Jump Cookie jump! … Wait, hang on, how do I get across? :)
Apparently this un-bridged crossing of Captains Creek can be a bugger at times, but it hasn’t rained for ages so it was an easy job crossing this morning.Captains Creek
Jump Cookie jump! … Wait, hang on, how do I get across? :)Apparently this un-bridged crossing of Captains Creek can be a bugger at times, but it hasn’t rained for ages so it was an easy job crossing this morning.Pelorus Swing Bridges
High over the turquoise river :) It can get pretty bouncy on there! Good fun.Pleasant walk in the morning to Middy Hut for elevensies, plus our first taste of the many wire swing bridges across the Pelorus River.Middy Hut to Roebuck Hut
The next stretch to Roebuck was a bit torturous under our sizable loads. Lots of ups and downs and a exposed narrow track along the valley walls.
Steep Sidling
“Sidling”. What’s sidling I hear you say? Sounds rather pleasant…
“He sidled up to me and asked for a tenner”, a ‘cheeky wander’ perhaps…?
Nope! It’s effing hard work that’s what! :) When you see ‘sidle’, in future, read ‘Indiana Jones shimmying along a precipice with his back to the wall’. It’s not that relaxing let’s say, technical underfoot, and it’s heck of a slow progress! :) Basically it’s a thin path cut into the slope of a steep valley. And not necessarily a flat path either. ‘Undulating sidling’ now that’s my personal favourite. There was a ‘junior intro’ to sidling this morning ( a minor annoyance ). We were in for the ‘pro course’ later in the section!
Swinging into Roebuck Hut
Up up up we went. Cream crackered we were. We were heading for Browning Hut but once we caught sight of Roebuck the thought of noodles for tea and a snooze seemed too compelling to continue. Way too hot today!
Hordes of Wasps! So many wasps. The hills are full of them. The ground is heaving with them. Why?! These small old-school huts are metal clad and collect the heat of the day a bit too efficiently. Stifling heat inside, we weigh up leaving the doors open to cool it ( and fill it with sandflies and wasps ) or leave the heat boxed up for when we loose the sun. Hmm…
Sitting outside we debate the evilness of wasps vs sandflies. “At least wasps aren’t literally trying to eat you”. “True, true”. Wasps have been officially downgraded from the worst thing to be trapped in the long drop with, to second place. In fact, I hear later that they eat sandflies? Maybe wasps are our friends after all.
Hot Wasp Tip! From our new hiker friend Andrew:
Never touch the black furry trees. The wasps’ll be following you! There are tiny hairs sticking out of the black fuzz on the bark. They’re termite bums and they’re dripping with a honey-like substance ( not for eating tho! ). Wasps love it.
Black trees = no touchie.
Roebuck Hut to Hackett Hut
We woke up to low cloud which coated all the roots and rocks with a slippery shine, the sun soon burnt through it, but turned the valley into a super hot & humid sauna. We climbed out of Roebuck and started some more sidling, this time on the other side of the valley for some variation. The path was quite steep and narrow in places, but we were thankful of all the fallen trees cleared and lining our path on the way up to Totara Saddle.
Yorkshiremen in the Mountains – Hackett Hut
It must be something they get taught at school in the north of England I imagine, but if there’s always one thing you’re guaranteed to find up a mountain, it’s a Yorkshireman.
And on bursting through the door at Hackett hut, ‘Ey up!’ we found just that. Introducing our fellow hiker for this section Andrew!
Our man from Leeds was an accomplished traveller and hiker. A story of adventure from every country on planet Earth. Bussing from India through communist Russia and back to Blighty. Hiking in the Columbian mountains when it was well dodgy. A very agreeable fellow with which to share bunks with indeed. And many a sunset tale was absorbed and gasped upon as we sipped our noodle soups.
Crisscrossing Hackett Creek
The Pelorus River Track is now far behind us, today we start The Richmond Alpine route, dubbed “the most demanding section of the Te Araroa Trail”, it’s to be a big test of Nicky’s fitness and newfound mountaineering skills!
It almost seemed ridiculous how many times the path kept darting from one side of the stream to the next as we left Hackett Hut? I’m sure the trail builders were taking the piss! Luckily the water level was really low and easy stepping-stones were found for all the crossings.
1500m Up – The Long Climb
The severity of the task ahead begun to sink in today. After a long morning’s accent, which felt like straight up, i would glimpse my first view of the mountains proper. And they, were terrifying…
Up through a mighty forest we’d climbed. Up, up, sweating gallons upon gallons, “Don’t stop, keep going, don’t stop, keep going” stomping on and up and on and up. It never ended. A mighty forest we passed through, near flattened by wind storms. Miles of solid chunks of wood, lay sleeping on the slopes. What kind of force of nature could possibly uproot even one of these monsters? Never mind a literal mountain of them. The weather up here was clearly of a different magnitude of fierceness than I could imagine. Or dared to imagine. Looking up, the sun shining, I put the wooden carnage out of my mind, put my blinkers on and trudged away relinquishing myself to the rhythm of some uninvited cheesy song, invasively worming it’s way into my apprehensive consciousness. “La la la, I’m sure it’ll be fine.” I mumble to myself.
Terrifying? Ha, wait until we get to Mount Cook Nicky! The only thing I’m worried about on this section is whether my 4 camera batteries will hold out, I fear the shutter count will be off the chart the higher up we go.
After cursing the trail builders for not sticking to one side of Hackett Creek, I took my hat off to them on the climb up to Starveall Hut. It seemed like 50% of the trees had been uprooted in some previous storm and the amount of chainsaw work gone into clearing the path was quite impressive.
Out if the Woods… And into the Mountains
Rounding the corner, without warning we pop out of the forest, and onto a grassy flat on which a pretty hut sat surrounded by fox gloves. “Yes! That climb is OVER!” I thought to myself. But the relief was short lived… Looming high up all around were the craggy, scarred, knife sharpened peaks of the Richmond Range. A small but tight knot of anxiety began to crunch in my belly… I don’t like heights… Oh crap…I was not looking forward to the climb today, over a thousand meters of ascent with still 7 days worth of food in the pack was going to be back-breaking work.. Hidden from view during the climb, I was pleasantly surprised when we made it up to Starveall Hut before our target of lunchtime.