Hikes & tramps

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Mt Tongariro summit and back – 19.5km

Glasses would have helped to combat weary eyes, protecting them from the cold.
The cone of Mt Ngauruhoe is hidden in the mist in the back.
The first few kilometres of the path is well built and maintained, to help combat erosion.
First bits of snow visible as we make our way up the mountain.
A bit of sludgy snow.
South Crater is still extensively covered in snow.
The start of the final 1.5km to the top of Mt Tongariro.
I guess this is what is called a “white-out” – when mist and snow become one and you can’t see the horizon or anything other than white.
The narrow slippery path on the side of the mountain got a bit scary at times.
Gerry at the summit.
And me. 🙂
Still up for a bit of fun.
Not sure why I decided to have a little sit at this point.
The beacons still visible, this one buried rather deep.
Mainly off the snow – heading down to South Crater.
The wind threatened to blow me off the mountain.
Minus seven degrees Celsius is rather cold.
Stopping for a bite to eat and a short rest before heading down the last bit.
Having some fun in the snow. Just don’t take your gloves off for more than a few seconds.
Uhum. Just goofing around with an ice pick that wasn’t really necessary.
Dark clouds looming in the distance.
South Crater.

 

It is very hard to imagine temperatures of minus seven degrees Celsius, in icy winds and sleet, when you are tucked up cosy and dry in front of a fire. We were contemplating the day ahead over a cold happy hour beer in the comforts of The Park lodge in National Park Village, before turning in for a good nights sleep.

In the morning we chatted about the weather to the gentleman who prepared our breakfast – a friendly old bloke who’s probably lived around the area forever. He gave the mountain one good look as thick clouds were rolling over the mountains tops, and announced with a chuckle: “maybe your hike will turn into an adventure!”. Bummer? Yay? Always trust the local knowledge. But not to be deterred, we quickly grabbed out stuff and headed towards the Mangatepopo Road End where we parked the car for the day, hoping we might beat the looming inclement weather. Continue reading →

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Round the Mountain Track (25-29 December 2013)

Even seasoned hikers of 24 years make “mistakes”. Any tramper, even a complete novice, will tell you it’s a big no-no to wear new – yes, you read right, brand new! – boots on a tramp. Especially a five day one at that. Continue reading →

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New Year’s Resolutions – the Easy (!?) Eight

Well, here we are – hard to believe it’s 2014 already! It’s the first day of the new year, and with Christmas, New Year’s Eve and all the festivities behind us, we can start to look forward to the year ahead. As corny and silly as new year’s resolutions can be, I guess it’s pretty hard to avoid – even if your main resolution is to not have a new year’s resolutions list, we all secretly have a few things in mind that we want to take on, achieve, improve on, perhaps even avoid or quit. Continue reading →

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Queen Charlotte Track (2 – 5 December 2013)

A couple of years ago, in search of some interesting off-road running events, I read about the Queen Charlotte Track – a 26km run from Ship Cove to Punga Cove/Camp Bay. It sounded magnificent and I’ve since been keen to take part in this event. But as we know, traveling between NZ’s two islands is almost as expensive as going to Australia! This truly is a country of two halves (as Paul Bennett pointed out in his book). Continue reading →

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Kepler Track – 23-25 December 2012

The highest point en route – Mt Luxmore.
Still bright and shiny at the start of the hike.
Gerry crossing the Waiau River at the start.
Lovely to walk in the shade of beech, kamati and podocarps.
Lake Te Anau in the back. We stopped for a quick lunch in the shade – hence the “shady” photo.
Tent pitched, fire going and a tipple in the cup. What more could a girl ask for.
Sunny and very hot once we reached the tree line, unsheltered from the tree canopy.
Leaving our packs in the path to climb the last bit to the top of Mt Luxmore.
here must be millions of similar pics out there – doing the touristy thing and get your photo taken by a fellow hiker at the beacon.
Lonely in the saddle since my horse died.
For miles and miles the path meanders on the ridge with magnificent views to both sides.
Taking a little break in the mid-day sun.
One of the two shelters on top of the mountain. This one being Hanging Valley Shelter.
At our final camp, covering every inch of exposed skin (preferably in more than one layer!) to try and avoid the pesky sandflies.
Very unusual bright purple mushroom.
Back at the start on Christmas day. Hoping next time we come down this way, we’ll the doing the Kepler track trail run.
Evidence of sandfly havoc when skin is exposed for just a short while.

23 December 2012 (15.1km) – Rainbow Reach car park to Brod Bay

It is exactly two years since our last multi-day hike/tramp. And to top it off, we haven’t been very active on the running front over the last year or so either. But we thought this hike would be a nice way to end the year and hopefully entice some new years resolutions on the active front.

Continue reading →