over-the-ankle support, rigidity and protection from roots and rocks. The upper has a waterproof Gore-Tex lining. The midsole consists of a flexible TPU shank and EVA foam cushioning for support and impact reduction. The Vibram outsole has low profile multi-directional lugs, more similar to a hiking shoe than a boot. It provided good traction on rocks, but didn’t do quite so well in mud. 4/5 VALUE: At $350, they are priced well for a multi-day hiking boot. The real test of value will…