Innehållsförteckning för February 2021 från Wilderness

WE ALL WAIT with bated breath to see what the coming year has in store. Can we reopen our borders, relax quarantine measures and will the rest of the world be able to use vaccinations to bring Covid-19 under control? The general feeling among my friends and colleagues is that 2021 will be much like 2020, except without the lockdowns. Overseas travel will be limited, but we’ll have unrestricted opportunity to travel New Zealand and explore the regions and wilderness areas in relative peace – a bit like some of our recent Last Weekend photo submitters have been able to do (see Paul Halkett’s image of a deserted Tongariro Alpine Crossing on p9). 2021 will be a real chance to see more of New Zealand. That’s an exciting prospect, but…

1-2 hours: The Kea Point Track from the Whitehorse Hill campsite offers an excellent view over the Mueller Glacier Lake (the glacier itself is hiding around the corner) with its surrounding moraine wall. DOC time has this at two-hours return. Trampers and fit bunnies will speed along much more quickly, so take some snacks and enjoy the serenity. A top spot to view the sun setting over Aoraki. Four hours: To really feel like you’re in the thick of it, hike towards Mueller Hut but stop as soon as you top out on the Sealy Range. It’s around 900m ascent so you’ll need to be quick. You’ll get a spectacular shot towards the upper Mueller Glacier and Barron Saddle. Always check conditions, as snow and ice can be present at…

WHEN MISSIONARY, explorer and botanist William Colenso came this way in 1845, he was attempting to cross the Ruahine Range. Of Te Atua Mahuru he famously wrote, ‘When at last we emerged […] on to the open dell-like land just before we gained the summit, the lovely appearance of so many and varied beautiful and novel wild plants and flowers richly repaid me the toil of the journey and the ascent – for never did I behold at one time in NZ such a profusion of Flora’s stores!’ Then he proceeded to stuff his hat, shirt and pants with specimens. Colenso had sent his most capable Māori guides ahead and was anxiously awaiting their return. They eventually arrived with dispiriting news of an abandoned village where Colenso had hoped to…

THE SKYLINE WALKWAY provides a van- tage point over both Wellington City and the South Island. It spans most of Wellington’s western suburbs and can be walked from north or south. The rolling hills of Ohariu Valley, the sunset over Cook Strait and excellent viewpoints within 30-minutes’ walk of each of the track ends, make this a destination worth coming to on the weekend with the family or to clear your head after a busy day at work. Views can also include snow on the Tararua Range in winter, Mt Taranaki and Mt Ruapehu on clear evenings and Mt Tapuae-O-Uenuku to the south. There are few better views on offer anywhere else in Wellington. In the south, the track starts from the highest point on Makara Road. It climbs steadily…

One of the most beautiful camping spots in the world can be found at Stony Bay at the northern point of the Coromandel Peninsula. Ancient, twisted and drooping pohutukawa tower over a sheltered bay that catches the sunrise around its bush-covered headland and rocky outcrops. Sheep are still farmed over what remains of the old Stony Bay Farm but native bush is slowly reclaiming the cleared land. A loop track, comprising the Coromandel Walkway and the Stony Bay Mountain Bike Track, begins near the campground. It uses the bridle path formed by early pioneers to link Stony Bay and Fletcher Bay and is, for the most part, well surfaced and graded. We began our ride on the easy Coromandel Walkway, climbing to the 150m contour and then sidling a series…

STRAPPING TAPE has many uses: reducing blisters, easing pressure points and repairing gear to name a few. It’s also effective at relieving pain you may experience while tramping. RELIEVING KNEE PAIN GOING UP AND DOWN HILLS Taking the load off the infra-patella (the bit below your knee cap) can help reduce anterior knee pain – which affects the front and centre of the knee. 1 Apply the tape with the knee in a slight bend. Make an anchor just above your knee cap covering the front of the thigh only. 2 Apply tape onto your tibial tuberosity (the bumpy bit below your knee cap) and pull up, and in, towards the anchor. 3 Apply the second piece of tape to the tibial tuberosity, and pull it up in the other…

BIKE My Norco Range climbs and descends almost anything so long as I’m feeling fit and brave. It’s a far cry from the non-suspended steel frame bikes of my youth. BIKE SHOES For adventure riding it’s important to have a comfortable wide shoe. My Shimano SH-MT71 shoes have been long-lived and their grippy Vibram sole just keeps on keeping on. CLOTHING Since 1995 I have been using New Zealand made Ground Effect clothing. When it rains, my Storm Trooper jacket and Helter Skelter pants give me great protection, comfort and peddling freedom. I seem to have accumulated enough GE clothing for summer climbs in Otago, winter trips on the Heaphy and everything in between. It also works great for tramping trips. CAMERA In my camera bag is a Sony mirrorless…

AORAKI/MT COOK’S Caroline Hut has celebrated its 30th birthday – a significant milestone for an alpine hut. Mountain and ski guide Elke Braun-Elwert, whose guiding company Alpine Recreation built the hut in 1990, said getting to 30 is a real achievement. “A lot of alpine huts are on the decline, and it’s hard even just to keep the ones there maintained,” she said. “There is a long list of huts that have been taken out in the last 10-15 years, and there are not many remaining.” Maintaining an alpine hut is a never ending battle against the elements, dampness, and kea, and any tools or materials have to be walked or flown in during weather windows. “Trying to schedule repairs can be a challenge,” Braun-Elwert said. The hut was dreamed…

THE GREENSTONE – Caples Circuit is a well-known classic due to its easy-flowing trail amid grand mountain scenery. However, the Aisla Mountains that separate these two lush river valleys offer a more rugged backcountry experience that is worth the effort. A friend had described an appealing route that he had followed from the Caples Valley to Steele Creek via the tops. Our group of four set off early in the morning, surrounded by hills blanketed in a light dusting of snow. We crossed the bridge to the true right of the Caples River and continued up the easy grassland to Birchdale Homestead. Built in 1880 for the Birchdale Run, the homestead looked a little worse for wear with collapsed walls and roof. We followed a track behind the ruins and…

AT 953M, Te Aroha is the highest point on the Kaimai Mamaku Range and the broadcasting tower at the top is a landmark seen for miles around on clear summer days. It’s rumoured that on such days you can see Mt Taranaki from the summit, but on our chosen day for the trip it was overcast so we experienced limited views from the top. It is quite a venture to climb to the top and has to be planned as it will take three hours up and only slightly less to come back down. The summit track starts at the Mokena Geyser in Te Aroha Domain, which is only 35m above sea level. Initially, the track is well-maintained and well-formed. It takes about 45-minutes to reach the Whakapipi Lookout at…

Having recently completed an extremely enjoyable tramp along the Milford Track with a group of nine work colleagues and their partners, I felt it would be rude not to share much of the credit for the trip’s success with Wilderness. It all started with Maddy Bellcroft’s great ‘Veggie fried noodles’ (Wild Cuisine, December 2020) on the first night. We sexed it up a bit with seven different vegetables and a kilogram of stir fried porterhouse steak (once the vegetarians had taken their share) and it went down a treat and may have initiated hut envy. Between courses that night, I split our group into pairs and gave them the Great Walks Quiz (from the Wilderness Daily email of October 22). The ultimate hut ice-breaker! Within minutes, almost all the 40…

IF YOU HAVEN’T GONE off track and want to test your map-reading skills, a descent from 1688m Mt Somers is the perfect first experience. From Sharplin Falls car park, follow the Mt Somers Track clockwise over Hookey Knob and climb steadily west along the ridge. At Staveley Hill, 1085m, head north-east at the junction and follow the steep poled route to the summit of Mt Somers. From the summit, open tops provide a gradual descent along wide spurs – making it straightforward to pick a route west to rejoin the Mt Somers Track south of Woolshed Creek Hut. The lack of bush in this area allows the light to stay around longer, particularly in summer, and though hiking up high during sunset wasn’t something I’d done often, it was a…

THE SUMMIT OF Mt Gibbs offers spectacular views in every direction. Brown rocky ridgelines with patches of snow emerge from steep forest-clad mountains which stretch to the horizon. It isn't until the summit is reached that the picturesque Island Lake comes into view, making an unexpected but delightful centrepiece to the surrounding valleys. The rewards offered by visiting this spot are high when compared with the effort to get there. From the Cobb Reservoir, it is an easy four-hour walk through a wide valley of alternating forest and open grassland to Fenella Hut. Dotted along the way are other huts offering excellent lunch and snack stops. Chaffey Hut, reached after 90-minutes, is a unique and cute three bunk log-cabin hut, maintained by the Golden Bay Deer Stalkers. Midway, Tent Camp,…

The ubiquitous nor’wester was howling out of the maw of the Rangitata as we set off, sending powerful dust storms across the barren riverbed gravels. We hunched into the gale, steering a course for the canyon of Black Birch Creek. After a failed attempt to visit Crooked Spur Hut near Mesopotamia Station in the Rangitata Valley a few years back, due to high river levels, I was setting off with mates Tim and Nick on a three-day excursion to access the hut via another catchment to the north. This entailed a traverse of Black Birch Creek, a capricious little defile squeezed between the Black Mountain and Brabazon ranges, and crossing Brabazon Saddle to gain Bush Stream and Crooked Spur Hut. The creek is easy to begin with, mostly gravel flats…

North Island trampers are often considered impoverished by their southern counterparts, and to some extent that’s true. We northerners don’t have anywhere near the selection of summits, the range of ranges, nor the mightiest mountains. But that doesn’t mean the North Island doesn’t offer a considerable number of interesting mountains. Of course we can always brag about the volcanoes, something the southerners don’t have, but what about the non-volcanic peaks? The author of a recent book claimed that the Ruahine’s Te Hekenga (1695m) was ‘among the 10 highest non-volcanic peaks in the North Island’. That didn’t seem quite right to me, so I consulted my maps, and came up with a definitive list of peaks over 1700m. Conveniently for northern peak baggers, this totals to the neat number of 10…

Osprey Hikelite 26 $189.99 / 710g / 26-litres Features: This nifty daypack is made from 100D nylon, with a 500D bottom. One large zip compartment provides top-loading access, and two mesh side pockets and a front stretch pocket store smaller items. A small scratch-resistant organisation pocket will protect delicate items. An AirSpeed suspension back panel is supported by a LightWire frame, and a removable webbing hip belt and sternum strap provide security. The pack is hydration reservoir compatible, and comes with pole attachments and a detachable rain cover. 5/5 Fit: Adjustments are limited to shoulder and hip straps, as there is no means of adjusting back length. This may bother tall users, who might find the hip strap sits somewhere around their navel, but should suffice for most. Adjustment is…

HOW TO FILTER Always check – if possible – what’s in the water upstream to avoid contamination. Giardia slowly sinks, so draw your water where the flow is slow-moving, away from the bank. Avoid muddy water as it can contain bacteria stirred up from the streambed and will also clog filters. FLOW RATES The usual flow (or purification) rate is one to two litres per minute. It’s important to keep filters clean and free of sediment to ensure the flow rate remains high. WATER-BORNE HAZARDS Water filters and purifiers are designed to protect users from water-borne illnesses like giardia, campylobacter, salmonella and E. coli. WHEN TO USE If you’re carrying a filter or purifier, you should use it every time you collect water for drinking, even in the remote backcountry…

How did your fascination with Dusky Sound begin? I live near Queenstown and spend a fair amount of time in Fiordland, so I’ve been fortunate to cover various stories in Dusky and the rest of Fiordland for magazine features and documentaries over the years. But the real impetus for the book was in discussion with Robbie Burton, of Potton & Burton publishing. We were looking over images of Tamatea/Dusky taken by my late husband, photographer and location scout, Dave Comer. When I suggested ‘we need a whole book on Dusky’, Robbie suggested I draw up a proposal and see if we could find the funding. The history is fascinating, but it was the largely untold conservation work going on there – the massive Tamatea/Dusky Sound Restoration and Conservation Plan –…