NEW ZEALAND ADVENTURES Scott A. Yost This is the journal I kept while traveling in New Zealand for six weeks over Christmas of 1995. Contents December 4 Leaving Knoxville 2 December 6 Arrival in New Zealand: Christchurch 3 December 7 Drive to Mt. Cook past Lake Tekapo 5 December 8 Mt. Cook: Rain and day-hikes 6 December 9 Walk to Mueller Hut 8 December 10 Drive to Te Anau 9 December 11 Te Ana-au Glow Worm Cave 10 December 12 Begin Milford Track 11 December 13 Milford Track: Clinton Forks to Mintaro Hut 12 December 14 Milford Track: Over MacKinnon Pass 15 December 15 Milford Track: Dumpling Hut to Milford Sound 16 December 16 Milford Sound 18 December 17 Drive to Queenstown 19 December 18 Begin Routeburn Track 20 December 19 Routeburn Flats to MacKenzie Lake, Harris Saddle 22 December 20 End of Routeburn Track 23 December 21 Queenstown: Bungy Jumping 25 December 22 Shotover Jet, drive to Wanaka 27 December 23 Deep Canyon Experience 29 December 24 Walk to Aspiring Hut 32 December 25 Christmas: Cascade Saddle attempt 34 December 26 Drive to Haast: West Coast Beaches 36 December 27 Drive to Fox Glacier, Glacier Walk 39 December 28 Fox Glacier: Rain and laundry 40 December 29 Fox Glacier helicopter flight, drive to Greymouth 42 December 30 Greymouth: Taniwha Cave Rafting 44 December 31 Arthur's Pass: Climb Avalanche Peak 47 January 1 Return to Christchurch 49 January 2 Kaikoura: Dolphin swimming, whale watching 50 January 3 Kaikoura to Nelson 53 January 4 Begin Abel Tasman Track, Separation Point 55 January 5 Onetahuti Beach to Te Pukatea Bay 58 January 6 End of Abel Tasman Track 59 January 7 Ferry to Wellington 61 January 8 Train to National Park, Begin Tongariro Circuit 63 January 9 Mangatepopo Hut to Ketetahi Hut, Climb Ngauruhoe 65 January 10 Ketetahi Hut to New Waihohonu Hut 68 January 11 End Tongariro Northern Circuit 69 January 12 Bus to Waitomo, Glow Worm Cave 70 January 13 Waitomo: Gruesome Twosome 73 January 14 Black Water Rafting, Bus to Rotorua, Hangi 76 January 15 Rotorua: Carey's Capers 79 January 16 Kaituna Cascades Rafting, Bus to Aukland, Flight Home 83 This is an unembellished transcript of the journal I kept during the trip. Any errors have been intentionally maintained to accurately reflect my impressions at the time. Copyright 1996, Scott A. Yost. All rights reserved. DECEMBER 4 Leaving Knoxville I began my trip to New Zealand with a short flight on Delta from Knoxville to Atlanta at 1:45 PM. It was a clear, warm afternoon. As we flew over the Smokies, Look Rock and Gregory's Bald were visible below, as was the section of the Appalachian Trail above Cades Cove. We crossed Fontana Lake and the Joyce Kilmer Forest, where I did my last backpacking trip on an unusually cold (down to 15 degrees F) weekend a month ago. I started to plan my trip. I hadn't had much time to read my Lonely Planet books, both the general one and the tramping guide. I knew I would be walking the Milford and Routeburn tracks, and had made reservations for them a couple months ago with the nice lady at the Te Anau DOC Great Walks Booking Desk. Those were both near the beginning of my trip. Now I started to think about what else I would do with my six weeks in New Zealand. I made note of a number of interesting walks, including the one to Mueller Hut in Mount Cook National Park, and a route, said to be very difficult, over Cascade Saddle in Mt. Aspiring National Park. I had already decided to visit the Abel Tasman Coastal Track at some point, since this was highly recommended by a friend who had visited New Zealand a few years earlier. The Tongariro Circuit on the North Island looked interesting too. In addition to walks, I thought the West Coast of New Zealand looked interesting, with the glaciers and interesting wildlife, including seals and penguins. I thought it would be really nice to find penguins, though finding them might be difficult, especially if I were traveling by bus, as I intended. I would also visit Kaikoura for the whale watching, since my friend enjoyed this as well and said it was a beautiful location. I thought I might try to do this just after arriving in Christchurch, before heading down to Te Anau to begin the Milford Track. In Atlanta, I caught a 3:32 PM flight to Los Angeles. The movie was Operation Dumbo Drop, a Disney film about an army mission to drop an elephant to a South Vietnamese village, to make up for one that had been killed in the war. The dinner was pasta. The sun set over the desert on the way. The floor of the cabin was freezing cold, even through my wooly socks. I was beginning to wish I had worn my hiking boots instead of sandals. We arrived in Los Angeles at 5:30 PM in time to see the streams of rush hour traffic radiating out toward home through the grid of lights below. It was beautiful from above, but it must be hell to live in such a place. At the airport, no one seemed to know where Air New Zealand was. None of the employees there knew anything, or really cared very much. They directed me to the old International Terminal. After wandering around there with my bags and not finding them, I waited in line at the information desk, and asked again. This time I was sent to Terminal 2. By now I had walked half way around LA Airport. There was a long line to check in. I boarded the flight to Aukland, and left LA at 8:15 PM, beginning a twelve hour overnight flight. We were served dinner again: this time shrimp. The second dinner was welcome because both were tiny. Air New Zealand is essentially indistinguishable from any of the American domestic carriers, with cramped seats and small meals. A couple of movies were shown. At least they were free, unlike on Delta. I slept through the first, but watched the second, Waterworld, the most expensive movie ever made, starring Kevin Costner. I thought about my plans some more, and realized that Te Anau, my base for the Milford Track, was too far from the start of the Glenorchy end of the Routeburn Track to make a good base for both, probably. I would have to move to Queenstown on one of the two days I had scheduled between treks. I also decided that instead of going to Kaikoura first, I would probably go to Mt. Cook National Park on the way to Te Anau, and visit Mueller Hut then. That would save some backtracking later. I slept some more. Almost the whole flight was in darkness. The moon over the cloudy Pacific was full. DECEMBER 6 Arrival in New Zealand: Christchurch The moon set bright red before dawn. December 5 had disappeared upon crossing the International Date Line. Breakfast was served at 4AM, New Zealand time. I had mixed grill (sausages and ham) with potatoes and baked beans. A weird breakfast, but tastier than I was expecting for New Zealand food. Customs forms were distributed. Anyone with nothing to declare would almost have to be lying, since they ask you to check boxes if you have anything made from plants or animals. In the flight magazine, I read about a company, Trusty Rentals, that advertized cars beginning at $25 per day, including everything. A New Zealand dollar was about 68 cents in US money, so that is not bad. For the first time, I began to think seriously about renting a car. I really like having a car if possible, for the freedom it gives, especially when trying to find wildlife, such as penguins, or stopping to take pictures. This was the first company I saw that had a reasonable price. There was still the concern about driving on the left: I would have to give some thought to that. We arrived in Aukland, New Zealands largest city by far, at 6:30 AM. Customs was quick: not many questions. They attached a little tab to my passport. At the domestic desk, I was told my flight to Christchurch had been canceled due to an Air Traffic Controller's strike. All flights outside major cities were canceled as well. I was glad I was not planning to rely heavily on air travel. I went to the domestic terminal and got a standby flight for 9:30 AM. This was no problem, because the flight was far from full. It was quite warm outside. The flight took off on schedule, and had beautiful views of the mountains and volcanoes along the way. At the Christchurch airport, I changed a bit of money and bought a phone card, which are convenient and keep you from needing a lot of change, and then used it to call Trusty Rentals, the rental car company I had read about earlier. They said the $25 rate was for a manual, but I could get an automatic for $30, with unlimited km's and insurance included, provided one would come in this afternoon as scheduled. This sounded like a great idea. Surely I could get used to driving on the left. It seemed a bit scary, but would be an interesting experience. I could use the car to camp if I wanted too. I picked up some brochures and bus schedules, to see what bus travel would be like. It looked expensive, but there were plenty of routes, and this certainly looked like a viable alternative. I would not have to keep the car the whole time, but would use it on the South Island, where I planned to spend most of my time. I got a shuttle to my motel for $8. It was a simple but nice motel called Alexander Court, and was not cheap, about $82 NZ. It was nice, however, with attractive new furniture in the living room, a separate bedroom, and a full kitchen. This was the only hotel I planned to stay at, and I had booked it in advance. The shuttle driver suggested that bed and breakfasts are a good deal, often around $40 a night, but I planned to stay mostly at hostels after tonight, which are around $15 to $20 a night for a dormitory bed, and have kitchens. But tonight, it would be nice to have some time alone after the long, cramped flight. I called Trusty Rentals to give them my phone number, so they could tell me when the car comes in. Then I called Mt. Cook YHA to make reservations for tomorrow. This is one of the premier Youth Hostels in New Zealand, and the only budget accomodations at Mt. Cook aside from the campground, so reservations were recommended. I had no problem with this. I also reserved a Dec. 16 cruise on the Milford Sound, which may not have been necessary to do so soon, but I would have only one day there and did not want to miss it. I had already reserved two nights at the hostel in Milford, but called them back to change it to one night, since I needed time to get to Queenstown between the Milford and Routeburn treks, and there wasn't much else to do at Milford anyway, unless I wanted to do some sea kayaking. I called around to a number of other car rental companies in the phone book, but all were more expensive than Trusty. Eventually Trusty called me back, and told me the car was in, and they would deliver it tomorrow at 10 AM. They said it was a small Mazda hatchback. I was a little concerned about the hatchback, but they said it had plenty of room for luggage in a covered compartment. Now that my car was taken care of, I took a walk to explore downtown Christchurch. It was about a 15 minute walk, and along the way, I took special care to see how the traffic was, and to think what driving on the left would feel like. It would be really weird. Walking was bad enough. I went to Cathedral Square to see the church, and climbed the tower. The view was not too impressive today because it was cloudy. The church was decorated inside for Christmas. Then I went out and saw a postal store, so I bought stamps and a postcard to send home. I walked over to the arts center, some attractive old Gothic buildings, and returned along the Avon River, which is narrow, fast-moving and shallow, and lined with parks. Gondola rides are available there. It was very picturesque. I looked for an Indonesian/Indian restaurant on Columbus Street mentioned in Lonely Planet, but it was gone. Then I went back to my motel, and picked up some breakfast and lunch supplies at a nearby `dairy', or convenience store. I noticed that the most common flavor of potato chips was chicken. They must have weird tastes here. Also, everything was rather expensive, even after adjusting for the exchange rate. There was a nice cat outside my motel room. I sat with it a while. I walked down to the Main Street Cafe, a `gourmet' vegetarian restaurant, and ordered a spinach/red pesto/brie pie slice with three salads for $15. It was more than I could eat, and I stuffed myself. I took another walk downtown to let dinner settle. There, I stopped at a brew-pub, Dux DeLux, and tried their Hereford Bitter and Sou'wester Stout. Both were fine beers. I went home and turned on the TV, but was too sleepy to watch it, so I went to bed at 9 PM. It was not yet dark out. DECEMBER 7 Drive to Mt. Cook past Lake Tekapo I awoke early, at 5:30 AM. It was already becoming light, and birds were singing. I repacked my bags, separating tramping gear from my other stuff. I fixed toast and coffee for breakfast, with yogurt. I checked out at 10 AM, when the Trusty Rental man arrived with my car, a Mazda 323 with 95,000 km on it. On the way to their office, he told me I could leave the return day flexible as long as I called 48 hours in advance. He was a nice man, and gave me maps and showed me how to get to Mt. Cook. He told me I should definitely try the Shotover Jet boats when I was in Queenstown, since it was a really exciting ride. He also told me about a used camping equipment store, where I could pick up any camping supplies I needed, since camping could be an economical way to travel with a car. I carefully drove away from the office, which was no problem at first since all the roads were one-way. I stopped at the camping supply store to look for a stove. I hadn't wanted to carry one on the plane. They had propane stoves for $38. I could get one new next door for the same price, so I did, together with a couple canisters. The stoves themselves were very compact and fit into tiny pocket-sized pouches. I noticed that MSR gasoline stoves were outrageously expensive, about $150 NZ ($100 US). They said you never see these used, unless you are lucky. Driving on the left was going pretty well until I ended up in a traffic circle, which are confusing even at home. I couldn't figure out who yielded to who, so I settled for not hitting anyone, ignored the honking, and got out after twice around. There was a lot of construction along the way. The road passed through sheep pastures as it left town, separated by neat rows of trees. I stopped for lunch at a Kentucky Fried Chicken. It was reasonable, $6 for a two piece meal deal with both mashed potatoes and French fries, plus cole slaw, ice cream, and a drink. I ate it next to a table of mongoloids. Soon, the road headed inland. I stopped for groceries, figuring they would cost a fortune in Mt. Cook. The country side was green and sheepy, with mountains rising snow-capped in the distance. Yellow flowers carpeted the hillsides, and the road was lined with pink and purple mountain lupins. If the road weren't so narrow, I probably would have pulled off and taken lots of pictures. I settled for two, one at a store where I bought a brownie. It had a nice view of sheep farms and mountains in the distance. There were more construction delays and cow delays, as livestock was hearded across the road. I bought gas (petrol) in the last big town, since the rental car man warned me it would be expensive in Mt. Cook. Actually, it was expensive everywhere, about a dollar a liter here, or roughly 3 times as much as in the US. I had already used half a tank, $16 worth. Around 4 PM, I arrived at Lake Tekapo, a beautiful turquoise glacier-fed lake, which stretched out far into the distance toward the mountains. On its shore was the Church of the Good Shepherd, a favorite stop for tour buses. It is a small, quaint, stone chapel with a picture window behind the alter, overlooking the lake. The back wall had a mural. I took many pictures there, and continued stopping for pictures along the road, which followed the lake all the way to the turnoff to Mt. Cook, and then that road followed the lake again, until it dried up higher in the valley. I arrived at the YHA at 5:30, a half hour later than I had said, and checked into the dorm for $18 plus a $4 contribution toward my YHA membership. The hostel was a low, wooden building, paneled inside, and nicely designed. The common room had a wood stove, with a Christmas tree beside it. I picked up a few more things at the store, and cooked pumpkin-spinach raviolis with sauteed walnuts for dinner. Around 9PM, a storm brewed up, with really strong winds that felt like they would blow the windows in. I packed my food for tomorrow's tramping. I was planning to climb to Mueller Hut, and hoping that the weather would cooperate. I had not been able to find anything too interesting to pack for dinner on my walk. I had found instant noodles and soup, and bought fruit and cookies too. Breakfast would be `fruity porridge' with muesli bars. Lunch would be peanut butter and marmalade sandwiches with bisquits. The storm was really ferocious outside, and I was not at all optimistic about whether I could proceed as planned in the morning. DECEMBER 8 Mt. Cook: Rain and day-hikes It was still raining when I awoke at 6 AM. Most people were still asleep. I fixed breakfast, and saw a nice double rainbow behind the hostel. Then I went down to the visitor's center at 8 to check the weather forecast. My Trusty car stalled on the way, and I began to wonder about whether this was really such a good deal. Getting a car stranded here would be quite a nuisance, since I would have no choice but to get a bus to Te Anau to do the Milford and Routeburn treks before coming back to deal with the car. Fortunately, I got it started again. I probably should have warmed it up more before starting it this morning, and would be more careful in the future. At the visitor's center, they said the weather was improving, but visibility would be poor today, with some rain. But - tomorrow would be beautiful. I decided to put off my walk to Mueller Hut for a day. I still had time to do that, but would have to drive to Te Anau the same day I finished that walk to make it there in time to start the Milford Track. While at the visitor's center, I watched the slide show on Mt. Cook and the history of mountaineering in the park. I went back to the hostel and told them I would stay tonight, but not tomorrow night, since I would be at the hut then. I walked around the village in a light rain, and looked into the Hermatage, the fancy hotel in town. I bought some kiwi and sheep Christmas ornaments at the gift shop, and did a short nature walk through the dense forests. Then I read brochures at the hostel until lunch, since I still had no definite plans for most of my trip. I read about some cave trips that looked interesting in the Greymouth area, and something called "canyoning" in Wanaka, that looked really exciting. I would keep these in mind. I also read about Maori hangis: feasts cooked in the ground. I would have to try one of these sometime also. The Maori were the first settlers in New Zealand, but I had not seen any evidence of them yet. For lunch, I walked to the small cafe next to the Hermatage and had a lamb-rosemary pastry with chocolate cheesecake. They had a lot of things that looked delicious. Indeed, the meat pies and deserts were one of the nicer aspects of dining in New Zealand. They were relatively inexpensive, and made a fine lunch. The sun started to come out after lunch, and I decided to do some hikes. I went back to the hostel and read about the local day hikes. I began with a steep climb to the `Red Tarns', as small lake overlooking the valley. If it were not cloudy, there would have been a great view of Mt. Cook here. I did the `3 hour' walk in about an hour, then walked an adjoining nature trail through the forest. I went back to the hostel and asked them to make a reservation for Te Anau Sunday, since I would be getting in late after a `3 hour' return hike from Mueller Hut and the 6-8 hour drive. The office in Te Anau was closed, so I would have to wait until later. Next, I decided to explore the Tasman Valley, and drove 8 km out a gravel road to a parking area. I wanted to go to the Blue Lakes, but I thought they were further ahead, along Blue Lakes Road, which is closed to rental cars. I walked 3 km to the end of the road before realizing I was in the wrong place, and there were no lakes here. The wildflowers were nice though, and it was now warm and sunny, completely different from the weather across the ridge in Mt. Cook Village. I put on sunscreen and returned to my car, which I now knew was already in the Blue Lakes parking lot. I walked to the Blue Lakes, five in all, mostly small ponds with no outlets. Two were just big murky potholes. The first and last were the clearest and biggest. I waded in the last one briefly, and found that it was not too cold. The lake was more green than blue. Across the ridge was the end of the immense Tasman Glacier, and a walk to an overlook forked off near the first lake. The glacier was mostly gray and covered with fine rock. Next, I drove back 1 km and found the turnoff to a waterfall overlook, where I parked, and walked past a duck pond, following the river up to a viewpoint for the falls. I tried getting close to it, but it was hard work, and the view didn't improve much, since the falls was now in shadows. After exploring the Tasman Valley, I got back to the hostel at 6:30 and reserved a bed at the Te Anau hostel. I made spaghetti for dinner. The clouds had mostly lifted from Mt. Cook by now, except for a rounded `hat' on top. I took a picture, and later watched the sunset. I got back to the hostel at 9:45 at dusk, just before they locked the door for the night. If you come back later, you must know the combination to open the door. I went out a while later on the back porch to see the stars, which looked similar to those at home, though I didn't recognize any constellations except Orion. The dippers were missing, of course. DECEMBER 9 Walk to Mueller Hut After breakfast, I went down to the visitor's center to check on the weather. It was still cloudy, and I was not optimistic. But they said the clouds would burn off in the afternoon, and I should definitely go to Mueller Hut. I registered, and the man showed me an aerial photograph of the route, pointing out possible confusing spots. He said there was still a large patch of snow near the top, but it should be passable without special equipment. He said I wouldn't need any cooking equipment or utensils, just food and clothes, and toilet paper. I waited at the hostel until 10:30 to leave. The clouds still weren't lifting, and there was some light rain. I drove to the car park near the campground to save a couple km. I first walked out to Kea Point, an overlook for Hooker Glacier. Then I headed up the trail to Mueller Hut. The first half was a steep staircase, straight up the side of the cliff to a couple of tiny ponds called the Sealy Tarns. It was quite a strenuous climb. I had lunch at the Tarns, and a couple keas came to visit. These alpine parrots are notorious for stealing food and damaging equipment. They have little fear of people. I got some close pictures. Three people passed me. After the Tarns, there were no more stairs, but the route was steeper and there was really no developed trail, just a well-used eroded path. The sun came out eventually, and the clouds slowly lifted, revealing Mt. Cook. The trail was quite steep, and reminded me of some of the more difficult ones in Nepal, but fortunately at a much lower elevation. (Mueller Hut is at about 6,000 ft.) I went slow and took many pictures. My battery died, but fortunately, I had a spare. Soon, I came to the snow field, near a large yellow striped pole mentioned in the Lonely Planet tramping guide. I met an Austrian who was about to turn back because he was worried about climbing the steep snow field. I had a walking stick, so I was less concerned. I collapsed it to its shortest length to give it more strength, and followed the footsteps to the top of the ridge. Near the top, the climb was almost vertical. On top of the ridge, there were incredible views in both directions - mountains, ice, glaciers and waterfalls everywhere. The trail followed rock cairns through scree on the other side of the ridge to the hut, a small green building situated on the edge of the ridge in an exposed position. The twelve beds in the hut looked full, but someone was about to leave, and I got his space. Everyone else was up on Mt. Olivier, reached by climbing further through the scree. This 6200 ft mountain was the first peak climbed by Hillary, who is from New Zealand (probably when he was very young). I climbed it also, and returned through the snow fields along the ridge. More people had arrived, but they had been told in advance that the hut was full, and were prepared to camp out. An Irish lady arrived and said to the hut warden that someone had sprained his ankle and needed assistance getting his equipment down. She was apparently something of a legend, being the first European woman to become a certified mountain guide. I fixed dinner - beef noodle soup with more noodles (oriental) and beef and freeze-dried green beans. Some people with big orange plastic sheets, meant to be pack liners probably, took them up the hill and used them as sleds to slide down the snowfields. Afterward, most people watched the sunset, as Mt. Cook turned slightly golden and the sky took on a reddish color. At dusk, everyone went inside, and some played cards or dice. Several Americans were here, from Washington and California. The man from Washington was a pathology student. When I told him I was from Knoxville, he asked if I knew about the body farm, where a UT professor who is a leader in his field conducts body decomposition studies. I told him I knew about this, and some friends of mine had been there, but I had not seen it myself. UT has a widely-known program in forensic anthropology. After dark, I went out to see the stars again. An almost-full moon rose over the far ridge, separating Hooker and Tasman valleys. Again, the only constellation I recognized was Orion. I went to bed at 11 PM. DECEMBER 10 Drive to Te Anau I was the first in the hut to get up at 5:30 AM. The sun was just preparing to rise. Soon orange-colored rays struck the peak of Mt. Cook, and I went out to take some pictures. Then I fixed breakfast - fruity porridge with a granola bar, an orange and coffee. I started down at 7:15. When I arrived at the snowfield, a couple of people were already climbing it. The snow was harder and icy this morning. The top part was too steep to walk down without crampons, so I picked a spot with few rocks below, and slid down, using my pole as a rudder. An ice axe would have worked better, probably, but the collapsed pole was adequate. It is important to lean back while sliding, to avoid tumbling. The descent was faster and harder to control than I expected, but I didn't hit any rocks, and my pants survived the friction. In retrospect, perhaps I should have chosen a gentler route. The rest of the snowfield wasn't so steep, and I walked to the bottom. The sun was bright this morning, and I put on some sunscreen. I reached the bottom at 9:40 AM. There was still time to get my bags from storage at the YHA before they closed for the morning at 10 AM. Then I showered and went to the visitor's center to check in and pay the $14 hut fee. I got a meat pie and slice of cake for lunch at Snackpacker's in the Hermatage. I took some pictures of the field of colorful mountain lupins outside, with Mt. Cook in the background. I began the drive to Te Anau at noon. I had been told it would take six to eight hours, but in fact it took five and a half, even with a few picture stops. The YHA was on the far side of town, on the road leading to Milford. The hostel was a collection of low white buildings, again rather attractive. Sheep grazed out back. This hostel was somewhat more spacious than the last, and also new-looking, with a big commons room and a neatly organized kitchen. The bunk rooms were separate, out back. Apparently crime was not much of a problem here, because there was no sign of locks. I was fortunate to make it to the supermarket before the 6 PM Sunday closing time. It was well stocked, and I found a jar of Thai red curry paste, which would help me spice up dinner tonight. I fixed beef with peas and tomatoes with the Thai red curry paste and peanut butter, and served it over pasta. After dinner, I walked around the small town a while. Most of the businesses were together on one main street, and there were quite a few restaurants. At the end of the street was Lake Te Anau, which stretches far into the distance. The Kepler Track is in the mountains on the opposite side, and the Milford track is a long boat ride down the lake. I asked Fjordland Travel about their glow worm cave tours, and bought a Milford Track T shirt from a lady who told me, upon seeing the Smoky Mountain T shirt I was wearing, that she had once been there. I then stopped in a dairy and got a lime ice cream cone with sour fizzy candies in it, and returned to the hostel at 9 PM, going to bed around 10:30. DECEMBER 11 Te Ana-au Glow Worm Cave At breakfast, I met a couple of Australians who were planning a trip to the US and Canada to do some kayaking. I told them that east Tennessee and western North Carolina are great places for year-round kayaking. They would be spending most of their time in the west, though. It was rainy today. After breakfast, I went to the DOC Visitor's Center to check in for the Milford and Routeburn tracks and to pick up my tickets. I also bought a map and some patches, and then went to the nearby wildlife park, where there was a variety of birds in cages, including a Takehe, a big blue flightless bird thought to be extinct until one was found in 1948. I then took a walk along the lake in the light rain. Mountains were visible in the distance, through the clouds, and palm trees and yellow flowers lined the near shore. I got a ticket for the Te Ana-au glow-worm cave, and bought some supplies for the Milford Track and my dinner. I had lunch at the Jailhouse Cafe, which has good food at reasonable prices. I had salmon quiche with a huge slice of boysenberry cheesecake. Deserts were good in New Zealand, and reasonably priced. At 2 PM, I got the boat to the glow worm cave. It is a 2 1/2 hour trip, including a half hour boat ride 16 km up Lake Te Anau and then back again. The boat was full of Japanese tourists, who are very common in New Zealand. About half the time at the cave is actually spent in the visitor's center waiting for other groups to go through in the little boats. When our group entered, we walked a short way into the entrance , on a platform above the "rushing water" for which Te Ana-au cave is named. Both Lake Te Anau and the town get their names from this cave. Then we boarded boats for a short ride upstream, pulled along an overhead chain by the guide. We got off at another platform in the "Cathedral", the cave's highest room, and walked a short way past a waterfall to a second boat. Some glow worms were visible all from the start, but here, there were many more, as the boat was pulled along a chain into the dark glow-worm grotto. Glow worms shine a steady blue-green light, like little stars. The light attracts flying insects which wash into the cave, and the worms then trap them in sticky strands hanging down, so they can be eaten. The adult glow worms are a flying insect which has no digestive system and lives only long enough to mate. Often, they fly into traps of other glow worms and are eaten. The glow worm grotto had many big constellations of glow worms, and once, we pulled up for a close-up look. The tour was rather short, but it was interesting to see the glow worms. The cave only had one stalactite, a tiny one along the entrance passage. Afterward, I did more grocery shopping. I heard a song on the radio that I had heard a bell tower playing in Kathmandu last year. I had thought it was Nepali, but the words sounded Japanese. It was pretty, and I was hoping the radio would identify it. The song would remain a mystery.* There was a nice black and white cat at the hostel, and I sat with it for a while in the common room. While fixing dinner, I heard a weather forecast on TV. It didn't look too promising for the coming days, but might clear up by the weekend, when I arrived at Milford Sound. I was hoping it would clear up earlier, for when I crossed the pass on the Milford Track. While eating dinner, I watched a TV show on cooking haggis, a Scottish specialty cooked inside a sheep stomach. After dinner, I walked downtown for an ice cream cone, and returned to the hostel to pack for my trek. A documentary about the Beatles was on TV. ---- * The song is no longer a mystery. One day in February, 1998, it went through my head again, this time accompanied by Peruvian percussion. I put on a CD of "Music of the Andes" which I've had for quite a while, and found the song: "Llorando se Fue", from Bolivia. This probably accounts for the odd feeling of familiarity when I first heard it, but it was too far out of context to recognize. I'm not sure why the words sounded Japanese, but my memories of high school Spanish aren't too good. DECEMBER 12 Begin Milford Track Today I would begin walking the Milford Track. It was still raining. I checked my extra luggage in the storage room, and booked my nights in Te Anau and Queenstown between the Milford and Routeburn Tracks. It is best to book Queenstown in advance, because it is the tourist center of the South Island, and the hostel can be crowded. I let the black and white cat that lives here sleep on my lap for a while, and then went out to make some final preparations. I had vegetarian lasagna for lunch at Jailhouse Cafe, with a dark NZ beer, a Black Mac, followed by peanut-chocolate cake and a capuccino. Neil Young's "Unplugged" album was playing on the stereo. I thought I might get it some time - it was pretty good. Then I went down to the visitor's center by the lake to get the bus for the Milford Track. A half-hour ride took us to Te Anau Downs, where we boarded the boat for an hour and a half ride to the beginning of the track. It was raining most of the time. After leaving for the boat, I waited for the crowd to clear before taking a picture, and then started off along the track. There were water puddles everywhere, but the track was well-maintained and in excellent condition. I was glad I had my GoreTeX boots. Many people just had tennis shoes, and would have very wet feet. The track followed the Clinton River. About 10 minutes from the start, we passed Glade Hut, where the guided walkers stay. Then we crossed a swinging bridge and continued along the river, which was fast here with many rapids. The forest was lush with ferns and moss. The rain never let up. I tried taking some pictures, but the conditions were difficult. A big waterfall appeared through the mist across the river. We passed through the "Black Forest" and reached Clinton Forks Hut in about 2 hours, just over 8 km from the start. The hut was two buildings with 40 beds and a common room. We had gas stoves, running water, and a drying room with a stove for drying out clothes, presumably so we could soak them freshly tomorrow. There were flush toilets also. The Milford Track is famous for rain, getting around 5-8 meters a year, so rainy days are not unusual, and the drying room was well-used. I didn't have much to dry, since I had packed well, and had waterproof boots. Actually, the boots weren't as waterproof as they used to be, but they didn't leak too badly on the short walk today. There were a lot of sandflies on the screens. I hadn't noticed them much while walking. They don't bother you unless you stop. I fixed chicken with tomatoes and tomato noodles with chicken satay soup for dinner. The hut warden came in after dinner and welcomed us to the track, and checked our hut tickets. He said tomorrow would be rainy like today, and that one stream crossing could be difficult. He said the hut water and all the streams along Milford Track were safe to drink without treatment. There was no Giardia here, in spite of the signs in the toilets warning about it. Other parts of New Zealand have Giardia. We had about 60 mm of rain today. The storm is a southern one, and they are usually followed by clear weather, so it is possible that we will have decent weather to cross the pass. There was still snow on the pass, and we were warned that we would be passing through some avalanche zones tomorrow, where we should move quickly, without stopping, and spread out so that if there were an avalanche, it would not get too many people. By 10 PM, most people were already in bed. It was only shortly after dusk, and the hut was lit by gaslight. We were instructed on how to turn off the gas at the main valve, and the last person in bed would do this. I was not up much longer. Some people stayed up later playing cards. DECEMBER 13 Milford Track: Clinton Forks to Mintaro Hut When I got up at 6:30 AM, it was cloudy but not raining. Some of the mountains were now visible. I fixed the same breakfast as at Mt. Cook's Mueller Hut: fruity porridge with an orange and muesli bar and coffee. This would be my standard breakfast on all my overnight walks. I started walking at 8:30. Since there was only light rain occasionally today (better than expected), I could take a lot of pictures. When it was raining, I used my lens hood to try to keep the lens dry on my main Nikon camera. I had fast film in my cameras because of the clouds and dark forests along this track. The forest was lush, with moss hanging from everything. The ferns were gigantic. The path entered a broad, deep glacial valley, Clinton Canyon, with plenty of open views, alternating with rainforest. High waterfalls were everywhere along the valley, with water rushing down from the snowy slopes above the mists. There were enough clouds to create a mysterious atmosphere, but not so many that the views were badly obscured. MacKinnon Pass was visible ahead, at the end of the valley. We would cross it tomorrow. At one point, the trail passed through a knee-deep swampy area. I changed to my sandals to cross this, although the water was frigid. The trail was mostly quite easy and level, following the valley floor. Along the way, I made a small detour to see Hidden Lake, with a waterfall plunging into it. I met Roy here, who was tramping with his son. I had met them earlier at the Te Anau YHA. At one point I stopped to take a picture of a waterfall, resting my camera on the sign pointing to it to be sure it was steady. A while later, I entered an open field, and saw a good view ahead because the clouds were breaking up. I stopped to take a picture, but found that the film wouldn't wind. I noticed that the winder was loose because the nut goes around the shutter release button that holds it down had fallen off. This had happened to me once before, when I was hiking in the Smokies a week before going to Nepal last year. That time I was able to fix it somewhat with duct tape and find a replacement in Knoxville, before my trip to Nepal. This time, I thought I might be stuck, at least until I got to Queenstown, assuming someone there repairs cameras. I didn't see the little black nut on the ground, but it could have fallen off earlier, so I backtracked to a muddy spot where I had slipped earlier, and may have knocked it off. I didn't see it there, so I went back to the place where I took a picture of the waterfall. I was very lucky: just below the spot where I rested the camera, I found the nut. Then I continued along the trail, walking faster to make up for the half hour or so I had lost. I caught up with some people who were looking for an animal in the woods that was grunting like a pig. It turned out to be a flightless bird called a weka. I stopped for lunch at the "Bus Stop", a shelter built for people to wait in if the adjacent stream too deep to be crossed safely. This is the stream we had been warned about, but it was no problem today. The trail passed through a couple of avalanche zones, where stopping is not allowed. We had been warned about them last night, and there was still plenty of snow above the valley. The clouds had lifted pretty will by now, and the views ahead toward MacKinnon Pass were becoming impressive. We passed the guided tour lodge, and then started to climb through dense forest, until we arrived at the crystal-clear Mintaro Lake, next to Mintaro Shelter, where I would spend the night. Most people were already here (I took a lotof pictures), but I found plenty of space upstairs, and put a mattress on the floor there. This lodge also had a drying room, but it was less important today. Some people's shoes were soaked from the swampy area. It was only 3 PM, and we had plenty of daylight, so I decided to go up to MacKinnon Pass today to see if there was a view. A sign outside said it was only an hour ahead. This estimate turned out to be about right with no pack, but rather optimistic otherwise. There were a lot of switchbacks (called zigzags in New Zealand) on the climb to the pass. There were plenty of daisies near the top, and many other wildflowers. It was still cloudy, and I didn't expect much of a view, but I was surprised. When I got to the top, I found that the other side of the pass was much clearer, and the best views were in that direction anyway. There were numerous tarns (small lakes) at the pass, and a couple of keas. A monument marked the pass as well. Occasional clouds passed over, totally eliminating the visibility temporarily, but eventually I had a view in every direction. An airstrip could be seen ahead down in the valley, but there were few other signs of civilization. This was definitely an isolated spot. After about 40 minutes on top, it clouded up again, and I headed down, passing a few other people hoping to get a view on top. They may have, because the sun came out briefly for the first time in days. I reached the shelter at 5:30 and rested a while before dinner. The kitchen would be less crowded later. After dinner, the hut warden had a nature walk. By then, at 8 PM, the sky was mostly clear and the sun was shining brightly, although much of the valley was in shadows. We started on the helipad next to the hut, and were told about the history of the valley, and about the wildlife here. People were warned about the keas, which are mischievous and will peck on anything they can reach, so it was not a good idea to leave boots outside on the porch as many had done, or to hang anything too low or close to a railing. There were originally no mammals until people came. Rabbits were introduced for food, and weasels were brought in to eat the rabbits, but they ate the birds too. Rats, opossums, and other animals came as well and ate more birds. Eventually many of the odd flightless birds here were extinct. The ranger pointed out the mountain next to the pass, Mt. Balloon, and said it was named that because MacKinnon, and early explorer, thought it looked like a balloon, though it is hard to imagine why. The ranger didn't like this name, and suggested a Maori name he liked better, though it was much less memorable. The nature walk continued down toward the lake. We chewed on some peppery tasting leaves, which made your tongue hot and kind of numb. We walked out along the clear stream flowing into the lake, through a lush grassy field which was still in the sun, and the ranger told some stories. He said that until recently, there was too much snow on the pass to cross, and that early in the season, it is not unusual to make the crossing in helicopters. He also told of a time when people had to be flown in by helicopters from the previous hut, because of some floods or something, and dropped off by the river here. It was tricky, because the river was deep and wide, and there was no dry place to actually land. Later, they built the helipad next to the hut, and no longer had such problems. The ranger said that he would be getting up early tomorrow and taking a dip in the stream here. You would have to be pretty hearty to enjoy the freezing cold water, I think. We were told that the only thing accurate about the sign outside saying it was an hour to MacKinnon Pass was that it pointed in the right direction, and that we could expect the climb to take perhaps twice that tomorrow. DECEMBER 14 Milford Track: Over MacKinnon Pass I was the first one up today, at 6 AM. I had intended to get up at 5:30, since the weather would probably be best in the morning, but I set the alarm wrong and was awakened instead by a kea squawking in the window over my bed. It was still clear, but some clouds were gathering up on the ridges, so I ate breakfast quickly while everyone else slept, and got on the trail at 6:50. Still, only a couple of people were stirring. I made it to the pass at about 8 AM. So it didn't take me much longer with a pack than without. It was 38 degrees F and windy, with some clouds and occasional sun. I stayed at the pass for about an hour until then next people arrived. The view down Clinton Canyon, along the path we had walked, was better today, but the view across the ridge to the north-west was cloudier. The wind was opposite yesterdays, coming from across the ridge. Just after 9:00, a big rain cloud blew onto the pass and stayed. It got cold and rainy, with no visibility, and stayed that way as I followed the ridge to the pass shelter. There were two rooms at the shelter: one for independent trampers and one for guided walkers. For a long time, I was the only one here. I fixed a cup of coffee on the gas stove inside, and put on warmer waterproof clothes. I stayed a while, as people slowly assembled here, waiting for the weather to improve. Gradually, the small hut became quite crowded. After waiting until almost noon, the view down Clinton Canyon cleared up nicely, but it was still cloudy and rainy across the ridge, where we were headed. I was glad I got up early, because most who came later didn't get much of a view. I started down the other side of the pass in a heavy wind and driving rain. One of the smaller girls looked like she would blow away, and friends held onto her. The main track crosses an avalanche zone, so we had been told to take a detour down an "emergency trail", which was very steep, muddy and treacherous, nothing like the easy, well-graded trails found along the rest of the Milford Track. In some places there were ropes along the trail, so people would have something to hold onto in case they slipped on the steep muddy banks high above the creek. Usually, they were not positioned well enough to be very useful. It was a beautiful route though, following a creek much of the way past an almost continuous succession of waterfalls. Some of the guided walkers caught up with me. They start an hour behind, but I had sat at the pass hut a long time, and was stopping to take many pictures of waterfalls. These people were easily recognized by their yellow raincoats and tiny packs. Taking photos was difficult in the rain. I could not keep my lens clear of fog, with all the humidity, and keeping rain off the lens was difficult as well because I had misplaced my lens hood yesterday. But the waterfalls were impressive, and I made many attempts, steadying the camera wherever possible. All the ferns, including high fern trees that looked like palms, were impressive as well. Eventually, the emergency route rejoined the main track, and reached Quinlan Hut, where the guided walkers would stop. There is a day-use hut here for independent trampers to leave their packs while making the side trip to Sutherland Falls, a highlight of the track. The walk to the falls is about 45 minutes each way. It is an impressive falls, 850 meters high, and on approach, it sounds like an airplane taking off. A sign showed the point where you were 850 meters from the falls, so you could get a feeling for the size of it.You can walk right into the spray at the base of the falls, where a strong wind drives the spray outward from the base with great force. Photographing the immense falls was a challenge. From up close, it was impossible due to the spray. Further back, there was still the usual problem with the rain and humidity. I used many lens tissues trying to keep my lens dry. It is probably no accident that photos of the Milford track rarely appear in books. And no picture could capture the feeling of power coming from the wind and roar of the falls. Actually, though, the most impressive views of it would be from the air, which is the only way you can see the lake hanging on the edge of the valley above, from which it falls. After arriving back at Quinlan Hut, there was still an hour walk, gently downhill, to Dumpling Hut. My GoreTex boots were now leaking badly, and I stopped to wring the water out of my socks and insoles before continuing. I was the last one to arrive at Dumpling Hut, due to my frequent and probably futile attempts at photography. I stayed in the lower hut, since the upper one with the cookers and drying room was already full. When I took a close look at my camera, I could see that the lens was thoroughly fogged, both internally and externally. The hut warden came in at 8 PM, just after I finished dinner. He gave us the usual safety and cleanliness talk, and told us about tomorrow's walk to meet the boat at the end of the track. The walk would take about six hours, and we would have to be careful not to miss the last boat at 3 PM. It was expected that the independent trampers, staying ahead of the guided walkers, would probably be able to actually make the 2 PM boat. The forecast for tomorrow simply said "rain". Tonight, I tried to dry out my fogged camera lens by putting it in a plastic bag with some silica gel from my binoculars, and taking it to bed with me to gently warm it. I was not sure it would recover from this, and I was glad I had a backup camera, the small Vivitar I was using to take slides. I went to bed at 9:45 expecting to get an early start tomorrow. I set my alarm for 5:30 and slept with my camera lens. DECEMBER 15 Milford Track: Dumpling Hut to Milford Sound I was again the first one up when I arose at 6 AM. My camera lens defogged overnight, and it was now clear outside. I decided I would go back to a viewpoint for Sutherland Falls I had seen yesterday, about 2 miles back, near the airstrip I had seen from MacKinnon Pass. I would take a picture in the clear weather before heading on. By the time I finished breakfast, several others were up, and everyone was up soon after. I left at 7:20, going the wrong way, without my pack. Since everyone normally walks the Milford Track in the same direction, this must have looked rather odd to anyone who saw me. Some others set off toward Sandfly Point, the end of the track 11 miles down the valley. There is a definite time constraint today, since the last boat leaves at 3:00. We were told to leave by 8:30 to make it in time, if we kept an average pace. I walked quickly back to the Sutherland Falls viewpoint I had in mind, passing several of the guided walkers along the way. In fact, I think I passed all of them at about the time I got to where I took the pictures. It would not be easy to get a good picture because it was so sunny, and the falls were in shadows, mostly. I took some pictures at different exposures and then hurried back, since I was now the last one on the trail to Sandfly Point. I arrived at Dumpling Hut at about the same time as most of the guided walkers, so I didn't think I would be too late. I retrieved my pack and continued on while the guided walkers took a short break. Leaving at 9:05, I had six hours to cover 11 miles. It was a beautiful day, the first on the track that could be said for. The views of the surrounding mountains and valley were outstanding. I took many pictures. It was annoying having to keep a schedule on a day like this. It was a few miles before I caught up with any of the independent walkers. I overtook them at a long bridge just beyond the guided walk's tea house, but they passed me again when I took some pictures. I stopped a while at MacKay Falls, which was one of the most beautiful falls I've seen, pouring through gracefully carved rocks lined with ferns. The hut warden had told us that even if we thought we had seen enough waterfalls to last a lifetime by now, this one was worth the short side trip. There were plenty of fern trees along the track. We followed the river most of the way, until it became a lake. Then it was a river again. Much of the trail followed board walks over swampy areas, but there were some deep muddy sections where the trail crossed avalanche paths. Some of the avalanches are actually "tree avalanches", where a whole section of the trees which cling to each other's roots over the rocky cliffs gives way in a rain storm. The sun was bright, and for the first time on this walk, I used sunscreen. I arrived at the lunch stop at Giant's Gate, a waterfall, at 12:30. There were some shelters here in case of rain, and a number of the independent walkers were gathered here. I was still ahead of most of the guided walkers. It was still an hour and a half to Sandfly Point, so it looked like I would make the 3 PM boat easily. However, my feet were becoming sore, since my boots never really dried out properly, and since I had to walk a total of 16 miles today because of my detour at the beginning. Mile markers along the track made it easy to monitor one's progress, so it was not hard to adjust the pace as needed. I was walking rather quickly toward the end. I arrived at Sandfly Point at 2:15, with plenty of time to spare. There was a building here to wait in, and a sign hung with boots marking the end of the track, 33.5 miles from the start on Lake Te Anau. The boat arrived at 2:45. Most passengers on this one were guided walkers, since they started an hour behind. The boat ride across Milford Sound was spectacular, with clear views of the conical Mitre Peak, said to be the most-photographed mountain in New Zealand. I was planning to stay at Milford Lodge, the budget accomodations in town, where I had reservations at the dormitory. They sent a van to meet the boat at the visitor's center. Two of us went to the dormitory, where we met another person, a German who had been diving in the sound. He said it was an interesting place to dive, because there are several meters of fresh water on top of the salt water, and many species of coral and other deep-sea life can be found surprisingly close to the surface. He also told me that he had walked the Hollyford Track, and enjoyed it because it was isolated and had lots of wildlife, such as penguins, along the coast. The Milford Track was a bit touristy and expensive for his tastes. A lot of people avoid it for that reason, and because it is so tightly controlled. Milford is a tiny town, and the only things there are the Visitor's Center, Milford Hotel, and Milford Lodge, which is quite a way from the center of things, actually. The Lodge had meals starting at 6. This was good, since there was no store in town. I had fish and chips. After dinner, I played pool with the other tramper in my dorm, an Israeli named Orey (spelling?), and then took a walk down to Milford Hotel, about 20 minutes down the road. Some pretty purple flowers bloomed along the way. The sky was still clear at sunset. I was hoping sunset would be over the sound, but actually it was in a different direction. Still, it was very pretty, and I sat there until dusk, taking some pictures by the waterfront. I walked back to the Lodge, stopping a while to look around the fancier Milford Hotel, which has a relatively expensive restaurant and bar. I talked to Orey in the common room for a while before going to bed at 10 PM. The generator is supposed to be turned off at 10:30, so there was no point staying up much longer. DECEMBER 16 Milford Sound I slept late, getting up at 9 AM. I had to leave before 10:00 to catch the 10:30 cruise I had reserved. I ordered a continental breakfast at the lodge: all the toast, cereal and coffee you wanted for $4. I didn't have much time, so after breakfast, I packed quickly and walked rapidly to the visitor's center. It was a long way, and it took me 20 minutes to half-run with my pack to the Red Boats desk, arriving at 10:25. They told me the boat had already boarded, and the next one was at 11:00, but the boat was still in dock, so they let me board it. The Israeli, Orey, was on board, with less than a dozen other passengers. I didn't have to worry about the boat being full. Orey wondered why I had brought my pack, but I said I did not want to walk all the way back to Milford Lodge afterward, when I could get the bus at the visitor's center. It was cloudy and a little rainy today, more typical Milford weather than yesterday's clear skies. The peaks were in clouds today. The cruise went out into the sound, a fjord technically, and we saw a number of waterfalls and a rock with seals. We went to the mouth of the sound, where the Tasman sea was visible, with a large rock ahead which was said to be on another continental plate. The beaches here were supposed to be a good source of greenstone, the local jade which was prized by the Maori. Collecting it is illegal. We turned inland into the narrow passage, saw some more seals, and stopped to see Stirling Falls, where the captain backed the boat directly under it for a wet closeup view. My eyeglass lens popped out while viewing the falls, and I was glad I had brought my pack, since I had a repair kit in it. Milford sound is unusual because all the rain makes a 10 meter layer of fresh water (at most) over the salt water. An observatory was built on the sound to allow the unusual marine life, which normally is found much deeper, to be seen from a submerged platform. You have to get a special boat to visit that. After we returned to the dock at 12:15, I walked out the board walk to Bowen Falls, which supplies hydroelectric power to Milford. Later, I met Orey at the pub, where we had pizza and beer. Orey then walked back to Milford Lodge to get his stuff and wait for the bus, while I walked over to the Visitor's Center, which actually wouldn't have been necessary since the bus stops at the pub also. The bus arrived at 2:45, and I boarded and was given a "Certificate of Achievement" from the Bus Company, Mt. Cook Landlines, for completing the Milford Track. Some people were a bit embarrassed by this. The bus left at 3, and forgot to stop at Milford Lodge, so it missed Orey and the German. There would be a later bus, however. The ride back was very scenic. There was a long tunnel, narrow and roughly finished, at the pass. On the other side, the bus stopped briefly to let people out for a view. Some mountain bikes were lying in the parking area, and a kea was busy pecking at the tires. We arrived at Te Anau at 5:15. I was happy to find that my car still started. Back at the hostel, I looked through menus to find an interesting restaurant. I picked Red Cliff Cafe, with an interesting gourmet menu. The front room is a bar. I sat in the small restaurant in the back. I had "Kiwi" onion soup (French onion soup with a cute name), followed by Algerian chicken over couscous with apricots and nuts a leafy garnish and a ring of mint sauce. The presentation was attractive. I also had a Speight's Old Dark, my favorite of the common beers I had tried so far in New Zealand. For desert, I had chocolate-strawberry cake. It all came to about $30 NZ, about the equivalent of $20 US, including tax. Later I stopped at the dairy to get some laundry soap, and had a hokey pokey ice cream cone too (hokey pokey is a kind of brownish aerated hard candy). Then I returned to the hostel and did laundry. I talked to Roy, who I had met earlier here, and who was on the Milford Track, for a while. I finished laundry fairly late, and went to bed. DECEMBER 17 Drive to Queenstown Today was relatively clear and sunny. I packed and headed toward Queenstown. On the way out of Queenstown, I planned to stop by the lake again for some more pictures in the nice weather. I saw Orey along the road hitchhiking, and gave him a ride. We stopped at the Wildlife Park by the lake, and went to a pretty spot with palm trees and yellow flowers to take a picture in the sunshine. I also took more pictures of the takehe birds. On the way to Queenstown, we talked about the English system of measurements vs metric. I dropped Orey off in the center of Queenstown. He had been here before. Queenstown is much larger than Te Anau, with many shops and booking agents for the local tourist attractions. This is the tourist center of the South Island. There were many traffic circles, making driving confusing. I saw some familiar fast food restaurants, including a McDonalds, a KFC, and a Pizza Hut. Queenstown had gotten a lot of rain recently, and the lake had flooded. Some streets were still under water. The YHA is a big one, on the edge of town near the shore of the lake. When unpacking, I realized I had left most of my food in the kitchen at Te Anau, so I went shopping for some more. The supermarket here was not too impressive, but adequate. I had everything I needed for the Routeburn walk, fortunately. I walked into town, and stopped at a gourmet vegetarian cafe for an olive-feta pizza. I found the DOC office, and bought my bus tickets for the Routeburn Track at the office next door. They were rather expensive, due to the long five-hour ride back, which cost $45 on a Kiwi Experience bus. I also stopped in a big information/booking center and made a reservation for a ride on the Shotover Jet boat upon return from the Routeburn Track. Later, I went up the gondola for a view of the city and lake and the Remarkables, the nearby craggy mountain range. It was now clear and sunny, and the views from the building at the top of the gondola were fine, with the sun shining on the bright turquoise lake below. This was supposed to be the best gondola in New Zealand. It would be possible to walk to the top also. I stayed on top of the mountain for a while, and had a venison pie with ginger beer and capuccino, and then wrote a couple of post cards to my brother and parents. I found some interesting circular stamps to mail them. I went back down to town around 5:30 and mailed the cards at the post office. Then I walked around town a while before going home to fix dinner and pack for the Routeburn Track. A couple of men from Minnesota in my dormitory room had just returned from the Routeburn Track, and had gotten very wet. I went to bed at 11PM. Roy was here now, staying in the same dorm room. His family was in another room. I set my alarm for 6 AM, since I would be getting a Backpacker's Express bus to the Routeburn Track at 8 AM. DECEMBER 18 Begin Routeburn Track I got up at 6 AM, finished packing, and had breakfast. The dining room in the hostel had a long row of windows overlooking the lake through the trees. I checked some bags with the hostel and waited for the 8:00 van. It stopped once at a viewpoint overlooking the lake on the way to Glenorchy. There, we waited until other vans came at 9 AM to take people to the Routeburn, Greenstone, and Rees-Dart tracks. We waited outside a camp store. Some people had come here to ride horses also. Broad, grassy fields were all around. It was a beautiful, clear morning when we arrived at the trailhead. An impressive view of mountains and a waterfall could be seen ahead. I took a number of pictures, and got started a while after the others had departed. I began walking at 10:45, crossing a swinging bridge over the clear, blue Routeburn River. The trail followed the river for a while, and began climbing through the forest. I thought the forest was in some ways similar to the Smokies, with large trees, and very lush, but not as dense and mossy as the Milford rainforest. There were a lot of conifers, and in a way, I was reminded of the forests in the western US. I eventually passed a few of the other walkers, and followed the clear, turquoise river past some nice rapids to a broad, flat grassy field, Routeburn Flats, where some people were fishing. I was the first to arrive at Routeburn Flats Hut, apparently, and I had lunch there. The day was too beautiful to stay there, so I packed a day sack (the top of my pack converts into a fanny pack) and headed up toward Harris Saddle, the high point of the track. I didn't expect weather this beautiful to last long in New Zealand. I set out at 1:30 PM, with plenty of daylight left, and began a fairly steep climb, arriving at Routeburn Falls hut at 2:15, in half the time the sign said. On the way, I saw a small mammal I didn't recognize. Mammals are rare in New Zealand, so I made note of this. The only land mammals in New Zealand before people were bats. Routeburn Falls Hut wasn't open yet when I made my reservations, due to snow damage. Otherwise, it would be the preferred place to stay, being closer to Harris Saddle, and having a fine view of Routeburn Flats below. Those who made reservations later were able to stay here, however, so the hut would be full tonight. A hut for the guided walkers, who pay a lot of money to have meals prepared for them, and hot showers and other amenities, was just up the hill from Falls Hut. Routeburn Falls was a long one, with many separate parts going on up the hill. The most interesting section poured into a long, narrow canyon. I climbed down into it and took some pictures, and then headed on up the trail, leaving the forest behind. Now the trail passed through open brush, going around a wide, wet tussock valley and climbing up toward the saddle. It looked a lot like the American West Now, in the high mountain valleys. After climbing a bit, a big, clear green lake became visible. The trail followed a narrow ledge above the lake, coming now to some snow patches. The view out over the lake was incredible, back down the valley, beyond Routeburn Flats (now looking very far away), and out to distant mountain ranges. Around the corner was Harris Saddle, with a small, low A-frame shelter for day use, and spectacular views of the mountains on the other side, across the Hollyford Valley. There were numerous small tarns on the saddle. A small peak, Conical Hill, rose next to the saddle, and a sign said it was an hour to the top. It was an extremely steep trail, and avoiding snow was not easy. I went off to the side for a while, and climbed up the tussock slopes, which was itself rather difficult, because the grass can be slippery, and this was not a place where you would want to slip. I rejoined the trail above the snow patch. Now the trail became steeper, and following the orange and white posts to the top was challenging. The view on top was definitely worth the climb. To the west, at the end of the Hollyford Valley, the Tasman Sea could be seen in the distance. Mountains could be seen in all directions. Another person came up shortly afterward. I got him to take a picture, and I took some of him with his video camera. Then I headed down around 6 PM, stopping to take some pictures of a kea, and leaving the saddle at 6:30 as shadows began to fill the valleys. No one else was around now. There would still be over three hours of daylight, so getting back was no problem, though it was a shame to have to leave this spot on such a beautiful day. I walked back down quickly, arriving at the lodge at 8:15. I found three Germans at the lodge, but no one else. Crowding would not be a problem tonight. I fixed dinner, and the hut warden came in to check our hut tickets. She warned us that mice were around, and we should hang our food tonight. I asked her about the animal I had seen earlier, and she said it was a stoat, a small carnivore. I had seen it not far above the hut, and she was surprised there was one so close, since she had not seen any nearby. Mammals are generally considered to be a nuisance here, since they were introduced by people, and eat the native birds. The warden was impressed that I had walked all the way to the saddle and back this afternoon. Actually, I think that with an early start in the summertime, Harris Saddle would not be unreasonable to do as a dayhike from the Glenorchy side. DECEMBER 19 Routeburn Flats to MacKenzie Lake across Harris Saddle I got up at 7:30, after the Germans. It was sunny again, and I had breakfast and got on the trail at 9 AM. Everything up to the saddle was familiar from yesterday, except that the lighting was now from the east instead of the west. Today there were high-altitude ice clouds, some in interesting oval shapes. I arrived at the Harris Saddle Shelter at 11 AM, just before the group on the guided walk. They have kerosene cookers and water in a locked closet here so the guided walkers can have tea. The Hollyford Valley was a little cloudier than yesterday, with clouds lining the mountain ridges across the valley. I decided to climb Conical Hill again. Since I knew a good route already, it was faster today. The Tasman Sea was still visible, at Martin's Bay. I stayed on top a while, and then had lunch at the saddle hut, relaxing in the sun a while before continuing on. After dropping a ways on the other side of the saddle, the trail remained relatively level, following the Hollyford Valley, high above it. There were no trees to block the views. Some blue-roofed buildings were visible next to the river below, along Hollyford Road. You didn't really get the feeling of being quite as isolated here as on the Milford Track, and a couple of roads could be seen. The trail started to climb some more, and you could see all the way back down the valley to Martin's Bay again. At one point, the trail passed under an overhang. Steep cliffs often dropped off sharply to the right. A "Deadman's Route" led steeply down into the valley from the track, without clear markings. Turning a corner, MacKenzie Lake became visible far below, with MacKenzie lake on its shore. This was today's destination. The trail followed along more steep cliffs, the kind that made a friend of mine afraid of heights during an earlier trip here. The trail was steep in places, and I passed some people who were making unusually slow, cautious progress, clearly concerned about falling. The track descended gently down switchbacks ("zigzags" in New Zealand), entered a forest, and arrived at the lake near the hut. This forest was denser and mossier than the one on the other side of the saddle, and reminded me more of the Milford rainforests. The lake still covered part of the trail, and a detour was marked by orange plastic arrows through the forest. It was a rather long detour, climbing over tree roots and mossy rocks, but it was beautiful with the sunlight filtering down through the leaves. I arrived at the hut at 5:30. The kitchen and bunk house were in separate buildings, although I noticed later that there were also some beds upstairs from the kitchen through an outside stairway. The bunk house was large, but densely packed, with double-level sleeping shelves, not individual beds like at Flats Hut or Falls Hut. It was about 2/3 full, and I found room on the bottom shelf. I fixed dinner, and met a couple from Aukland. The man was a physics teacher. We talked a little about physics and the internet, since I am a particle physicist myself, and part-owner of an internet service provider VIC in Knoxville. We also talked a while about the US. I also met some Canadians. I ran into the hut warden outside and gave him my ticket. Then he went around the hut collecting tickets. He said it would be cloudy tomorrow, and rain late in the day as the current high moved out and a low came in from the north. I met a couple of people on the porch who had been to Nepal several times. They mentioned how Kathmandu had changed. I agreed that the air was very bad now, and that if something isn't done, tourists will not want to stay in Thamel any more. As we talked, the sun began to set, so I hurried to the bunkhouse to get my cameras. The sunset was beautiful, with the clouds above the mountains to the west turning bright orange briefly. I was one of the first to notice this, so I was able to get a few pictures from down by the lake before the sky faded. Later, I talked to a Canadian for a while. He studied paleo-botany once, and was fascinated by the many ancient plant species in New Zealand, especially the "monkey tail puzzle" plant, which is an early conifer. It has broad leaves all down the stems, encircling them, and an unprotected seed-fruit at the end, with no actual cone around it. They are popular shrubberies in New Zealand. DECEMBER 20 End of Routeburn Track I wanted to get an early start today, because rain was predicted in the afternoon. I was one of the first up at 6:30, and finished breakfast and was ready to go at 8:30. A sign outside said it was a four hour walk to the Divide, where the trail meets the road between Te Anau and Milford. The same sign said it was a three and a half hour walk up to Harris Saddle, which seemed odd, since the sign at Harris Saddle said it was a four hour walk down to here. It was cloudy, but not raining, as I set out through the forest, passing the guided walker's luxury hut. There were occasional views down the Hollyford Valley, all the way to the sea. A very two-dimensional-looking triangular peak was visible among the mountains ahead. I thought it must be Pyramid Peak. The trail went up and down, passing through an open spot with a lake, known as "the Orchard", although the trees were beech, not fruit trees. The trail later passed close to the bottom of a large waterfall, Earland Falls. Its spray made the trail very wet here, and taking pictures close to it was tricky. The trail continued down to Howden Hut at the intersection with the Greenstone Track, which gives an alternate ending to the Routeburn Walk, leading back toward Glenorchy. A short climb beyond was Key Summit. A few other people were here. It was only an hour or less from the Divide, so it makes a popular day hike. There is a nature trail on top. Many backpackers leave their packs at the trail junction, but this is risky when there are keas about (I saw some). Keas will peck at anything, so I left my pack on and climbed to the summit. There were many zigzags and it was windy, but the climb was not steep. I had seen the zigzags yesterday from the ridge near Harris saddle. From the top, there was a long view down Hollyford valley, including the blue-roofed buildings seen yesterday, as well as an airstrip and road. The high valley I had walked from, at McKenzie Lake, was also visible to the right of the Hollyford Valley, as well as the trail I followed yesterday from the saddle. I picked up a guide card for the Alpine Nature Walk on top. The cards were sturdy and hefty, to stand up to the weather. Signs marked the sights along the way. I followed the nature trail, which pointed out many features of the tarns and tundra, and then followed a ridge walk which went out a long way across the tundra, giving views of a lake in the hanging valley in the mountains across the way. I saw a couple of other people from MacKenzie hut here as well. The "10 minute" walk mentioned on the sign was actually much longer. The ridge was muddy with many bogs. Finally, I arrived at a high point where the trail ended, but I went a little further down through a tussock and boulder field for a view of a big lake I had a glimpse of across the ridge, which I believe I had seen as well from Conical Peak. I stopped there and had lunch, with no one else around. There was a lot of wind on the ridge. I turned back, not wanting to be late for the bus, and encountered a large group of Japanese tourists without packs as I approached the Nature Trail. I passed more day hikers on the way down the zigzags, and many more on the main track. The forest became denser and more like the Milford forest, though I saw few fern trees here. Going down the final switchbacks, the road soon became visible. I reached the bottom at around 2:30, a half hour before my bus was scheduled to arrive. The sandflies were really annoying here, though I never found sandfly bites to be very itchy. A number of people were waiting, including two unsuccessful hitchhikers. The Kiwi Experience bus stopped at 3:15, fifteen minutes behind schedule. It makes daily sightseeing trips from Queenstown to Milford Sound and back. Kiwi Experience is one New Zealand's "alternative bus" companies, which cater to more casual, and perhaps younger tourists, and try to stop to do interesting things along the way. The bus was brightly painted with a mural, as is common for these busses. There were flags, fuzzy dice, and stuffed bungy-jumping kiwis hanging inside the windshield. The driver was barefoot, and wearing a tank top and sunglasses. The hitchhikers gave up and reluctantly paid the $45 fare back to Queenstown. Tapes of classic rock (60's - 70's mostly) played on the way. We stopped briefly to see Mirror Lakes, which had mountain lupins blooming along the shore. We arrived in Te Anau at 4:40, and had a break there until 5:00. I thought about going back to the hostel for my food, but it was a long walk, and it was hot and sunny now. I decided it wasn't worth the trouble, and got an ice cream cone at the dairy instead. On the way out of Te Anau, we went up a gravel road to a viewpoint overlooking the town and lake. The driver said he had just discovered this place recently. The hill was in the middle of sheep fields, but was marked by signs and had a locator on top showing features of the landscape. On the trip back to Queenstown, the driver showed a video of "The Lion King". The bus made a few stops in Queenstown, getting to the YHA at about 7:15. Then, I showered and changed and went out to eat. I went down to a pedestrian mall in the center of town, and chose a pizza bar, Winnie Bagoe's, because of their interesting pizza selection. I ordered a "tandoori lamb" pizza, which included broiled spiced lamb, chutney, and minted yogurt toppings. I had a Black Mac to go with it. There was live jazz in the bar, and the roof was open. It was attached to hydraulic cylinders that allow it to be lifted on a nice day like this one. By the time I finished dinner around 10 PM, most of Queenstown was closed. Except for bars, things don't stay open very late in New Zealand, even in the resort towns. Not seeing any place to get an interesting desert, I walked back to the hostel and went to bed. DECEMBER 21 Queenstown: Bungy Jumping I was scheduled to ride the Shotover Jet boat today at 9 AM. But when I arrived at the departure desk, they said it was raining on the river, so the trips were canceled for now. It would be very unpleasant to ride the fast boats in the rain, since it would hit your face like bullets. I tried rebooking for 10:00 and 10:30, but it was still raining, and looking worse rather than better. I was reluctant to give up though, since the man at Trusty Rentals had said it was an exciting ride. However, it was becoming very clear that this was going to be futile. As I waited in the booking center, called "the Station", I began to get some other ideas. A.J. Hackett's Bungy Jumping booking desk was on the other side of the center, so I stopped at their counter and asked for some information. The do jumps in any weather. I booked a 1:30 PM trip to Skipper's Canyon, which was a special today for $100 NZ. This trip included two jumps from the 229 foot Skipper's Canyon bridge, and jeep transport out the rough road along the Shotover river gorge, about an hour each way. The trip would take all afternoon, with six jumpers. For lunch, I had a salmon quiche and capuccino at Neff Cafe. I checked in at the bungy counter at 1 PM to be weighed and sign in. I weighed 83 kg, and this was marked on my hand. Eight passengers boarded the jeep, including one jumper's father, who was just watching, and a driver-in-training, who was going to get some instruction on driving the jeep road. The narrow dirt road was wide enough for just one vehicle. When another came by, someone had to pull over or back up. The canyon drops off steeply at the side of the road, which was very twisty. It was built by Chinese laborers during the 1880's gold rush. They were allowed to stake claims after two years of working for free. We passed the remains of a couple old pubs, and some former hydraulic mining sites. We also passed the "pipeline", a new bungy site from a pipe 102 meters over the river. This pipe was put in just two years ago for bungy jumping, though historically there had been a water pipe here. Finally, we arrived at the bridge. Another group was just finishing, and the rain had mostly stopped by now. I took pictures of a couple of jumpers. Then, fourth in line, I was fitted with a harness which would be used to pull me back up after jumping. It included a climber's seat harness plus a chest harness, both attached to a locking carabiner. When my turn came, I took off my glasses and crawled out onto the platform hanging from the side of the bridge. I sat in an enclosed area, where a towel was wrapped around my ankles, and webbing was tied tightly around the towel, with a carabiner attached. This was then connected to the bungy cord, a thick bundle of many tiny rubber strands. My main concern at the time was that someone would knock my glasses off the bridge. I got some instructions, and scooted my feet out to the edge of the platform. It looked really far down, and I was reluctant to let go of the railing, afraid of falling even though I was about to jump. Then they told me to smile and wave at the camera on the right. I did, and they counted down from 5, and I jumped, in a forward diving motion. Falling freely felt really weird. Although I knew the cord was back there, I couldn't feel it, because it was a couple of seconds before it offered any resistance. My thought was that whatever was going to happen, there was nothing I could do about it now. As the river rushed closer, the cord yanked hard and I bounced high up again. This happened a few more times. When the bouncing stopped, they slid a rope with a heavy ring and a carabiner attached down the cord. When I felt it hit my feet, I reached up and grabbed it and hooked it to the carabiner on my harness. Then I gave the two-thumbs-up sign as instructed. I wondered if anyone had ever dropped the carabiner while trying to connect them, since it would not be impossible. A truck on the bridge pulled me up. Eventually I turned upright. I had to throw the bungy cord over my shoulder a couple of times as it got twisted around the rope. At the top, they helped me onto the platform and asked if I wanted to go again. I could have settled for a free T-shirt and the one jump, but I wanted to do it again. This time I jumped backwards. They connected the bungy cord for a backwards jump and checked everything. Then I eased my heels over the edge, waved to the camera, and dived off backwards. This time my view was of the receding bridge as I fell. It felt just as weird as before, but seemed longer this time. Then I bounced a few times, and started to spin around a lot. By the time the carabiner slid down, I was a somewhat disoriented. I connected it and put my thumbs up. They seemed to be taking their time, but eventually pulled me up. The bungy cord was much more tangled this time because of all the spinning, and I had to keep throwing the heavy cord over my shoulder. Finally I reached the top and was disconnected. They asked what I did for a living, and I said I was a physicist. The guy was wondering how fast the fall was. I've read that it was around 140 miles per hour, but didn't really know. They also said I looked tense on the way down, and wondered if I enjoyed it. I told them that jumping made me nervous, but it was a lot of fun. The next person after me, a German, was afraid of heights, and was not sure he would go. He got ready to jump and went to the edge, but would not jump after the countdown. He went back and sat down for a minute before trying again. He still could not jump, and gave up. One more person jumped just as it started raining again. Then we began the jeep ride back to town. Two people were planning to catch the last run of the Shotover Jet at 6:00, and we radioed to check on it, but after running a few times, they had stopped again due to more rain. I rebooked for 11AM tomorrow, though the forecast looked bad. The Bungy center put on a video of our jumps. You could get a souvenir package with a video, T shirt and four photos for about $70, and I ordered one. I went back to the YHA to change clothes for dinner, and came back at 7:30 to get my souvenir package. Then I went looking for an interesting restaurant. The Moa Cafe had an interesting menu, but was closed tonight for a party. The Stonewall Cafe looked good and displayed a lot of awards, but I ended up choosing the somewhat less formal Chico's Grill upstairs, because it had a more interesting menu. In fact, both had similar prices and atmosphere, being located in an old stone building. Chico's gave a free beer or wine with dinner, and I ordered a Streight's Old Dark to go with my venison medallions, which were served with chutneys and surrounded by fried kumara (local sweet potato) and pumpkin strips. It was very good. Afterward, I stopped in Moa's to see what the party was like, but the band was still setting up. A couple of other bars had bands tonight also. I looked at a cafe for desert, but at 9:30, many were already closed. I found a nice chocolate mousse cake with ice cream at the Jazz Cafe, a tiny place with a small counter open to the sidewalk. Around 10:00 I returned to the YHA and went to bed. DECEMBER 22 Shotover Jet, drive to Wanaka I got up at 6:30, after everyone else in the room for a change. Surprisingly, it was sunny and warm today. I had breakfast and went down to the Shotover Jet counter at The Station to see about getting a boat while the weather was good, but was told that the river was too high today due to yesterday's rain. When my time came at 11 AM, it was still too high, and I rebooked for 2:30 PM to try again. I wandered around the shops a while. I went back to the hostel, and then across the street to St. Omer's park, which begins downtown and runs along the lake shore. It was still somewhat flooded, with some benches, trees and picnic tables under water. I took my shoes off and walked along the grassy shore. The water was cold, but it was hot and sunny. I sat for a while on a bench next to the water and caught up on my journal. There were some ducks in the park. People probably fed them because a family of ducks came up to me, and a little one tried pecking on my toe. I walked downtown around 1:30 and had lunch at a Lebanese sidewalk cafe, Habebe. I had a tasty vege-lentil pie with hummus and hot chile sauce, a cinnamon-tomato green bean salad, and a chocolate square. At 2 PM I checked on Shotover boats, and found that they were now running. At 2:30, I boarded the bus to the river, a short way out of Queenstown at Arthur's Point. The ride began near the entrance of Shotover Canyon, a short narrow section of the river with steep, jagged rock walls. When we arrived at the Shotover Jet center, it was no longer clear, but not raining. We were given black raincoats, and boarded the boats, which held 10 passengers. The driver gave some instructions, especially to hold on tight when he waves his finger in a circle to indicate that we were about to do a 360 degree "Shotover spin". The river was high today, and silty, which makes the boat harder to control. That is why they do not run when the river is too high. Normally the river is bright turquoise, but today it was brownish-gray. The boat took off fast upstream, then quickly turned and passed the dock for a photo, then rushed on down into the canyon. The driver buzzed many rocks along the way, coming within inches of them at high speed. This is the kind of maneuver that makes the ride so exciting. The cruising speed of the boats was said to be 55 km/h. There were some minor rapids on the river, which made a bumpy ride. I brought a waterproof camera and attempted to take some pictures. It was probably too dark for them to come out well, since it was now cloudy. The ride continued beyond the canyon, through some narrow passages and under trees, making occasional 360 degree spins. We waited a while for another boat to come down before heading back up the river. The driver explained how the boat works, expelling 300 liters per second out a nozzle in back. We had a wild ride back up the river and through the canyon, spinning at the dock. We went upstream until we got to some real class 2-3 rapids, at a point where we saw a tunnel which carried part of the river on the side. We were told that rafts can go through the tunnel. We then made one last quick run through the canyon and returned to dock. The whole ride lasted less than a half hour, but was very exciting. It would have been more interesting if we had gone through some real rapids. In fact, most of what I saw on the Shotover River, today and on the jeep ride yesterday, was fast-moving class 1-2 water with an occasional class 3 maybe. Someone told me there were some bigger rapids, and this must be true since it is a popular rafting river. The boat driver said there are more rapids in high water, so today's ride was actually bumpier than usual, but they don't buzz as many rocks because silt makes the boat harder to maneuver precisely. I thought we still buzzed plenty, though. Upon return to Queenstown, at about 3:30, I went to the hostel to get my car, and drove back to Shotover Canyon for a few pictures. Then I headed for Wanaka at about 4:30, getting a fairly late start. I stopped on the way at the historic Kawarau Gorge bridge, built for gold mine access around 1890. This bridge was also the site where A.J. Hackett introduced commercial bungy jumping. I had jumped with the same company at Skipper's Canyon yesterday. This jump was only 31 meters high, less than half the size of the one I did. Here, they use a raft for recovery, and you can do a wet jump, dunking in the river. Actually, there were no wet jumps today, probably because of the silt and debris in the river due to the high water. I saw one tandem jump and several more traditional jumps. I continued on up the road, arriving in the small town of Wanaka after 6 PM. The town was probably smaller than Te Anau, and also situated on a large lake, Lake Wanaka. The YHA was in a residential area a fair distance from the center of town. Since I had a car, this was fine. I checked into the YHA at 6:30, just before the office closed for a couple hours for dinner. I got a space in the dorm, in a room full of some people's climbing equipment. Then I went down to the supermarket for supplies. This YHA was a collection of separate buildings. It had a homier feel than some. The other YHA's I had stayed at all looked newer. This one was a bit more ragged, but comfortable, and the oriental lady managing it was friendly. The kitchen was rather small and cramped, so I waited a while to start cooking. I made a lamb and vegetable curry with fried noodles. People who had arrived from the west said it was very rainy across the mountains, and that the bridge near Franz Joseph Glacier had washed away, creating difficulty for people expecting to use the only coastal road for several days. A black and white cat named Sylvester lived here, and was very interested in a Japanese man's dinner, following him wherever he went and begging. Later, a table of people, mostly European, played cards and sang noisily, as if drunk. The manager came in to quiet them after 10 because it was quiet time and she was going to bed. I was the first to go to bed in my room. The others, with all the climbing gear, came in much later. DECEMBER 23 Deep Canyon Experience I slept until 7:30, and was still the first up in my room. The climbers had been up very late. After breakfast, I went downtown to the Adventure Center to see if they had any interesting trips today. I was especially interested in their Deep Canyon Experience, which I had read about. They have many different trips available as well, for all sorts of activities. I met one girl there who was going kayaking. I found that they still had space on the 9:30 AM canyoning trip, and signed up for $145 NZ. This is a full-day trip, involving rappeling, climbing, sliding and jumping down a stream in a steep, narrow canyon. It sounded really exciting. I was told to bring a bathing suit, towel and dry clothes, and that everything else would be provided. The lady at the desk said that some shoes were available, but I should have my own footwear if possible since the supply was limited. She said Teva sandals were good if the sole were adequate. I showed her the soles of the ones I was wearing, and she said they looked a bit worn, but I should ask the guide. A van would pick me up at the YHA. I went back to the YHA, got a room for the night, changed to water shorts to wear under the wetsuit, and packed a change of clothes. Two guides and six customers arrived on the van at 9:45. We drove out of Wanaka along the lake and through some livestock fields. We got out of the van once and walked across a stream so that the van could cross safely. This creek was the one we would be canyoning down. The level was high, and they said this would make for a good trip. The canyon was just a deep, narrow crack in the hillside. We parked near the bottom and were issued our equipment: a full wetsuit, spray jacket, helmet, wetsuit socks, and climbing gear. The climbing gear included a harness with a sturdy seat built in and an attached locking carabiner and figure eight, together with pieces of webbing attached to two other non-locking carabiners for connecting to safety lines. I asked about shoes, since I didn't want to get my hiking boots wet if possible. Some shoes were available, but none were big enough to fit over my wetsuit socks. The guides said the main problem with Tevas was that they could slip off, but that the soles on the ones I had should be fine, since they were very grippy, as long as they stayed on. I didn't think this would be a problem, since I had the amphibious model with buckles instead of velcro, which were designed to stay on in fast water. (Velcro doesn't work well in white water.) We started the steep climb up the hillside to the top of the canyon, wearing the harness, but carrying everything else bundled up in the spray jacket. I was going to bring my waterproof disposable camera, but our guide had a camera and would sell photos for $3 each afterward, so I left mine in the van. I thought it would just get in the way otherwise. It was warm and sunny today, and I wore only water shorts and sandals on the climb up, but was still uncomfortably hot. I had no trouble with the climb, keeping up with the guide and talking to him on the way up. We stopped to rest a couple times. When we got to the edge of the canyon, we had a steep climb down to the stream. The sides were slick and muddy, but ropes were placed to help keep our footing. I got a lot of mud between my toes, but the guide said not to worry since we would be at the river soon and could wash the mud off. When we got there, we put on our wetsuits and other equipment, and had some instruction on safety and rappeling techniques. We all practiced this on a gentle slope, and took a quick dip in the water to get wet. It was cold, even in the wetsuit. We began with a slide into a pool below. The guide was worried about how my glasses would survive, but I told him I was wearing an old pair that I brought just for such activities, and they were held on with Croakies, so they should be fine. The only real problem was fogging from the cold water. At the next pool, we didn't slide in because of a grabby hydraulic at the base of the slide, but jumped over the froth into the pool instead. Soon, we came to our first rappel, beside a small waterfall into the pool below. You never knew what was coming next on this trip: climbing, sliding, rappeling, or jumping into a pool. This kept it exciting. Eventually, we came to the "Gurgler", a 100 foot waterfall. Apparently, the expression "meeting the gurgler" has something to do with dying, and this inspired the name. As we approached the Gurgler, we latched our safety carabiners onto a succession of ropes bolted to the rock. The guide said to look over the edge as we approached, and it was a long way down, with a rainbow in the mist far below. The next step required latching both our safety carabiners to a doubled rope rigged from the left side of the canyon, out over the falls, and across to the right side of a huge boulder wedged between the canyon walls above the falls. We grabbed the webbing attached to the carabiners, and pushed off the edge of the falls, sliding out across the chasm down to the wedged boulder. There was enough slope to help the sliding, but some pulling along the rope was needed to get across. The guide said to be sure to look down as we crossed, to see the water falling into the pool 100 feet below. I went first, after the guide, and waited on the far side of the boulder, clipped to a safety line, while the others crossed. When we were all on the boulder, we had a break for tea and cookies. We would do it in reverse order, with the last person crossing the rope going first. The guide took a picture of the rappel, but his camera rewound, so there would apparently be no pictures from this trip. I was beginning to wish I had brought my little camera, since the canyon was impressive and it was a shame to have no pictures. I was last down the rope, and leaned over the edge to watch as I waited. It was a free rappel once you cleared the boulder, dropping through the spray of the falls between the canyon walls. The rope stopped ten feet above the pool at the bottom, and we just rappeled off the end, splashing into the pool. The spray was strong here, with a driving wind generated by the falls. The next step was a dive into the next pool. It was a long way down, but deep, and the trick was that you had to jump out far enough to clear the cliff on the way down. I normally don't like diving, and had never done anything like this before, so this was the thing that made me most nervous so far. A strong jump was needed to get past the rocks on the way down, and I cleared the cliff by just inches. Then came more climbing, sliding and diving, including one slide where you grab a rope strung across the top of the narrow, steep, drop, and let go. The final rappel started easily, straddling a waterfall, but then dropped over the edge, which was undercut, into the falls itself. The guide thought he should keep my glasses due to the intensity of the water from the falls, but I kept them and tried to shield them with my hand as I dropped under the water, an alternative the guide had suggested. The first person down belayed the others from the bottom pool. On the way down, the force of the water on my upper body turned me upside down, or at least that is what I was told afterward, since I couldn't tell with my hand over my eyes, and being inside the water was disorienting. I had the feeling the belayer was giving too much resistance because I had to pull the rope through to get down, though this may have just been because I was inverted. In any case, I was glad to get down out of the forceful water. At the bottom, I noticed that the front strap on my left sandal had slipped off, but the ankle was still securely fastened and the buckle had held. I also had bumped my right knee somewhere on the way down, probably at the bottom, and it was now sore. There was still one more big slide, and a place where you ran down a steep slope, jumping into the pool below. The reason for running was that it was too far to jump from the top of the slope, but too steep for a controlled climb down, and too rough for sliding. I jumped a little too far this time, perhaps overcompensating for the big jump where I barely cleared the cliff. However, I still landed safely in the deep part. From there on, the creek was relatively flat to the end, except for one steep muddy rope-assisted climb, where I slipped but recovered quickly. The van was parked nearby. We changed into dry clothes and had lunch, provided by the company. It was already 3:30. The time had gone fast. The guides built a fire and made tea and coffee as well while we sat in the grass and dried off in the bright sun. I asked the guide for suggestions for good places to hike in the nearby Aspiring National Park. He said Rob Roy Glacier was a nice short hike, and that Cascade Saddle was very nice, but hard to get to. He said I was probably in good enough shape to get there if I wanted to. Mt. Roy was also recommended. On the way back, the guide pointed out another canyon that is somewhat more technical, that is also used for canyoning. He said he got the idea for doing this commercially in France, where canyoning trips are done at Verdon. He said the Wanaka canyons are somewhat steeper and more technical than the ones in France. We stopped briefly at the Adventure Center on the way back, so that some people could pay. They also had T Shirts for sale. Unfortunately there would be no pictures. It was 5:30 when I was dropped off at the hostel. After checking in at the YHA, I went to nearby Mt. Iron to climb it, because I had heard the views were impressive. It was just next to town, so it was easy to get to. I followed a loop trail up to the top. It was a bit cloudy, but there were impressive views overlooking the large turquoise lake and the mountains beyond. Flowers bloomed on top. The trail descended by a steeper route, and I passed some rabbits on the way down. I ended up by the Puzzling Place, home of a big maze, and walked back past a deer farm to my car. I had dinner at the Kai Whaka Pia cafe, which was recommended by a guide at lunch time. I was going to get ginger chicken, but they were out, so I got venison with red currant sauce and avocado, peaches and vegetables, served over rice. I had banana-walnut pie for desert, and cappuccino. It was still reasonably warm, so I ate outside on the patio of the informal cafe. Most of the other stores in Wanaka were already closed, or I would have looked around town a bit afterward. I was planning an overnight hike for tomorrow, Christmas Eve, so I went back to the hostel to pack for it. I would have to wait until morning to buy food. The card-players who like to sing were outside on the hostel porch tonight, singing late into the night. The manager yelled out her window repeatedly for them to be quiet. This YHA was generally noisier than most I had stayed in, possibly because it was so small. I had allergy trouble and sneezed a lot after going to bed in the big mixed dormitory, so I contributed to the noise as well. One lady in the dorm took her sleeping bag outside so she could get some sleep. DECEMBER 24 Walk to Aspiring Hut I went to the Aspiring Park Visitor's Center after breakfast to check on trail conditions and register for a hike. I decided I would like to stay at Aspiring Hut tonight and try a dayhike to Cascade Saddle tomorrow, one of the hikes I had thought about on the flight over, and one which had been recommended by the guide yesterday. The hike may be impossible if there is rain, due to the slippery conditions on the tussock grass slopes above the tree line, but I thought it would be nice to at least get above the trees to see the view there, even if I could not go all the way to the saddle. The lady at the desk did not think this was an unreasonable plan for an overnight hike, though it is known as a very difficult one. I got a hut pass for the night for $14. Aspiring Hut is a category one hut with gas and water, that sleeps about twenty. I went downtown and stopped at the Adventure Center, where I bought a Mt. Aspiring map and a Deep Canyon Experience T shirt. I told the lady there that our pictures didn't come out, and she let me pick a picture left over from an earlier trip. Most of the left over pictures weren't very good, but they had a nice picture of someone rapelling the Gurgler, which was what I wanted, so I took that one. Then I stopped in the grocery store for some trip supplies, and went back to the YHA to finish packing and reserve a room for Christmas. I also called Trusty Rentals to extend my car return date to January 2, since it was now obvious that I would not be back in Christchurch on December 28. I started the long drive to the trailhead at 10:30. The road started in the same direction as we went yesterday, following the lake out past a campground and through sheep pastures. The road turned to gravel and passed through more farmland. Lots of sheep were on the road in places. I sometimes had to wait for entire herds to clear. The road forded a few streams. Some of these could have been trouble if the water had been any higher. The road deteriorated toward the end, and I scraped bottom once. I had checked in advance that rental cars were allowed on this road. Although it was warm and sunny in Wanaka, it was rainy at the trailhead. A front had been sitting on the mountains for a long time now, and showed no sign of budging. To the east was rain, and to the west was sun. The trail went up the valley through green sheep pastures, following a jeep trail up the West Branch of the Matukituki River, which was a light cloudy blue. I soon arrived at a junction with the Rob Roy Valley trail. I had heard this was a beautiful valley with a glacier view, and it was only two hours each way, so I had time to go up. I took my pack, since I didn't know what the sheep might do to it, and went up the trail, crossing a bridge and climbing into the hanging glacial valley. This trail had been improved recently from a "route" to a "track", with new bridges and even a bench, plus some interpretive signs. Parts of the climb were steep and muddy, however, so it was not really easy. Also, my right knee was still sore from canyoning yesterday. The trail climbed through wet, mossy forest, along a swift river. At times the view opened to reveal the glaciers hanging high above, and a big waterfall below the glacial ice. The trail eventually cleared the tree line. It was now clearing and partly sunny, but the mountain tops were in clouds. The track ended at some nature signs. There were some other people here, and some had followed the route past the end of the signs up the valley. I stopped here to have lunch, and attracted a couple of keas. A person coming down from the higher reaches of the valley told me that she had gone up to try to get closer to the glacier, but gave up because you can climb a long time and it still doesn't appear to get much closer. I went up just a little further, because I had to get started back to make it to Aspiring Hut before dark. I made it to the main valley at 3:30. There was now a strong wind and some rain. The wind was down the valley, making walking up it difficult. There were sheep everywhere, and some cows. I passed Bridal Veil Falls, which led to the first stream I couldn't cross with dry feet. It stopped raining eventually, and the sun came out, but it was still windy. Mountains were visible ahead, and a rainbow formed behind, rising gradually from the valley floor. I passed some black and white birds with long orange beaks, which made a loud high-pitched noise. They were common here. I had to cross several more streams, some of which could not be crossed dryly. My feet were already wet, so it didn't matter any more. Soon, Cascade Hut became visible. It is a small hut with minimal facilities, a half hour before Aspiring Hut. The trail crossed another big stream and then a swampy area before Aspiring Hut became visible, a nice stone structure with big windows. Inside, it was full of people, but was not at capacity. The big main room had windows all along one wall, a stove, a telescope, a kitchen on the wall across from the big windows, and tables in the middle and some beds around the edges. Another room contained just sleeping platforms. I put my stuff in the sleeping room, on the bottom shelf, and met a German who had been here many days, taking day hikes all around. He had just returned from a walk up Culler's Route toward Cascade Saddle, where I was planning to go tomorrow. He was not very encouraging. He said he went as far as the pylon at the highest point of the first ridge, and then turned back because he had not brought warm clothes, and the views were poor since the ridge was in the clouds. He said there were some difficult climbs, especially coming down, and that an ice axe would be helpful. He said that although he considered himself to be in excellent condition, it was an extremely difficult route, and he did not recommend it. He said some other walks with fine views were possible, including one up the valley to French Ridge Hut, where there was some snow. I decided that I would have to try Culler's Route after reading and hearing so much about it, even if I couldn't get to Cascade Saddle itself. It was too notorious to pass up. I started making dinner at 8:30, after listening to the German talk about his climbing and his trip to America and his slide shows. Some people were already getting ready for bed as I finished cooking. The hut warden came in and collected the fees and checked hut tickets. He said he thought Cascade Saddle had better views than MacKinnon Pass on the Milford Track, if conditions were good. It was not promising now, though the weather was supposed to be improving. Some people sang Christmas songs as darkness fell, and I want to bed soon after dark, expecting to rise early tomorrow for my attempt at Cascade Saddle. DECEMBER 25 Christmas: Cascade Saddle attempt I was the first up on Christmas morning, at 6 AM. I wanted to get an early start on the difficult climb to Cascade Saddle. It was still cloudy, but not raining, as I made breakfast. A family with three girls started getting up, and exchanged small presents. I started up the Culler Route at 8 AM. It began as a steep, rough trail through the forest, marked by small markers on trees. It was mostly easy to follow, but I lost it briefly a couple of times, especially in one place with a lot of downed trees. After climbing an hour, I came to a washed out area damaged by an avalanche. It took a while to find the orange pole showing where the trail crossed the stream here. The steep, eroded hills on both sides of the stream were muddy and crumbly, and hard to walk on, making the crossing treacherous. The climb continued through the forest, breaking through the timber line after about two hours. There were fine views up and down the valley from here, and Aspiring Hut was visible far below. Now, the difficult part of the route began: a steep climb through the slippery tussock slopes. Orange poles marked the route, and both the steepness and the danger of slipping added to the difficulty. Parts of the climb were very exposed, and there were occasionally steep rock-climbs, which would be much harder on the way down. A German who wanted to camp at the saddle came up as I climbed slowly and cautiously. Finally, near the cloud line, I came to a rock that was relatively hard to climb, in a place that would not be good to slip. I thought it might be unsafe to try to get back down here, so I turned back and let the German pass me. It was about 11 AM and snowing gently when I turned back. It was clear that there would be no views higher up, even if I did continue, and the snow could make the climb more dangerous. I didn't want to take any more risks. It wouldn't be nice to kill oneself on Christmas. Going down turned out to be much harder than coming up, as expected. This route is often done one-way, crossing the saddle and coming out the Dart Valley, so that the return is not necessary. It would be especially difficult with a full pack. I found climbing down to be scary in places, and took twice as long to return to the tree line as I did coming up. I arrived at a rock outcropping there at 1 PM and had lunch. It was no clearer now, and if anything, I believe the weather was deteriorating. As I descended through the forest, I came upon to Israelis, a man and a woman, a way below the washout. They seemed to be having a hard time. They had started much too late, and I wondered if they realized what was ahead. I didn't think they had much hope of crossing the saddle by dark. Ordinarily, the crossing takes at least 10 hours to the next hut, and they were not keeping a good pace. I arrived at the hut at 2:30. The German I had talked to yesterday was still here, as was the girl who I met at the Wanaka Adventure Center, when I was arranging my canyoning trip. She had just come down from a higher hut where she had spent the night, and was preparing to cross Cascade Saddle tomorrow, if conditions permitted. The saddle was not the only obstacle. The rivers on the far side were high from all the rain, and several trampers drowned in the Dart River on this route a few days ago. This girl, named Kay, was from Virginia, and traveling alone on an extended trip. She had also been to Nepal. The German told me the Israelis left here at noon, and were planning to camp at the saddle. They were not making good progress. He said their sleeping bags probably would not be adequate for the saddle either. A fire was in the stove, and it felt good. The hut warden had brought up some date bread for Christmas, and I had some. There were only a few people in the hut when I left at 3:30. It took me three hours to walk back down the valley. I stopped once to look at the Israelis on the tussock slopes high above, watching their slow progress through my binoculars. I made no attempt to keep my boots dry at the stream crossings today, but stopped once to wring the water out of my socks and insoles. I started back down the 40 km gravel road at 6:30, arriving in Wanaka at 7:30. There, I left the stub of my intent form at the DOC office to show I had made it back, and returned to the YHA. There had been a Christmas barbecue earlier, but I missed it by two hours, so I cooked fried noodles with vegetable curry, making do with the food I already had, since no stores would be open. The manager assigned me to the room I had the first night. I showered and went back to the common room, where the manager gave me a couple of chocolate mints which she was passing around for Christmas. It was a rainy night in Wanaka as I went to bed. DECEMBER 26 Drive to Haast: West Coast Beaches In the morning, it was sunny in Wanaka, but cloudy in the mountains. I had breakfast, and checked out, expecting it to be rainy across Haast Pass when I drove to the rainy west coast today. On the way out of town, I stopped one last time at the shore of Wanaka Lake to take a picture. There were some ducks here, and a Japanese man with a camera followed them around taking pictures. The road to the west coast followed the shore of a big, turquoise lake for a while, and then came to Makaroa, a small town with a visitor's center for the Haast Pass area. I stopped and looked around. Two Germans were preparing to set out for Gillespie's Pass, near Mt. Awful and Mt. Dreadful. (Whoever named the mountains around here apparently didn't think much of them.) They were told to expect chest-high water at a river, and to watch for planes when they crossed the airfield across the street. They were also told that there was a section of the trail you just don't do in bad weather. I read about the road to Haast, and then continued on my way. There were a few places to take short walks along the road. I stopped at Blue Pools first. Fish could be seen in the clear blue water. I stopped at two waterfalls also, both very close to the road. It was cloudy most of the time, so no mountain tops were visible, but there was no rain. As the road left the mountains and entered the broad coastal plane approaching Haast, the sun became visible. In fact, the whole coastal area was sunny, while clouds hung over the mountains a short distance inland. This was not what I had expected, after hearing the stories of how much rain the coast had been getting. I stopped at a big, modern visitor's center in the small town of Haast. I was especially interested in seeing where I may be able to find penguins, since one of the reasons I wanted a car was to look for penguins along the beach here. I decided to take advantage of the rare sunny weather to visit the beaches immediately, especially nearby Knight's Point, a popular overlook. I crossed the long bridge on the road north out of Haast. Pretty red flowers were blooming in trees all along the coast. I thought they might be mistletoe, since a hut warden on the Milford Track had said it blooms this time of year, but these flowers appeared to be part of the trees themselves. The road had excellent views of the clear, blue Tasman Sea below, as the road followed along coastal cliffs. There were many palm trees and fern trees in the lush forests along the sides of the road. I stopped and changed to shorts along the way, since it was now becoming warm in the sunny afternoon. Before long, I arrived at the big parking lot at Knight's Point. This was a popular stop for tour busses. There was a covered pavilion overlooking the sea at the point here. I once downloaded a picture taken at Knight's Point from alt.binaries.pictures long before I knew where it was taken, and had used it as a background on my workstation for a while. The same picture appeared in my Lonely Planet guide, which is how I learned it was taken here. When I first saw the picture, I had guessed it was probably Hawaii. In any case, I would have guessed it was somewhere more isolated, not a pavilion next to a big parking lot. Nevertheless, the view was stunning, and this was a perfect day, so I took several pictures with both my cameras. I ate lunch at Knight's Point, being bothered somewhat by the sandflies and some bees buzzing around. Then I continued on up the coast, looking for Monro Beach, said to be good for hunting penguins. I found the trailhead, and began the 90 minute round-trip walk through the rainforest to the beach. I hoped to find the Fiordland crested penguin at the nesting area on the beach. Signs warned not to go too close to their nests or to bother the shy birds. Bright sun filtered down through the trees as I walked to the beach, taking care not to step in the pools of water along the trail, which was mostly smooth and well-maintained. When I arrived at Monro Beach, I removed my sandals and walked, partly through water since the tide was up, toward the north to a rocky area where I believed the penguins would probably be nesting. I saw some people sitting on the headland beyond a marked nesting area, and walked toward them, staying close to or in the surf to avoid getting too close to the rocks. Signs said to be quiet, and cross the nesting area quickly, so as not to disturb the penguins. I joined the Germans on the rocks. They were looking carefully at the nesting area below, where they had seen a penguin. I didn't see any, but it was a beautiful spot, and I took pictures of the surf crashing against the towering rock formations off the headland. I stayed behind as the Germans started to leave, thinking the penguin may come out again once it was quieter. As the group crossed the nesting area, they started getting their cameras out. I went down to see why, and there, sheltered among the rocks, I s