Today was a hard day. After smashing sign times all morning, we’d ended up with another 12hr day back to back. How did that happen? I was beyond exhausted when we finally got to Top Wairoa. There was just enough light to find the hut. Muscles shuddering, and my insides curled tightly in anxiety, we sank onto the bench in silence. I don’t think we’d spoken for hours save the repetitive “Thank you Cookie” on every step I was dragged up and saved. I didn’t speak, for fear of freaking out. Every ounce of mental energy had been taken to keep a lid on things and focus on our destination. Soaked to the bone, and every set of clothes wet bar a pair of pants we set to work building a fire and draping our sodden possessions from every beam.
OMG. What a day.
Finally we rolled into Top Wairoa Hut at 9pm, bang on the DOC time of 4.5 hours. Just in time too, spotting those little orange triangles was starting to get tricky in the dimming light. By the time we got the fire going and collected water from the river below it was pitch black.
This is the first hut we’ve stayed in with an open fireplace (although Mid Wairoa had one too), it was the perfect time to come across one, filling the hut with a warm glow from the flickering fire filled us with joy and started to dry our foul smelly socks :)
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