Pictures:
Whakapapaiti Hut with Mt. Ruapehu (Dennis on roof)
Lane and Dennis on "Round the Mountain Track"
Alice and waterfall
Waterfall and Mt. Ruapehu
Silhouette of Alice on rock
ps - you can click on the pictures to make them larger.
Pictures:
Alice and Lane above Emerald Lakes
Alice and Dennis climbing Ngauruhoe
3 of us at Ngauruhoe Summit
View from Ngauruhoe Summit
Ngauruhoe at sunset
So we finally reached the part of the North Island that I've been meaning to do for years, the Tongariro crossing, and it was everything I had hoped for. We started at the Ketetahi side and headed up through the bush, walking past silvery sulphur streams that were overflowing because of all the recent rain. It was amazing once we got above the tree line. The rain had changed to a perfect blue sky day, it almost felt as though we were back in Tahoe, so we could see forever. Most of our previous summits have been thwarted by cloud and fog so it was so cool to be able to see over to Lake Taupo and Rotoaira and look at where we'd been walking over the past few days.
We finally got to see and walk over snow for the first time since May. I think it made all us excited to be back in a mountain environment again, even to the point of eating snow cones made with as thick a solution of Replace as possible. They weren't quite like the real thing, and the wind was whipping at about 80km an hour outside but it was worth it. The next day it was so cold there was ice and rhyme all over the trail.
On our actual crossing day the weather was good to us. For those of you who don't know the weather around the mountains in the central North Island can be pretty volatile, there are three volcanoes that are in the middle of a barren plateau so any clouds or weather just sticks to them like glue. We've heard stories of people crawling across the mountain passes on their hands and knees because the wind was so strong, or not being about to see more than a few metres in front of them. For us, the sky was a little grey but there was great visibility and no wind. The landscape is stunning, at first glance it looks barren and rocky but there is endless diversity in the many colours and textures of the rocks and alpine foliage.
We saw another unique feature along this section too - people! And lots of them. We have hardly seen a single person along our trail sections so it was kind of a surprise to feel like salmon swimming upstream through all the tourists, the majority of whom walked the crossing from the other direction.
We summitted Tongariro and Ngauruhoe, which at 2287 metres is the highest we've been yet. Getting up Ngauruhoe is hilarious. Theres not a set trail. Its more an hour long scramble up loose rocks to the top and a 15 minute in/out of control run, slide, skid to the bottom. It was a ton of fun and we got some amazing 360 degree views from the top.
We then headed into Whakapapa Village and walked a section of the Round the Mountain Mt Ruapehu trail. We still saw other trampers but that trail is a very cool alternative to the crossing. There is endless dramatic scenery, unique landscapes, rocky cliff bands and waterfalls everywhere you look. That also meant lots of stream crossings too. I don't have Lane's leg length or balance ability so while he was jumping over the rocks I sometimes had to ditch the boots and wade through glacier cold water with my rain pants hiked up to the top of my thighs.
So I'd have to say that this section has probably been my favourite so far. It is such an awesome feeling to be doing this hike, especially now we've hit the 1000km mark. It makes all those months of endless planning and working ourselves into the ground to save enough money totally worth it.
We arrived in Ohakune yesterday with amazing views of Ruapehu behind us. I can't wait to go skiing again, even if I could see the icy glean of Turoa shining like a beacon from ages away. We're staying with Graeme and Barbara Wheadon at their mountain house. Thank you so much for your generous hospitality and great food. We loved meeting you.
Alice
Pictures:
Trail up to Tongariro
Lane by North Crater Lake
Dennis and his snowman
Central Crater
3 of us at Central Crater
Well rest day in Te Kuiti was much needed, and enjoyed. From there we headed south on a river walk section that was supposed to be very cool. Unfortunately were turned around at the start by the police. No we weren't in trouble, but there was a search and rescue going on, and we were not able to do that part. Instead we hit the road. We met the guy who sold Alice her boot in Hamilton on the road. He was part of the search and rescue. We missed an old steam engine that day too. We heard it blow its whistle and saw puffing smoke, but it was just out of view. The road section continued till Pureora where Dennis found a new friend. There was a dog that followed us to camp the second night. Dennis decided to call him Henry. We wondered if he would follow us into the mountains. After a night filled with barking and pig chasing I think that it was for the better that Henry didn't follow us. We summitted Pureora and Weraroa on this third day of this leg. It was a long cold day. It rained, and there were no summit views. We were very excited to see the Waihaha Hut that night where we dried our selves and gear by a coal stove. Nice and toasty. Our track out from the hut followed a river that gave us some awesome views and a beautiful place to eat lunch. All was going well until some logging roads that existed who knows how many years ago existed no longer. That made for a longer road section to Tongariro. We had our first camp fire during this leg. It was nice to enjoy the light and warmth of it. The day into Tongariro was filled with rain, rain, and more rain. As luck would have it there was a nice little camp ground with cabins just before the Tongariro Crossing. We were able to dry out and resupply. Bev and Rene were running the camp ground, and they again showed us the Kiwi hospitality. Bev drove us into town to buy food for our next five days, and they both sent us off in the morning with a care package. They gave us a package of chicken and veggie stir fry to have that night for dinner. Yumm it was very good and much appreciated. Well i think thats all for now. I hope everyone back home and in Tahoe is doing well. This trip is very exciting. I will have lots of stories to tell.
Hiking, Lane
Pictures:
Lane walking on road
Pureora Summit in a cloud
Lane by waterfall
Lake Taupo
Alice and Dennis crossing bridge
So, we've made it to Te Kuiti. It took us a day longer than expected and we had some interesting trail adventures along the way. After leaving Hamilton we headed west towards the Karamu track. It was officially the coolest farmland we've walked through yet. Amazing views out towards the Coromandel, crazy rock formations and steep valleys. Those sheep just don't know how good they've got it. We came across a farmer docking lambs tails - those cute little lambs may get their tail chopped off but they're living in paradise.
We then headed up Mt Pirongia. At 959m it was the highest we've been so far. After walking uphill for about 3 hours on a fairly well maintained track, it all of a sudden turned into boot high mud, then for the last couple of kilometres wooden boardwalks started appearing out of nowhere, leading to a very fancy raised platform at the summit. Very civilised and totally unexpected. Even though it was only 4, we decided to cut our day short and stay at the Pahautea hut just past the summit. It was great to have some books to read, get out of the howling wind that has plagued us for days, plus we also didn't think we could make it out of the bush by dark - not a comforting thought on steep muddy trails with nowhere flat to pitch a tent. We did laugh at some of the comments about the mud in the hut book - 'mud mud mud', 'need more boardwalks! Too much mud!'. It seems as though a NZ track isn't really an NZ track without copious amounts of mud and having to perform fine balancing acts on top of mossy tree roots, submerged rocks and grassy tufts to avoid sinking in above your boot line. We actually though this track wasn't too bad.
After heading south on some closed trails - all the open ones went north which is a little counter-productive to our aim, we headed back into farmland. We had our first real adventure with getting lost, well, not totally lost because we knew exactly where we were, but the trail was another story. The track had started from the road with no sign but clear typical trail markers - orange triangles and painted styles. We easily followed that until we checked the GPS to find we were totally off track. Now the GPS has been great and so far had been totally accurate. We decided to bushwack up a steep ponga covered hillside to find the trail that was supposedly 83m away. After wrestling with vines and grabbing onto rotten ponga trucks that snapped off under your weight, we came to the site where the trail was meant to be, but there was no sign of it. After searching around for a while we decided to head back to the last trail marker we'd seen and see if we'd missed anything. After a couple of hours of walking in circles, trying to find alternate routes out of very isolated and hilly countryside we finally figured out that the co-ordinates of the route on the GPS wasn't placed properly so we were actually running parallel to the track we wanted the whole time. We struggled back, found a subtle entrance to another trail that we'd missed earlier and finally started making some positive progress again. The weird thing was that at the end of the trail the markers started up again. Someone had obviously gone through and taken out the whole middle section of markers, a disgruntled farmer? We're not sure.
Now we're having a rest day in the sun in Te Kuiti before heading off on a 10 day section over some high mountain passes to Ohakune. It might be a while before you hear from us again.
Alice
Pictures:
Sheep on horizon
Farmer herding Sheep
Ponga Silhouette
Us on the summit of Pirongia
Dennis and Lane at the Pahautea hut
Well we had a couple of nice rest days in Auckland with Al,s parents. On the 18th we meet with Project K in Albany We got to meet all the staff there. Everyone was so nice, and they treated us to lunch. The next day we headed South into the Hunuas. We stopped and took some pictures of the Hunua Falls. Then started off on a muddy track for the rest of the day. We crossed a foot suspension bridge at about 7 pm and decided to camp there for the night. We left the bridge early the next morning and were stopped in our tracks, or lack there of a path. After getting turned in the right direction we were off again. Late in the day the wind picked up and it started to rain. We walked on, head down, trying to find a place to camp. By chance we came across a little out building that looked mighty tempting. After further inspection we decided to call it home for the night. Glad we did because the wind blew and blew, and the rain continued.
We left our shelter in the morning just as we found it, and headed for Meremere. A river walkway was our intended path on our way to Huntly. This path was hard. It was all tracked up by cows and twisting your ankle was as common as the livestock that was around. We fought the wind all day for the second day in a row. We camped along the river embankment and settled in for the night.
Day 31 on the trail 10/22/07 we walked through Huntly and headed on a forest track. It was raining. I found it easier to hike with rain gear off, and deal with the wet. This track was really cool. It was so muddy and there was some of the gnarliest root sections yet. I think this track was a favorite among the group so far. The day ended with sun shine, and some water falls. Nice way to end the day. We found a a great little camp just before trails end and spent the night. Today we had an easy stroll into Hamilton where we are staying the night in a hostel for the evening. We will have a chance to do some laundry, get some good eats, a hot shower, and a little rest. Then its off to Te kuiti.
I hope everyone is doing well back home, and here's a shout to my favorite sisters meesa and moshell, hey.
Hiking, Lane
We got another healthy dose of Kiwi hospitality this section. In the last week, we were only in our tents for 2 nights. Pretty good, maybe I'll leave it behind, ya know, lighten the load. Although it does rain a lot here, so on the nights where we had to sleep out, we would run the risk of getting really wet.
We were treated to a delicious meal out and a dry warm bed by Meindert & Gerda in Mangawhai Heads, we met and stayed with Graeme Dingle (founder of Project K) and his wife Jo in Leigh, and a fun party night at John and Kim's house in Puhoi. We had the great opportunity to hike with a long trail legend Razzu all the way from California, he put our daily distance average to shame when he told us he averaged 25 miles on his hike rather than our 25k a day.
Last night we were picked up in the outskirts of Auckland by Alice's dad. Good thing because there are not too many places to pitch the ol' tent in suburbia. We are currently reaping the benefits of being in the house of Alice, great food cooked by her mom and having a choice of more than one outfit.
We enjoyed some satellite hiking today courtesy of Alice's dad. Satellite hiking is really nice, you hardly need any gear, just some water and lunch, oh yeah and a rain coat. A nice change from the 18Kg (40 lbs.) average pack weight. I think my bag today was somewhere around 1.5kgs (3 lbs.). I think that I forgot that it was on. We actually had a stream crossing, that's right, in Auckland. Apparently there is a bridge planned for the southern end of Campbells Bay, but we beat the bridge building crew. We all took our shoes off and waded the stream, I gave Alice a piggy back ride so that she would not have to re-tape her heels (a bit of blister prevention). All in all, we did manage to squeak out 34 kilometers in the city and a ferry ride. It is definitely much different from any of the hiking we have done so far. We're going to take our second proper day off tomorrow. So without further ado, I'm going to bed, goodnight.
Dennis
pictures:
Lane, Razzu and I at the Waiwhiu Kauri Grove
Alice gets a piggy back ride
East Coast Bays Walkway to Auckland
North Head
Cornwall Park
In order to take the path that we intended to take, we had to deal with two large inlets. We were told that we could swim the first one if it were low tide, but none of us wanted to completely submerge our packs, other than the possibility of our gear getting wet, the pack would probably weigh twice as much after it was water logged. Plus, low tide was at midnight, and the moon would be nowhere to be seen. The second inlet was quite large, and had a lot of large ocean liners traveling in it, don't think they would see Al, Lane and I floating in the middle.
So a difficult task was at hand.
Well, until a few really nice folks came along and gave us a lift. Shane and Tenisha gave us a ride across the Ngunguru Inlet, and Clint and Kristy gave us a ride across Whangarei Heads.
Thanks a lot guys, you really helped us out.
Well, sorry to all the fans out there, It has been a frustrating few fays. But I finally got to a computer that could do what I needed. So, the progress page is back up, have fun following along.
Dennis
(Written October 7th)
Section three is all about variety, from the weather to the landscape and our various sleeping accommodations. We're finally getting some consistent sunny days. We started the hike with it raining every night and although we haven't had the crazy lightening and hail storms that the rest of the country have been having, we definitely have had some rain. It rained 7 times during the first morning we left Kerikeri. There was constant stopping and putting the rain gear on, taking the rain gear off. Dennis and Lane even spent one rain shower cowering under a gorse covered bank, Dennis with no shirt on, during one of our breaks to avoid having to repeat the process one more time.
This section we walked through forest, beaches, coastal walkways, farmland and roads. Its crazy how much the landscape changes within a day. We walked the Russell Forest Track which had near vertical ups and downs to awesome views and kauri groves. We also battled gorse thickets and climbed over sketchy uncleared landslides. By the end of the day we were on the coast looking at picturesque sandy bays.
We have definitely had some varied sleeping spots too. Our first night we camped down by the coast looking over oyster farms. On the Russell Forest Track we came across a 'hut', which was really just a shelter with some interior walls which divided it into three sections. Dennis and I went to sleep in the biggest section to a clear starry sky. In the middle of the night sometime he woke me up to say it was raining. I couldn't have cared less at that stage, I was well snuggled into my sleeping bag and had my hat on so felt fine. After a fair bit more prompting I finally extracted my arm to feel my very wet sleeping bag and the wind whipping the rain into the shelter. We spent the rest of the night crowded in amongst the bird droppings on a much more cramped bench. Our next night was on the floor of a wool shed, and now we're at my friend's beach place near Sandy Bay. Thank you so much to Mark and Caroline, you guys are awesome. We showed up to beer, a freshly baked cake, steaks and bacon and eggs for breakfast. Very luxurious.
On that note, we have also randomly come across the nicest people during our hike. We have had offers of places to stay, cars pulling over offering us lifts (and also promises of not telling anyone if we take the lift - we haven't caved yet), and general advice on trails in the area. Its blown us away. If your faith in humanity ever falters, put a big pack on your back and go walking round this country, it will be fully restored.
Well onto section four. Our bodies are finally coming into form. With a few hundred kilometres behind us we are no longer hobbling into camp at night like grannies. Waipu is 100km away, and the end of section four.
Alice