Innehållsförteckning för May 2019 från Wilderness

THANKS TO my colleague Matthew, I now have a wooden box in my garden housing a rat trap. Baited with peanut butter, it’s primed to come down hard on any rat that pokes its head in. Unfortunately – and to the dismay of my daughter, who checks it first thing every morning – we have yet to catch a rat. Matt, on the other hand, has caught four. It’s not a competition. In the week since we bought the trap, inspired by Matt’s story ‘Beginning the backyard battle’ which you can find on p20, my daughter has reported on our kills. It’s always the same: “It’s empty!” (Though one day she said “Ants! There are ants in the trap!” It seems they like peanut butter, too.) In truth, I don’t…

FEW PLACES IN New Zealand rival the exquisite beauty of Shallow Bay, right outside the door of Moturau Hut on the Kepler Track Great Walk in Fiordland. Undoubtedly, the grand backdrop of the Lake Manapouri mountains is the centrepiece for this arresting panorama. Yet all this is offered just for the effort of an easy 90-minute walk along an undulating path through pristine red beech forest. The forest possesses enough stately beauty itself to entice walkers to ascend the steep terrace above the Waiau River, but the view from the hut deck, and especially the beach, is undeniably supreme. Saunter along the sandy shore, gazing over Manapouri’s many islets to the Kepler, Hunter, and Turret ranges to appreciate Fiordland’s mystique, hidden depths and, perhaps, the allure of great adventures to…

BELMONT REGIONAL PARK stretches along the hills that form the western side of the Hutt Valley. An extensive network of tracks travels through the bush and across farmed open spaces. The Puke Ariki route links a number of these tracks into a full-day traverse of the park’s length. My day started at the Petone Railway Station, where I parked my car and caught the train to Manor Park, near where SH2 and 58 meet. From there, it’s a 10-minute walk to Dry Creek, a delightful picnic area and probably Wellington’s best freedom camping spot. The track starts sharply, climbing through the bush before easing off a bit and breaking out onto paddocks, with increasingly expansive views of the Hutt Valley. After a little more than an hour, I was atop…

Long-tailed bats are widespread throughout New Zealand, and urban populations are found in Auckland, Hamilton and Geraldine. Scattered populations also exist in Northland, Hawke’s Bay, West Coast Fiordland, and offshore islands. The rarer short-tailed bat exists in several major colonies in the North Island – including Central North Island, Codfish Island and Little Barrier – and in a few isolated locations in the South Island – namely their stronghold in Eglinton Valley in Fiordland.…

There are many situations in which direction of travel needs to be determined. You might be at a car park with multiple tracks leaving from it and be unsure which is the one you should take. There may be no signs, or they may not help – does Rimu Track go to Rimu Creek or to a stand of rimu? Or perhaps you want to find the bearing of a feature you intend to follow, for example, a track, river, ridge or a feature you can see in the distance. There are two methods for determining a bearing with your compass. 1. Identify a bearing from a map 1. First locate on the map where you want to travel – e.g. track, river or ridge. 2. Place the compass on…

Meg Ryan, 29, is Outward Bound New Zealand’s course design manager. “I love that in my job I am able to combine my passion for thinking about how things work with my affinity for the outdoors and translate these experiences to create personal development opportunities for Kiwis. I live with my friends, who are also my colleagues, who are also my adventure buddies and partners in crime.” Here’s what she packs. PACK I find the Macpac Pursuit 40 a great size pack that suits my many different types of adventure. The outer is durable and has minimal unnecessary bells and whistles. SHELTER I carry a lightweight 8x4m fly from Twin Needle because it can be pitched in so many different ways. I can pitch it like a tent without restricting…

Zips These are either water-resistant, such as YKK’s AquaGuard, or protected by at least one storm flap on the outside or inside. Zip sliders on water-resistant zippers tuck into a ‘garage’ to prevent rain entering through the top of the zip. CUFFS Cuffs can be tightened with Velcro strips to prevent water running up the sleeve when arms are raised. They also help trap warm air inside the jacket. Ensure the cuff covers your baselayers to prevent rainwater wicking upward. Ventilation While all rainwear is ‘breathable’ – able to transfer perspiration through the fabric – other ventilation options are required to keep users cool. The most obvious is the front zipper, but look also for pit-zips and side vents which can be opened to dump heat. Pockets Pack-friendly handwarmer pockets…

WEED CONTROL WEBSITE NEEDED THE STORY about the hut bagging website (Walkshorts, April 2019) got me thinking about doing something similar for noxious weeds and wilding pines. I admit I have a bit of a thing about weeds in our beautiful backyard. I really don’t like them. Being a tramper for over 50 years has meant personal observation of the results of weed infestation and it’s not pretty. Recently, while on a mission to enjoy the easy tops access of Hanmer’s Jacks Pass and to knock off a few conifers while I was enjoying the exercise and view, my mind wandered to getting more people actively involved in weed control. There are now all sorts of websites where the word can be spread and progress noted. For example, there are…

A HIKE TO Te Heuheu promises an exhilarating ridgeline traverse and stunning vistas. At 2732m above sea level, this remnant of an ancient crater rim is the third highest named peak of Mt Ruapehu. It is arguably the best vantage point of Tongariro National Park, a particularly good spot for admiring the neighbouring Mt Tongariro and Mt Ngauruhoe. Glaciation and weathering have sculpted the peak into a curiously-shaped crumbling geological monument with a rather gentle northern slope leading to a dome-shaped summit that abruptly transitions into a sheer drop of over 100m. In winter, impressive cornices form along the ridgeline. During the warmer months, the Pinnacle Ridge offers the most direct but somewhat challenging route to the summit. From the Knoll Ridge Café, follow the marker poles of the Skyline…

BOASTING NEW ZEALAND’S highest peaks, expansive skies, turquoise lakes, dynamic glaciers and braided rivers, Aoraki/ Mt Cook National Park is a mecca for climbers wishing to scale high mountains. But with many short, easy walking trails, most people, even with very limited outdoor skills, can experience the grandeur and majesty of this national park. For those who want something more than the popular tourist walks, but lack mountaineering skills, an ascent of Sebastopol provides trampers with the chance to stand atop a mountain in the shadow of Aoraki/Mt Cook – the cloud piercer. At 1468m, Sebastopol is not a huge peak by Aoraki standards but it’s a satisfying climb with the reward of spectacular panoramic views. The route initially follows the Red Tarns Track, which starts at Mt Cook Village…

WHILE THE GREAT WALKS offer an excellent introduction to the enjoyment of tramping, they also provide launchpads to more intrepid places where fewer trampers venture. Just an hour off the Routeburn Track, the Route Burn North Branch leads to an alpine valley hidden from the Great Walk by a small hill, revealing a series of broad meadows framed by 1000m rock walls. Most of the track is on the easy-going Great Walk, so there’s a lot of gain for little pain. Starting from Routeburn Shelter, the route to the North Branch follows the Routeburn Track for the first 90-minutes, slowly climbing through dense beech forest above the azure-coloured Route Burn as it funnels through a gorge. South Island robin are becoming common here thanks to predator control. We also heard…

The 55km Paparoa Track and 10km Pike 29 Memorial Track combined will be the first new Great Walk in 25 years, and the first purposely-built for both mountain bikers and walkers. Its development has a dual purpose: to bring economic benefit to a region torn by the demise of traditional extraction industries and to remember the 29 miners lost in the Pike River Mine. The track crosses Paparoa National Park from near Punakaiki to near Blackball. It heads up the Pororari Valley onto the southern Paparoa Range (bikers will enter via the Inland Pack Track). It passes The Escarpment limestone feature, travels the Moonlight Tops and descends via the Croesus Track, a gently-graded miner’s trail. Pike29 Memorial Track climbs from the Pike River Mine site to join the Paparoa Track…

Exped Lite +1 $499 / 780g Features: Multi-adjustable hood that shrinks the opening to reveal just a slither of the face, an adjustable draft collar snaps closed at the shoulder, a full-length draft tube prevents warmth escaping through the zip. The hydrophobic goose down fill is Responsible Down Standard-certified and the bag is EN13537 rated to 6°C (comfort), 1°C (limit), -15°C (extreme). 5/5 Fit: The bag has a tapered mummy shape but is roomy, especially around the chest and shoulders to offer unrestricted movement. 4/5 Comfort: A 3D footbox allows feet to rest in a natural position. The plush draft collar and draft tube prevent incoming drafts and warmth from escaping. The inner fabric is soft and does not feel clammy against the skin. 4/5 In use: With…

Technical rainwear fabric works much like your skin: tiny moisture vapour droplets pass through its pores, while larger rain droplets are blocked from passing through the other way. Garments can be tested to determine water resistance and breathability. Water resistance: The amount of water pressure (in millimetres) a fabric sample can withstand before leakage occurs – e.g. 20,000mm. Breathability: The amount of water vapour (in grams) that can pass through a square metre of fabric during a 24-hour period. e.g. 20,000g/m2. Because there is no standardised test to measure breathability and water resistance, the products shown in this feature do not have this information displayed.…

THERE’S SOMETHING unquestionably romantic about a lighthouse standing as a slender signal on an isolated headland, offering a beacon of light spearing through the night. I’m fortunate to live with a view of two lighthouses: those at Baring and Pencarrow heads, which guard the Wellington Harbour entrance. All of New Zealand’s 23 active lighthouses have long been automated, but for more than a century, lighthouse keepers lived at these usually remote locations. Keepers didn’t live in the towers but in nearby houses. Only a handful of these survive to represent this period of maritime history, two of which have been converted to public huts, and are available for trampers to stay in – Cape Brett and Kahurangi. Other lighthouses make excellent destinations for a walk. Maritime New Zealand operates and…

THE MIST was still lingering in the early morning sun, making the forest eerie. Intermittent sunrays probed their way through the trees, the forest still except for the occasional bird competing with the cicadas and the gentle gushing of the creek. I was on the Wharite Peak Track, which starts 20 minutes along Coppermine Creek Track. I had stopped at the junction and looked at the leaf-carpeted track meandering to the right. It led over farmland to loop back to the car park. Another lovely wide track led straight ahead into the creek before heading back into the trees. But Wharite Peak Track heads straight up the sparse hill. Resigned, I extended my walking pole and started up the hill. The track climbs steeply and after a long summer with…

Like millennials hunting for a phone signal, we wandered with bat detectors held high, ears pricked for interruptions in the hiss of static. Eyes squinting into the lavender dusk sky, my heart fluttered at every flitting silhouette – sadly more pīwakawaka than pekapeka on this occasion. It was the perfect evening for detecting bats in Auckland’s Henderson Valley. The mosquito-laden air was still and quiet, and the concrete path radiated a 28-degree day. Peach clouds flavoured the sky, and as the light faded, anticipation gripped the two dozen or so attendees of the evening’s bat walk, put on by Community Waitakere and McLaren Park and Henderson South Community Trust. As with every bat walk of the season, the free event had quickly booked out, and after a presentation on the…

CLOSURE Gaiters close at the front and use either zippers or Velcro. Zippers are more secure and tidy whereas Velcro is simpler to remove. FABRIC Most gaiters are made from a waterproof, breathable ripstop nylon or canvas. Alpine models will have reinforced patches at the ankle to protect against crampon strike. ADJUSTMENT The gaiter is tightened at the top by a buckle or drawcord. It should fit snugly and not fall down. LACE HOOK A hook at the base of the gaiters can be attached to the boot’s laces to ensure it doesn’t ride up. Bootstrap Hard wearing leather or plastic bootstraps run beneath the boot to help keep the gaiter in place. RAB LATOK ALPINE GAITER $159.95 Waterproof and breathable eVent fabric, stretch rear panel, ripstop nylon ankle, Velcro…