Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2020 i Wilderness

STUDENTS HELP DOC DESIGN HUT AN UNLIKELY team of junior architects and planners have helped DOC rebuild a popular West Coast hut. Formerly the Manson-Nicholls Memorial Hut, the newly-completed 20-bunk Kōhanga Atawhai Manson Nicholls Hut is now open, with a few special touches from the local Maruia School. Meaning ‘conservation nest’ Kōhanga Atawhai sits on the shore of Lake Daniell in Lewis Pass Scenic Reserve and is an easy 2-3hr walk from the car park, making it a popular destination for school trips and trampers of all ages. Originally built in 1976 to commemorate three trampers killed there in a 1974 landslide, the hut has since succumbed to severe rotting damage. DOC works officer Cameron Jones said Maruia School pupils gave feedback on numerous hut proposals over 10 years, and…

“I AM EVERYBODY’S nightmare,” says tramper Paul Brewer. “I snore on my stomach, on my back, on my side, standing up – I’m just a loud snorer.” The clamorous condition has affected Brewer – and his neighbours – since he was a young boy and he’s yet to find a solution. “I had the back of my throat operated on, and it just had the effect of increasing the volume,” he says. “I’m louder than a D9 bulldozer. I’ve got a guy who lives three houses away who regularly comments on my snoring.” Brewer, 64, tries to get out tramping once a month with his brother, and he leaves a trail of earplugs in his wake. “Usually women will take the plugs but the guys won’t, and the next morning…

WINTER HAS its disadvantages: cold, short daylight, more uncertain weather. But it makes up for these deficiencies by the transforming effect of snow, by the pleasingly low angle of the sun and – perhaps best of all – by fewer trampers. Oturere Hut lies in the shadow of Mt Ngauruhoe, a waypoint on the Tongariro Northern Circuit Great Walk, and makes an outstanding winter destination. Perhaps the best access is from the Desert Road, on the track to Waihohonu Hut, then north along the poled route that leads across high, barren ground to the Oturere Valley. Apart from one short section of beech forest, there’s not much in the way of shelter, but the terrain is easy enough: undulating, with few climbs. The comfortable 26-bunk hut makes an excellent base…

A WINTER CLIMB of Mt Bealey showcases the beauty of Arthur’s Pass National Park. The park has sometimes been referred to as the ‘poor cousin’ of national parks. It doesn’t have the same reputation for spectacular scenery or the outstanding Great Walks as other national parks, yet the braided rivers, large scree-covered mountains, steep valleys, cascading waterfalls and extensive beech forests are features that make it distinctly unique. Being close to Christchurch, it’s also a place where many have gained their initial mountaineering skills. In the right conditions, a winter climb of Mt Bealey provides an alpine experience within the capabilities of many trampers. It lies at the end of the ridge running south from Mt Rolleston, one of Arthur’s Pass’ most popular peaks. Mt Bealey is often climbed as…

WHEN THE RICHMOND RANGE Appreciation Society set off on its inaugural tramp over the Alpine Route last winter, only one of the three trampers – me – could claim full membership. The five-day route has much to commend it – a satisfying tramp around a horseshoe of island-like peaks, protruding above a sea of beech forest; tidy huts with ample firewood; no major river crossings and enough variety and ruggedness to satisfy most. As a student, I’d often tramped in the Richmond Range, sometimes because it was our destination of choice; and at other times because of poor weather or avalanche danger elsewhere in the South Island mountains. The second member of our party, Peter Laurenson, was keen to sample this range which was previously unknown to him. However, the…

“LOADS OF PEOPLE GO OVER ALL THE TIME,” THE BLUE LAKE HUT WARDEN SAID, AS IF WAIAU PASS WAS A SUNDAY STROLL IN THE PARK. I am sceptical. “Look,” he continued, “tomorrow’s weather is cloudy with 40km/hr south-east winds. That won’t be a problem. Gale force winds are 80km/hr. It’s totally doable.” But the reputation of the Te Araroa Trail’s second-highest point means I had a fitful sleep. It’s the most demanding section of the Nelson Lakes leg between St Arnaud and Boyle Village and is often thought of as the most challenging after the Richmond Range. The trail notes had already struck fear into my heart: ‘A fair-weather route, suitable for experienced individuals or parties with experienced leadership.’ Hmm, it’s forecast to be cloudy and windy and I’ll be…

IF YOU WERE planning a walk to Smith Creek Shelter via the lower Dobson Loop Track from Kiwi Ranch Road, you could glean a lot of information from the map before starting out. This information could help you determine whether you were up to the walk or not. Here are some of the clues we can gather from studying the map pictured. CONTOUR LINES: The brown contour lines on a map give us an idea of how much ascent and descent a tramp will have. Each line represents a difference in height of 20m – the more densely-packed contour lines are, the steeper the terrain. Widely-spaced lines suggest flatter terrain. Looking at the Dobson Loop Track, it begins near a creek and crosses 11 contour lines to reach Puffer Saddle.…

Lifelong mountain biker Bryce Lorcet runs Cyclewerks, a supplier of bikepacking products. He says much of the gear carried on a bikepacking trip is the same lightweight gear a tramper would take on a hiking trip, with only the method of carrying the gear differing. Here’s what he takes. CLOTHING I carry one full set of riding clothing with sufficient layers to be warm in cold and wet weather, and a second set to change into at camp. I’m a big fan of the simple Icebreaker t-shirt for riding (looks good on the bike and in a country pub), and it’s hard to go past the value/weight/warmth of a Macpac Uber Light down jacket. I always pack a Buff because it makes a cold ride or sleep way more comfortable.…

Why did you want to do Te Araroa? I was mid-thirties, alone and rudderless. On paper everything was sorted but that made every day I wasn’t worse. You read a lot about people sorting their act out on these long pilgrimages and in Te Araroa I hoped to work through that crisis in myself and also find where I fit as a ‘NZ European’ in Aotearoa. How did you feel when you realised you couldn’t walk the Bluff? I swore a bit on the trail when my heel decided I should go back to Wellington – I was embarrassed and angry with myself. I had always meant to return to the trail, but as the plantar fasciitis healed so slowly, I had a growing despair – every day my life-changing…

A WILDERNESS 100 OMISSION I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘The Wilderness 100’ (May 2020). There is one glaring omission. I completed the Anatoki Kill Devil Track in Kahurangi National Park six months ago. It pushed all my buttons. The hot shower that can be had at the Anatoki Hut, the easy climb over the saddle to Soper Shelter, which in turn was the most charming ‘hut’ I have experienced. The scramble over rock slides from the Murchison earthquake that formed Lake Stanley. The historic huts: Waingaro Forks, Riordans, and Tin. Discovering the name of Keith Holyoake written on the rafters at Tin Shelter Hut, which led me to explore how the youthful Holyoake was connected to the region. On second thought, if we publicised this destination too widely, it may become…

1 TRAMP THE WORLD FROM YOUR COUCH Fly along the Southern Alps or race along the Milford Track – with Google Earth Pro you can virtually tramp anywhere in the world. Upload your own tracks onto the map and follow them as a virtual flyover, giving an overview of a tramping trip. I have found it to be a useful tool when planning my tramps. Campsites can be scoped and you can get an understanding of the terrain that is impossible when staring at a topo map (though sometimes the programme does get the terrain wrong, so you should still pack a topo map). Info: www.google.com/earth. 2 THE ULTIMATE HUT FINDER DOC Maps is the best tool for finding huts, campsites, tracks and patches of conservation land. Click on any…

“WHERE’S HELGE?” Shaun asked. I looked up from the stove, concerned. We had all spent the morning on a quick there-and-back trip from Carrington Hut to Waimakariri Falls Hut. On the descent, Helge, being fitter and faster, had gone ahead as we neared the White River. It wasn’t until I was back at Carrington Hut, preparing to get the billy on the gas cooker, that I thought, ‘Where’s Helge?’, and decided he must be in the loo. It never entered my mind that he might have encountered trouble. Fifteen minutes later, Shaun returned and asked the same question. I told Shaun I thought he was in the loo. “If that’s the case, he may well have fallen in given how long it’s been,” I joked. I went outside to investigate…

GIVEN A sparkling Westland winter day and the option of a panoramic perch high on a snowy ridge, what better place to take in the vantage than Mt Brown Hut on the western edge of the Newton Range. A well-marked track leads through the forest from Lake Kaniere to reach sub-alpine scrub and then the tussock zone. When we went, there had been heavy snowfall and progress was tedious and chilling. Every so often, though, a ‘window’ popped out of the forest cover to reveal the magnitude of the view we were climbing to reach. Eventually, at the bush edge, things became a little easier. Mt Brown Hut is the authoritative viewpoint for this section of Westland and stands just back from the ridge so that it overlooks lake, bush,…

THERE’S MUCH to recommend on the Pupu Hydro Walkway, including an uphill steep enough to get your blood pumping, beautiful views of the surrounding area and, most significantly, a water feature dripping with local history. The walkway follows an old water race, originally constructed between 1901 and 1902, to assist with gold-sluicing operations on the Te Waikoropupū valley floor. The claim was abandoned around 1910 but, in response to the growing awareness of electricity as an energy source, the Golden Bay Electric Power Board built a small hydroelectric power station in 1929. The race was used to provide the station with the necessary water supply. The power station operated until 1981, when a fault substantially damaged the generating equipment. The Pupu Hydro Society and some dedicated local volunteers, restored the…

FOR WELLINGTONIANS, the 22,000ha Remutaka Forest Park makes for an easily-accessed outdoor playground with dozens of tracks and family-friendly huts. Among the park’s many attractions is the historic Remutaka Incline. The railway line between Wellington and Upper Hutt was completed in 1874. The big engineering challenge was to get over the Remutaka Range and into the Wairarapa. The steep gradients the construction crews were forced to work with were too much for the everyday steam trains of the time. The solution was to install a newly invented system designed by John Fell, that added a third centre rail to the track to provide extra traction and braking. By 1878, the line was up and running, but proved costly to maintain and was prone to slips and tree fall due to…

WHEN THE STING OF A LONG DROP HITS YOUR NOSTRILS OR HUT SNORERS ROB YOUR SLEEP, TRAMPING CAN SEEM MORE PUNISHMENT THAN PRIVILEGE. And who has the composure to practise gratitude when both feet call it a day after eight hours of neglect? Or a weka steals your dehy dinner? Tramping can be a hard sell on paper; it’s exhausting, painful, and in many cases miserable, and perhaps that’s why it’s easy to forget how bloody lucky we are to do it. Whether by good fortune or tenacity, we trampers have gathered the gear and skills to safely experience the wilderness in ways others can’t. And last year this dawned on me. Looking back, I aligned the many enabling factors of my upbringing which made me a confident tramper today.…

I’ve been climbing for nearly three decades. During that time I’ve been lucky enough to discover and explore secluded corners of New Zealand’s unique and special Alps as well as take part in mountaineering expeditions to some of the world’s great ranges. I’ve needed an armed escort in Kyrgyzstan, braved crumbling ‘death’ roads in India, hidden from the Taliban in Pakistan, and suffered from acute mountain sickness in Nepal. It’s fair to say that, over the years, there have been a few close calls. Some near disasters I avoided through good decision making. Other times it was down to little more than a coin toss. There was one particular situation in New Zealand when three of us had to self-rescue after a climb in the Hopkins Valley in the middle…

DO YOU LOVE the taste of sushi but can’t be bothered with rolling it up? This sushi salad is a quick option that is full of flavour and easy to make. You can substitute whichever veggies you prefer and for extra protein try topping it with a fried egg, tofu, tuna, smoked salmon or chicken. PROFILE Prep time 15min Cook time 20min Serves 1 Cost $3-5 RECIPE ½ cup uncooked sushi rice ½ a carrot ½ an avocado ¼ of a red pepper 2 tbsp sesame seeds 2 tsp sushi ginger ⅓ of a sheet of nori (cut into very thin strips with scissors) DRESSING ¼ tsp wasabi (or more if you like it) 2 tsp tamari soy sauce 2 tsp rice wine or apple cider vinegar METHOD Cook sushi…

Get your photo published here to receive a Light My Fire ‘Re-kit’ Cup/Straw/Spork made from environmentally-friendly bioplastic and worth $20. Learn more about LMF at e.ampro.co.nz. Last Weekend submission criteria can be found at wildernessmag.co.nz…

TAUPŌ FILMMAKER Michelle Green is ‘one of those last-minute people’. She got into tramping on a whim, and her YouTube channel Long White Gypsy followed shortly after to document the process. One year later, she completed the North Island section of the Te Araroa Trail. The spontaneity, she says, is all part of living with anxiety. “If I try to plan too much I get overwhelmed and get an ‘analysis paralysis’ thing happening,” she says. “I tend to jump in with two feet forward.” Dealing with anxiety is a recurring feature of Green’s YouTube channel, which also features a section by section series on the Te Araroa Trail, gear reviews, trip planning and local tramps. She wanted to explore the ins and outs of tramping from a beginner’s perspective, and…

WETLANDS SERVE a vitally important role as natural ecosystems. They harbour a rich diversity of native plants and animals, filter water and act as sponges which can buffer flooding. Māori valued wetlands as hunting grounds, and as a source of fibre from the ever-versatile flax. However, ‘swamps’ (the derogatory name for a wetland) proved difficult to travel through and near useless for grazing livestock, so it’s no surprise that early Pākehā settlers sought to drain them. Their efforts were so effective that by the end of the 20th century, less than 10 per cent of New Zealand’s original wetlands remain. Most of these exist in South Westland, the wetland capital of the country. Here are five particularly attractive ones to visit. 1- BOG INN, Pureora Forest Park A…

THE POHUTUKAWA trees spill down onto a crescent-shaped beach that is only accessible on foot. It’s Whale Bay, deservedly recognised as one of the best beaches in the country. While the walk to Whale Bay takes just 15 minutes, it can be included on a larger loop track that features stunning coastal views and visits another almost equally idyllic Northland beach. The Matapouri Headland Track takes about 90-minutes and can be walked from either the Whale Bay car park on Matapouri Road or from Matapouri township itself. Either way, in summer you should take your togs. From the Whale Bay car park, the track follows a ridgeline through coastal bush on a well-graded gravel track before reaching a side-track that descends to the bay. Winding down the hill, the track…

LOOKING FOR A solid day with steady rather than steep hills to test post-injury fitness, I settled on Renata Hut. It’s in a seldom-visited corner of the Tararuas, despite having one of the closest access points to the urban area. The track starts at the high point of Akatarawa Road. There is no signpost – which might be a factor in its low usage – but it’s very obvious. It starts fairly steeply before settling into a steady climb. There was the occasional sidetrack, again unmarked, but it’s usually easy to work out which was heading the correct way. The track is either on the crest of a ridge or sidling it. After a couple of hours, I’d gained 300m, just bypassing a knob named on the map as Kakanui.…

1- KTI Safety Alert $359 A KTI personal locator beacon provides peace of mind on any tramp. Impact-resistant case and retention lanyard, mirror, 10-year battery life, 66 channel GPS, 406MHz and 121.5MHz transmission. 1409. www.safetybeacons.co.nz 2- Macpac Amp Ultra Running Vest $249.99 Dad's trail running adventures will go smoothly with the Amp Ultra Running Vest. Body-hugging stability is combined with extensive storage and hydration-carrying capacity. Includes two soft HydraPak 500ml drink bottles. www.macpac.co.nz 3- Marmot Featherless Jacket $349.95  The Featherless Hybrid will keep Dad warm and dry in chilly, damp weather without weighing him down. 3M Thinsulate Recycled Featherless Insulation is made with 15% recycled loose-fill fibres that feel just as warm as 100 fill power down. 280g. www.marmotnz.co.nz 4- Marmot Anderson Lightweight Flannel $149.95  Moisture-wicking and quick-drying shirt will…

IMAGINE YOU’RE climbing a clagged-in slope at dawn, headlight on, eyes scanning for the next track marker when all of a sudden the clouds begin to thin. Moments later, you ascend above a sea of white into clear blue skies. As the sun rises, the surrounding peaks – prominent as bald swimmers in the ocean – start to glow, as the clouds turn from peach to gold below. This heavenly weather phenomenon, known as a temperature inversion, is a much sought after spectacle amongst mountain-goers and photographers. To see one for yourself, you first have to understand how they form. UNDER PRESSURE As trampers will have experienced, air temperature tends to decrease the higher one climbs due to the lower pressure of air at altitude – think how pressured air…

EARLY MORNINGS can mean cold starts, quickly warming up as you get going. Instead of rapidly overheating and having to stop, I prefer multiple light layers that allow me to control my temperature while on the move. I can manage my system without having to stop, take off the pack, stuff a heavy jacket into it, put it back on and start again. So, what are the three layers I pretty much always have on me these days? BEANIES A beanie is perhaps the best piece of kit for helping moderate your temperature. Because there is little fat around the skull, heat is readily radiated out of an uncovered head. During an increase in activity – like a final stomp up the hill – the easiest way to cool yourself…

Fly Silicone-coated ripstop nylon fabric keeps rain out and handles strong winds and snow-loading. Steep sides shed snow. There are large vestibules for gear. GUYLINES Multiple guyline attachments provide extra stability and strength – essential for the exposed locations in which these tents are used. Floor A heavy-duty floor with a water-head rating of up to 15,000mm will prevent water from melting snow seeping through. Lighter floors can be paired with a groundsheet to make them less prone to damage. Inner Alpine tents are designed to trap warmth so the inner is made from a ripstop nylon. Some tents will improve airflow by adding micromesh panels near the ceiling or on the doors. Ventilation Snow-proof vents with Velcro or zip closure will allow condensation-reducing airflow. A through-breeze can be created…