Hi,
No more days left in July. Bye bye July. And hello August 1st. Tomorrow is my wee sister Karen's birthday. Happy birthday wee girl.
Mike is still quite sick with his dizzy virus - but better than yesterday. Or so he says. He really only seems fine when he has his eyes shut.
We are packed and almost ready to go. Benjamin is packed and almost ready to go. Vivienne and John must have already packed because I think they are gone. Mike will collect wee Toby from school and if he is well enough he will also collect Benjamin. Otherwise we'll drive over at about 1700 and collect him and head off.
It is quite windy here this morning but not too bad a day. I drove in by myself with my and Mike's skis. I have to take them in to get the bindings fitted to the boots. I have new boots and new skis (I got the skis last year but haven't used them yet - and I got the boots yesterday).
It must be time for a cup of tea. I can't wait!
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Angela
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Good morning on Thurs, Jul 30
Hi,
Not a bad wee ride in this morning. I think the wind was behind me at one stage as I flew down a hill and had to fight to make the corner - that's never happened before! The roads were almost dry - just a bit of dew I think.
Last night Mum made dinner for me and Toby while we were at karate and then we rang Shona and Sharon for their birthday. What a nice time we had talking to them. Toby got to speak to Jamie and he was so chuffed at that - his wee face lit up. Poor Dad had to go into work last night on his day off to help with moving stuff around. It's a shame for him (but I think he secretly likes doing that!).
Mike and Toby booked into the lodge for a ski weekend at the start of this week. And this morning I found out that Benjamin and I have also got in. So the four of us will leave Friday evening for some skiing fun! Hooray! I need to pack tonight before table tennis!
Love,
Angela
Not a bad wee ride in this morning. I think the wind was behind me at one stage as I flew down a hill and had to fight to make the corner - that's never happened before! The roads were almost dry - just a bit of dew I think.
Last night Mum made dinner for me and Toby while we were at karate and then we rang Shona and Sharon for their birthday. What a nice time we had talking to them. Toby got to speak to Jamie and he was so chuffed at that - his wee face lit up. Poor Dad had to go into work last night on his day off to help with moving stuff around. It's a shame for him (but I think he secretly likes doing that!).
Mike and Toby booked into the lodge for a ski weekend at the start of this week. And this morning I found out that Benjamin and I have also got in. So the four of us will leave Friday evening for some skiing fun! Hooray! I need to pack tonight before table tennis!
Love,
Angela
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Good morning on Wed, July 29
Happy birthday to Shona and Sharon! :-)
And because wee Karen's birthday is at the weekend and I won't be emailing then - Happy Birthday Karen!
Yes - June and July (and - ok - the start of August) are busy birthday months in the Emmerson clan.
The parent/teacher interview went well. Miss Croft spent 15 minutes saying Toby was a well-adjusted, good, sociable wee boy. We got a look at his handwriting book and his story book. She mentioned Toby likes his Wii and is teaching her all about it. He has excellent literacy skills and that bodes well for his future education. Good!
There seems to be a semblance of a plan coming together for the weekend. It could take several paths at this point. But the mains ones are:
Mike and Toby are going skiing
John and Vivienne are most likely going skiing
Ramble is likely to go to the kennels
Benjamin is likely to go to his friend's place during the week and come to us at the weekend.
Mike will try to see if Benjamin and I can join him and Toby this weekend.
If we can't get accommodation for me and Benjamin, I'll go to the rugby on Friday night (Ranfurly Shield challenge between Otago and Wellington) and spend the weekend with Benjamin here.
If we also get accommodation for the following weekend, we'll be away for a long weekend. So we will need to make sure Benjamin does have somewhere to stay and isn't a homeless waif.
Nothing like a bit of spontaneous fun and games to keep us all feeling youthful. Yeah, right. ;-)
Tramping night tonight and Mike is on the door for meet and greet. Heheheheh. I'll be riding home to take Toby to karate. Mum is likely to pick Toby up after his tennis lesson and get him ready. We have chicken drumsticks in the fridge for tonight's dinner. Yum.
Have a great day! Whatever happens this weekend is looking like fun and I am keen! Bring on Friday at 5pm!
Love,
Angela
And because wee Karen's birthday is at the weekend and I won't be emailing then - Happy Birthday Karen!
Yes - June and July (and - ok - the start of August) are busy birthday months in the Emmerson clan.
The parent/teacher interview went well. Miss Croft spent 15 minutes saying Toby was a well-adjusted, good, sociable wee boy. We got a look at his handwriting book and his story book. She mentioned Toby likes his Wii and is teaching her all about it. He has excellent literacy skills and that bodes well for his future education. Good!
There seems to be a semblance of a plan coming together for the weekend. It could take several paths at this point. But the mains ones are:
Mike and Toby are going skiing
John and Vivienne are most likely going skiing
Ramble is likely to go to the kennels
Benjamin is likely to go to his friend's place during the week and come to us at the weekend.
Mike will try to see if Benjamin and I can join him and Toby this weekend.
If we can't get accommodation for me and Benjamin, I'll go to the rugby on Friday night (Ranfurly Shield challenge between Otago and Wellington) and spend the weekend with Benjamin here.
If we also get accommodation for the following weekend, we'll be away for a long weekend. So we will need to make sure Benjamin does have somewhere to stay and isn't a homeless waif.
Nothing like a bit of spontaneous fun and games to keep us all feeling youthful. Yeah, right. ;-)
Tramping night tonight and Mike is on the door for meet and greet. Heheheheh. I'll be riding home to take Toby to karate. Mum is likely to pick Toby up after his tennis lesson and get him ready. We have chicken drumsticks in the fridge for tonight's dinner. Yum.
Have a great day! Whatever happens this weekend is looking like fun and I am keen! Bring on Friday at 5pm!
Love,
Angela
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Good morning on Tues, July 28
Hi,
It is nearly my sisters' birthday - very exciting. I'll be thinking of them tomorrow and I hope they have a wonderful day.
Mike has some weird dizzy thing happening - and no - we don't think it is related to the blow he took to the head on Sunday when he trashed his helmet. I had it at the start of May and it is a very odd feeling. He described it as feeling car sick while sitting at his desk.
Last night we had Kea night and Aidan had collected Toby nice and early so Josh and I dropped Mike off at home to recover and headed out to the Scout Hall. I think activities need to be kept way simpler than making papier mache anything! We went over time and it affected our evening so I imagine it also affected others. Sorry. But it was fun - I enjoyed making the volcano. Let's see if they survive the week intact.
I was supposed to attend the Wadestown Tennis Club revival night but forgot. However, the evening improved by trying to organise the Rail Trail in Otago for next Easter. Wally and Lesley rang so we chatted for a while trying to sort out a few details.
Tonight at 1700 is our parent/teacher interview with Miss Croft. I have Toby's report so we can have a good 15 minute discussion with her.
Have a marvellous day!
Love,
Angela
It is nearly my sisters' birthday - very exciting. I'll be thinking of them tomorrow and I hope they have a wonderful day.
Mike has some weird dizzy thing happening - and no - we don't think it is related to the blow he took to the head on Sunday when he trashed his helmet. I had it at the start of May and it is a very odd feeling. He described it as feeling car sick while sitting at his desk.
Last night we had Kea night and Aidan had collected Toby nice and early so Josh and I dropped Mike off at home to recover and headed out to the Scout Hall. I think activities need to be kept way simpler than making papier mache anything! We went over time and it affected our evening so I imagine it also affected others. Sorry. But it was fun - I enjoyed making the volcano. Let's see if they survive the week intact.
I was supposed to attend the Wadestown Tennis Club revival night but forgot. However, the evening improved by trying to organise the Rail Trail in Otago for next Easter. Wally and Lesley rang so we chatted for a while trying to sort out a few details.
Tonight at 1700 is our parent/teacher interview with Miss Croft. I have Toby's report so we can have a good 15 minute discussion with her.
Have a marvellous day!
Love,
Angela
Monday, July 27, 2009
Good morning on Mon, July 27
Hi,
What a wonderful weekend. The weather was superb and Mike had the best two days on Ruapehu ever! I am sure he will tell you all about it but I can't help being proud of him climbing to the summit and peering into Crater Lake.
Toby and I had a sleepover at Mum and Dad's place on Friday night. Toby watched his backlog of TMNT cartoons and then we had a good sleep. Up to get ready for swimming and Toby swam quite well but was restless at times and got whispered to by the instructor that she expected better listening from him next week. Ok.
We then popped into Sally and Andrew's place and dropped off some TV program that Sally is keen to see. Toby climbed a tree in their backyard and we had a lovely hot choc/cup of tea.
Back home to relax before heading off to the Sampson household for another sleepover. We took the Wii over so that was the highlight of the evening's activities. The kids played and then when they went to bed we all played - until midnight.
Sunday morning we were up early-ish as I had Kea training to attend from 10 - 3pm. I learned heaps but the Kea training tools session could have been a little more structured to facilitate actually learning some tools to help run Keas. Toby played at the Tabors while I was in training.
Then back to the Sampson's house for a wee while before heading home via the supermarket to get dinner. Vivienne rang to arrange Benjamin weekend dates with us (I think Benjamin will stay with us over the next two weekends - but Vivienne will confirm today). That'll be good fun - Toby will be chuffed. Mike rang while Toby and I were tucking into hot dogs and Toby and I did try to collect him. But the Corolla had a flat battery (Mike had left the lights on when he parked it on Friday morning) so we had to ring him back and say we were unable to collect him. Fortunately he got home on the 14 bus very quickly.
So, a great weekend. Busy though. I am quite tired.
Dad seems to be sick from some dodgy sausage sizzle. Oh dear. It's a shame for him. Hope he's better soon.
Love,
Angela
What a wonderful weekend. The weather was superb and Mike had the best two days on Ruapehu ever! I am sure he will tell you all about it but I can't help being proud of him climbing to the summit and peering into Crater Lake.
Toby and I had a sleepover at Mum and Dad's place on Friday night. Toby watched his backlog of TMNT cartoons and then we had a good sleep. Up to get ready for swimming and Toby swam quite well but was restless at times and got whispered to by the instructor that she expected better listening from him next week. Ok.
We then popped into Sally and Andrew's place and dropped off some TV program that Sally is keen to see. Toby climbed a tree in their backyard and we had a lovely hot choc/cup of tea.
Back home to relax before heading off to the Sampson household for another sleepover. We took the Wii over so that was the highlight of the evening's activities. The kids played and then when they went to bed we all played - until midnight.
Sunday morning we were up early-ish as I had Kea training to attend from 10 - 3pm. I learned heaps but the Kea training tools session could have been a little more structured to facilitate actually learning some tools to help run Keas. Toby played at the Tabors while I was in training.
Then back to the Sampson's house for a wee while before heading home via the supermarket to get dinner. Vivienne rang to arrange Benjamin weekend dates with us (I think Benjamin will stay with us over the next two weekends - but Vivienne will confirm today). That'll be good fun - Toby will be chuffed. Mike rang while Toby and I were tucking into hot dogs and Toby and I did try to collect him. But the Corolla had a flat battery (Mike had left the lights on when he parked it on Friday morning) so we had to ring him back and say we were unable to collect him. Fortunately he got home on the 14 bus very quickly.
So, a great weekend. Busy though. I am quite tired.
Dad seems to be sick from some dodgy sausage sizzle. Oh dear. It's a shame for him. Hope he's better soon.
Love,
Angela
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Snowcraft II (25-26 July)
There was an air of anticipation as we gathered at the railway station. We'd spent the last weekend practicing our snow techniques, and Sharron had hinted that the next thing we should do is put our theory into practice by going somewhere. Where would we get to? Would the weather let us? The forecast was great, but I've learned that that doesn't necessarily mean that Ruapehu would play nice.
One of the many skills I am learning as part of tramping and snowcraft with WT&MC, is a detailed knowledge of where the best takeaways are at the towns on SH1 and SH2. And Bulls was our destination for dinner so that means the Best Doner Kebab Shop In All Rangitikei for sure. So we tried dialling in our order beforehand, which led to the phone being passed from person to person through the van until all 10 orders were placed. This was only partially successful since they insisted on making all our kebabs one at a time!
We arrived to brilliant clear skies and settled into the lodge.
Saturday saw us up early and enthusiastic. The weather was behaving and it was incredibly clear. As promised, we were indeed off somewhere - we were going to head for the summit. We divided ourselves into two groups - the "keen" group and the "try-hard" group (Sharron's names!) and 8am saw us off and walking.
Our first destination was the ampitheatre and the Alpine Club lodge. Conditions were superb, with really fantastic, weekend-of-the-season weather. Unlike the previous week, the snow was quite firm underfoot, with hard-packed snow and ice. Our crampons gripped perfectly.
At one point we crested a small ridge and walked straight down the relatively steep face on other side. Steve took us (the Keens) straight down the face! It was great to learn to trust your crampons that much - to be able to walk down a steep face and just stick to it with the steel spikes on the bottom of your boots. We meandered up the other side and looked back as the Try-hards tackled that face. Nic went first ... and lost her footing and slid straight to the bottom of the gut, even getting airborne at one point. The others picked their way down quite gingerly after watching how Nic went!
We stopped for a snack at the Alpine Club lodge after about 45 min and pondered on how this would be their standard walk in the evening, with all their stuff, after driving up for the weekend. That's a little bit too keen! We seemed to make very good time after passing the lodge and soon left it, and the ski lifts, far behind. We approached the summit via the spur that leads to Paretetaitonga, and passed the AIC'ers practicing their ice climbing. Icy snow gave way to ice and sastrugi. The going got steeper, and our pace turned into a slog. And then my crampons fell apart! Steve helped me with a bit of inventive use of the straps to hold them together for the day and it wasn't much longer before we crested Glacier Knob and got our first, astonishing view of the top. Before us the ridge sloped down to the Plateau, a flat moonscape basin ringed by uneven, ice blasted ridges and peaks.
We sidled along the ridge around the Plateau to Dome Ridge, and stopped at Dome Shelter for a well-earned, leisurely lunch, our first views of the crater lake on one side, and on the other the plateau, and our next destinations - the ridge of Tukino Peak and Te Heuheu. The shelter was entirely buried, and we had to take Steve, Marie and Sharron's words for it that there was even a structure under the impressive mound of ice blasted snow - until Steve located the general area of the door and dug it out (about a metre down). As we ate our lunch we pondered on the fellow who lost his leg in the shelter to a boulder thrown from the crater, and the soldiers who died on the plateau. It's sobering how much power there is in the mountain.
So after lunch, off we set again, following down the ridge and dropping off to the Plateau. I decided to descend off the ridge a little early, then watched astonished as the others hit a sheer ice face and came down backwards on all fours. Scary stuff. But soon enough we were walking across the plateau, which was a surreal experience. "Like being on Antarctica," as Illona put it. With no frame of reference other than the "low" peaks around us, we could have been anywhere, at any altitude. There were quite a few groups up on the summit with us - did I mention that the superb weather made it the weekend-of-the-season?! - and we crossed paths and chatted to some of them. There was one group coming up to build a snow cave and overnight on the summit. Others had brought their skis and boards and were looking for good descents. The people around us were all that gave scale to some of the vistas - you'd be looking at a "close" view and then pick out a couple of ant-sized people and realise that the perspective was quite different to what you thought.
Soon enough we were at the other side of the plateau, on a saddle that divided the plateau from the north face. This was the moment of decision. Over and down to home - or turn right, go up the ridge, and visit Tukino and Te Heuheu as well? With time ticking away there was only a few hours of good daylight now. But we did the sums, there was sufficient time, and so Steve led Illona, Megan, Duncan, Kat, Cecilia and me up to the two summits. The ridge rose steadily up to our first peak, with a sheer drop back to the plateau on our right. We were getting tired - at least I was! - but after 40 minutes of slog, with Steve and Illona leading the way and the rest of us straggling behind, we reached the Tukino summit, a craggy peak with a huge drop back to the plateau on one side. We gingerly got as close to the summit as we dared and took photos.
Then it seemed to be an easy stroll to the rounded knob of Te Heuheu, which we reached bang on target at 3pm. A quick photo stop and it was time to come down, down a beautiful powder bowl that cried out to be skiied or boarded. Some of us perfected bum-sliding as we descended. As we reached the skifield, Steve headed with purpose to the top of the waterfall express - and before we knew it he'd sorted us rides down the hill on the chairlift. So some weary, grateful bodies slid into seats for the last part of our descent, and back to the lodge by 4:30.
What a superb day. Sublime weather, perfect conditions, a full day of walking, astonishing views of Ngarahoe, Taranaki, Tama Lakes and Taupo, the stark beauty of Ruapehu summit, and visiting four of the 12 Ruapehu peaks. It really doesn't get any better than that.
The AIC'ers were quite late back - 8pm or so. They'd seen sunset at the summit, and came down in the dark. Their photos from the top were breathtaking.
Sunday saw tired bodies getting ready and out to see another perfect day with cloudless blue skies and no wind. Does that really happen two days in a row at Ruapehu? Today was a skills learning day - self arresting, snow caves, and avalanche transceiver work. We headed off in the general direction of the ampitheatre, and soon found an ideal spot for all three activities, right by some AIC'ers practicing crevasse retrievals.
My first activity for the day was snowcave digging. Steve marked out two entrances to dig, and he started on one and I more slowly started on the other. I was thinking that this was going to be VERY slow and unproductive until I suddenly cut through the hard layer and into the soft snow that those in the know were expecting to find. Even then, though, I learned that digging a snowcave is slow going. After 3-4 hours of us all taking turns digging, we had only done a U-shaped tunnel and were ready to start digging out the platform. So not something you'd be doing in a blizzard as an emergency shelter. Talking it over with Craig, you'd be making a snowcave as a base to operate from on multi-day trips - if you'd somehow forgotten your alpine tent! A good tent on a platform with a wall (extended up to an igloo if necessary) looks like a better option to me.
In the middle of this, Steve came over to us and said in quite a calm voice given the circumstances, that there'd been a freak avalanche up on the flat part of the ridge (yes, a very freak avalanche!) and somebody was buried. But luckily he had some transceivers that we could use to find this person. After a bit of fiddling to get them in search mode, we pretty quickly located where this unfortunate individual was - but not before Illona did some pretty realistic self arrest practice as we crossed the very icy head of the ridge without crampons. She did a textbook job, I'm happy to report.
Using the transceiver was very straightforward, accurate (to about 10cm, with a 50m or so range) and quick. Very comforting, especially with the terrible avalanche season we're having this year. One of the stats I heard on the radio after the Coronet Peak avalanche, is that if you're found within 15 minutes you've got a 90% chance of survival, but past that time you it very rapidly drops to a mere 10% survival rate. I'd rate a transceiver as essential equipment, anywhere you've got any chance of avalanche.
The final activity to practice was self arresting, and we all spent quite a while throwing ourselves off this ledge, in all manner of positions and contortions. We all got the hang of it pretty well, though I managed to do a spectactular fail, and write off my bike helmet into the bargain as my ice axe caught by the spike and threw itself at my head. (That was the time I was trying to just launch myself with a blank mind, and not think of what I had to do in advance. More practice for me I think!). Marie was a great self arrest coach, and had us all drilled really well by the end of the day.
So after a morning of digging, and searching, and falling - and watching the AIC people save each other from crevasses too, as well as entertaining the passing skiers and boarders - it was time to trot back to the lodge, clean up and head off. After a far less eventful trip down the mountain, and an obligatory stop in Ohakune for a chocolate eclair, then all too soon we were back in Wellington and our Snowcraft course was over.
Coming into the course, I'd expected that I'd learn quite a bit, but I didn't count on it being just so much fun and having so much of a great experience as well. I've not just gained a whole heap of valuable information and advice and experience, I've also got some memories that I'll treasure. Events that are this good and happen this smoothly don't just happen - a huge amount of thanks has to go to Sharron, Steve and Marie for the superb organisation and planning that went into this. If you're reading this and haven't done much snow work before - make sure you get your name on Snowcraft 2010!
Weekend 2 Snowcraft photos:
Friday, July 24, 2009
The tramp I did mid June (13/14) in the Tararuas
Waitewaewae Hut in mid June. Leader: Steve. Team: Robert, Tricia, Kate, Richard, Dmitry, Tatiana, Angela, Gareth, Daniel and Duncan
After a wet week in Wellington I imagine everyone in our group was looking forward to getting away from the town and out into the Tararuas. For some reason I have never tramped in the Tararuas before and I was keen to have a look for myself after seeing many club night photos of popular Tararua tramps. I have to say I was not disappointed - I saw the Tararuas in glorious sunshine and heavy rain that left a mist hanging through the trees.
We left from the train station at 8am on Saturday and picked up our last person at Porirua on the way to Otaki Forks. The weather was pretty good and after a few quick stretches at Otaki Forks we started our walk in brilliant sunshine. This was to be the only time I wished I had packed my sunglasses though. We walked over the lovely bridges and into the bush. We were the first group through for the morning - I know because I was first over the swing bridge and collected many spider webs on the way over.
The track was lovely – a gorgeous mix of pungas and regrowth bush with a lot of variable terrain. We followed a stream up the hill and we were in and out of it many times. The river rocks were smooth and sometimes slippery but I think we only had two people take an unexpected deeper dip than usual. The track itself was full of tree roots and I did encounter some of the famous Tararua mud. I ran out of energy not too long after negotiating the active slip area. This was very exciting as we had to clamber up a slippery bank around a huge slip using a few tree branches and roots. My new Macpac pack sat snugly on my back as I gave it a good workout in stability - leaping through the undergrowth like I was born in the jungle. Well, in my mind. In reality I was covered in mud once I got to the top of the slip and my arms felt like they had stretched a few centimetres. It really was good fun but sapping - I should have snacked more regularly on my chocolate and nuts after that episode.
Past here we followed an old log hauling trail where there were often remnants of rail tracks we were walking between. Fascinating to think about them building all that infrastructure in the middle of nowhere to haul out the magnificent huge trees. This insight into historic logging culminated in seeing a huge, iron monster of an engine on the side of the track. We spent a lot of time speculating on this contraption. Did they bring it in on those tracks they had to lay? Did they bring it in piece by piece and assemble it onsite? We discounted helicoptering it in for obvious reasons but that would have been the preferred modern option. Every other option seemed like too much hard work. We left with lots of photos.
When we popped out of the stream bed up onto a plateau, we spent a wee while walking on track that was pretty flat before heading off down another stream on the other side of the hill. About this time we were passed by a university tramping group and the heavy rain started. This section of track went down to the Otaki River where you could take a dry weather option up the river itself, or climb up to a ridge and around to the hut on a track. Taking the wet weather version we were surprised by a new slip exposing lots of nice, grey, very sticky, clay around the root ball of a massive tree. We used stringy but strong tree roots to sidle around it and managed to get away without getting covered in clay.
The Waitewaewae hut was a welcome sight and it was light, airy and warm. There seemed to be loads of space and our team members had a brew on already and I found a good sleeping space on the roomy top sleeping platform. We chatted as night set in around the fire and then around dinner. Steve organised a lovely Thai tuna green curry and that was followed by chocolate biscuits. The pita bread with garlic roasted over the pot belly stove top was a huge hit. Steve chose the dinner table benches as the best sleeping location - he pushed two benches together and slept there.
We all slept very well that night - there wasn't a lot of snoring or anything. Breakfast might need some minor adjustments on my part. I was not overjoyed with 4 Weetbix with my milk powder made up to resemble milk - mostly. I surreptitiously checked out my fellow trampers breakfast options. Someone had toast, someone had One Square Meal bars, some had porridge and some, rather sensibly I thought, had kept leftover tuna green curry with loads of rice. I think I might check out the leftover option on future tramps. Very tasty and it limits the amount of leftovers you have to pack back out after over-estimating the amount of rice 10 people can eat. I heard mention of previous trips people were on where they had to carry full billies of cooked rice back out.
My pack did get a bit lighter on the way out after the veges and tuna had been eaten and we all left excited by the river option back. About 50 m back down the track from the hut, we diverted into the river itself. After a few steps in the Otaki river, the numbness stopped the bone-chilling cold from hurting. Oh - I needed my polarised sunglasses here once more so I could see the river bottom and avoid those big, mossy, round stones. No one fell in however so it must have been a good option and we continued to wander down the river for about 800m or so before cutting back onto the track and following our route from yesterday back to Otaki Forks. You had to make sure you kept an eye out for the orange tag showing the track back into the bush on the true right bank as it would be easy to miss. Although as Steve pointed out, the river does flow past the carpark eventually. Perhaps inner tubes rather than packs for that idea. And not in winter. Brrrr.
I really should have stretched a bit more upon our arrival back to the van. By the time we got out at the Red Cafe to have some tea my muscles were getting stiff. The cafe had some nice food to satisfy our appetite and we got back in the van for the trip into Wellington. I did spend the next few days cringing when I climbed some steps and my legs remembered the weekend's activities. But as they say, that kind of a feeling is a great reminder of weekend fun!
After a wet week in Wellington I imagine everyone in our group was looking forward to getting away from the town and out into the Tararuas. For some reason I have never tramped in the Tararuas before and I was keen to have a look for myself after seeing many club night photos of popular Tararua tramps. I have to say I was not disappointed - I saw the Tararuas in glorious sunshine and heavy rain that left a mist hanging through the trees.
We left from the train station at 8am on Saturday and picked up our last person at Porirua on the way to Otaki Forks. The weather was pretty good and after a few quick stretches at Otaki Forks we started our walk in brilliant sunshine. This was to be the only time I wished I had packed my sunglasses though. We walked over the lovely bridges and into the bush. We were the first group through for the morning - I know because I was first over the swing bridge and collected many spider webs on the way over.
The track was lovely – a gorgeous mix of pungas and regrowth bush with a lot of variable terrain. We followed a stream up the hill and we were in and out of it many times. The river rocks were smooth and sometimes slippery but I think we only had two people take an unexpected deeper dip than usual. The track itself was full of tree roots and I did encounter some of the famous Tararua mud. I ran out of energy not too long after negotiating the active slip area. This was very exciting as we had to clamber up a slippery bank around a huge slip using a few tree branches and roots. My new Macpac pack sat snugly on my back as I gave it a good workout in stability - leaping through the undergrowth like I was born in the jungle. Well, in my mind. In reality I was covered in mud once I got to the top of the slip and my arms felt like they had stretched a few centimetres. It really was good fun but sapping - I should have snacked more regularly on my chocolate and nuts after that episode.
Past here we followed an old log hauling trail where there were often remnants of rail tracks we were walking between. Fascinating to think about them building all that infrastructure in the middle of nowhere to haul out the magnificent huge trees. This insight into historic logging culminated in seeing a huge, iron monster of an engine on the side of the track. We spent a lot of time speculating on this contraption. Did they bring it in on those tracks they had to lay? Did they bring it in piece by piece and assemble it onsite? We discounted helicoptering it in for obvious reasons but that would have been the preferred modern option. Every other option seemed like too much hard work. We left with lots of photos.
When we popped out of the stream bed up onto a plateau, we spent a wee while walking on track that was pretty flat before heading off down another stream on the other side of the hill. About this time we were passed by a university tramping group and the heavy rain started. This section of track went down to the Otaki River where you could take a dry weather option up the river itself, or climb up to a ridge and around to the hut on a track. Taking the wet weather version we were surprised by a new slip exposing lots of nice, grey, very sticky, clay around the root ball of a massive tree. We used stringy but strong tree roots to sidle around it and managed to get away without getting covered in clay.
The Waitewaewae hut was a welcome sight and it was light, airy and warm. There seemed to be loads of space and our team members had a brew on already and I found a good sleeping space on the roomy top sleeping platform. We chatted as night set in around the fire and then around dinner. Steve organised a lovely Thai tuna green curry and that was followed by chocolate biscuits. The pita bread with garlic roasted over the pot belly stove top was a huge hit. Steve chose the dinner table benches as the best sleeping location - he pushed two benches together and slept there.
We all slept very well that night - there wasn't a lot of snoring or anything. Breakfast might need some minor adjustments on my part. I was not overjoyed with 4 Weetbix with my milk powder made up to resemble milk - mostly. I surreptitiously checked out my fellow trampers breakfast options. Someone had toast, someone had One Square Meal bars, some had porridge and some, rather sensibly I thought, had kept leftover tuna green curry with loads of rice. I think I might check out the leftover option on future tramps. Very tasty and it limits the amount of leftovers you have to pack back out after over-estimating the amount of rice 10 people can eat. I heard mention of previous trips people were on where they had to carry full billies of cooked rice back out.
My pack did get a bit lighter on the way out after the veges and tuna had been eaten and we all left excited by the river option back. About 50 m back down the track from the hut, we diverted into the river itself. After a few steps in the Otaki river, the numbness stopped the bone-chilling cold from hurting. Oh - I needed my polarised sunglasses here once more so I could see the river bottom and avoid those big, mossy, round stones. No one fell in however so it must have been a good option and we continued to wander down the river for about 800m or so before cutting back onto the track and following our route from yesterday back to Otaki Forks. You had to make sure you kept an eye out for the orange tag showing the track back into the bush on the true right bank as it would be easy to miss. Although as Steve pointed out, the river does flow past the carpark eventually. Perhaps inner tubes rather than packs for that idea. And not in winter. Brrrr.
I really should have stretched a bit more upon our arrival back to the van. By the time we got out at the Red Cafe to have some tea my muscles were getting stiff. The cafe had some nice food to satisfy our appetite and we got back in the van for the trip into Wellington. I did spend the next few days cringing when I climbed some steps and my legs remembered the weekend's activities. But as they say, that kind of a feeling is a great reminder of weekend fun!
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