Or how the medium got easier and the easy got mediumer
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It all started on the Friday morning, really. Watching the torrential rain wash down the windows of my Wellington high-rise office, I thought of the river crossings that were supposed to be in store for the weekend and guessed that some changes in plans would be afoot. And yes, when we all met up at the Mighty Transit Van on Friday, Darren and Helen were in deep discussion. The Medium Group were supposed to be following up the Waipakihi river - how was that going to work if it was a bank-to-bank torrent? And us in the Easy Group were supposed to be crossing the same river to our campsite on Saturday. Much puzzling and deliberations ensued. We all decided that if we all came into Waipakihi Hut over the tops, and if the rain held off, then the river would drop and we'd have some options for our routes out. Everything looked like it was going according to plan on the way up. The front had clearly passed. The overcast was lifting. We even got glimpses of stars from the van windows.
So spirits were high as we arrived at the Kaimanawa road-end ... and after a swift 11-point turn and some back-tracking we pulled into the real Kimanawa road-end and made camp. Only to be lashed by rain again shortly after we were ensconsed in our tents and flies. Some strong winds set the fly flapping in the middle of the night, of course, and after some sleepy running repairs we awoke in the morning to find it at quite a jaunty angle on one side.
We all packed up and shortly Beth & Kevin Griffiths turned up to very kindly run the van back to their home in Turangi and keep it safe from the hoodlums that lurk around road-ends and car parks. So off we set - first the Medium group, then us in the Easy group following at a respectful distance. After all, we were both covering the same, six-DOC-hour track to Waipakihi Hut, and we needed to be careful to finish well behind the Mediums lest their egos were affected.
After a couple of pleasant hours climbing slowly through beech forest, we emerged to blue skies and stunning views of Taupo and Ngauruhoe from the ridgeline. At least, that's what we had to imagine was there through the impenetrable fog. It was a surreal experience walking through the mist, especially with the moonscape of rocks and low alpine plants around us, and shortly it was hard to believe that there really was a world outside of our small circle of visibility. But that world intruded fairly soon as the mist turned into drizzle, and the drizzle turned into driving rain whipped up by a strong, biting wind.
I'd be hard pressed to sell the next couple of hours on anyone, as we wrapped ourselves up in our jackets and trudged through the wind, rain and cloud. Temperatures must have stayed relatively high, though - in spite of the bitter, lashing weather I only needed a T-shirt and jacket thoroughout. All the polypropylene and merino and polarfleece stayed in my pack. It was quite bizarre - the conditions looked hypothermic enough, but if we kept walking then warmth just wasn't a problem.
Everyone agreed that lunch on an exposed, wind-lashed ridge was a silly idea, so after some bites of scroggin and banana chips we pressed on. Pretty soon we started descending, and the rain and wind abated as with shouts of glee we found the first low beech trees. The track followed down a creek - or did the creek follow down the track? - past beautiful pink volcanic rock. Then the clouds parted to reveal our first glimpse of the hut, spurring us on.
We weren't sure when we got there if we at a hut or a laundrette, what with the many and varied items of clothing strewn about every possible line, hook and nail. The medium group had got there an hour before, and they were WET! With much relief we too dug in our packs for clothing that wasn't sodden or squelchy and all of a sudden life seemed much more pleasant. Wonders of wonders, the sun peeked through the clouds, and then clothes and jackets and tents and boots were sprouting from every available shrub and tree. There was a mystery pair of red underpants, that seemed to wander about from hour to hour, sometimes with a burgundy pair to keep them company, and eventually ended up teetering over a massive drop to a gully below.
So - after a late lunch, it was only three o'clock. What to do for the rest of the afternoon and evening? Darren and I set to teaching Kat and Trish how to play 500 - a life skill that everyone needs I say. I'd better keep practicing that life skill, because Kat and Trish walloped us. "Just like 'Doppelkopf' only with stupid confusing bower rubbish" was Kat's take on it. (Kat, you have to teach me to play Doppelkopf next time we are both rained in!)
Dinner for us, the easy group, was spicy couscous with veges (for the vegetarians) and some lemon pepper tuna slipped in (for the meat eaters). Yum!! It's convinced me that couscous is the perfect tramping staple - light, dry, packed with energy and the best bit is you cook it in a hut exactly like you would at home. This was followed by Helen's Surprise Dessert, that turned out to be Trifle sans crème. I see from the Croesus Track trip report that this was the same menu, but strangely without the large, heavy can of aerosol cream. I can report that Trifle with lashings of yummy custard don't need no cream!!
After this we got to watch the medium group prepare and cook kumara (a Darren specialty I'm told!) followed by many and varied desserts that lasted all the way into breakfast. The Easy group sat about outside, chatting and reading, listening to the cicadas and the jet engine like roar of Darren's MSR.
The morning brought weather that was a little better - the cloud was a little bit broken and the rain had turned into occasional showers. It hadn't improved enough to give us any more options than to go out the way we came. So off we set, and were rewarded by occasional glimpses of beautiful beech-covered slopes and valleys as the clouds parted. The cloud got lighter and higher as we walked, and cleared completely just before we descended back into the trees, to give us the stunning Taupo/Ruapehu view we had to pretend to see the day before. So after a relieved group photo we scampered down the hill to meet the van safely delivered, and the medium group sitting about waiting for us.
So - a slightly pointless wash-out of a trip? Not at all. It was a great experience having to adjust our trip to the conditions and to get through both days. Plus, any day you wake up in a hut to fresh air, green trees and good company has got to be part of a great trip.
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