Kime, Hector and Otaki Gorge Slip

A trip up to Kime Hut is not exactly new territory but this weekend provided some new experiences.

What:  Otaki forks to Kime and Mt Hector
Who:    Scott (leader), Rachel, Vignesh and me
When:  Sat 18 and Sun 19 June
Why:    Meet-Up group trip
Map of slip: Link

Scott puts a tramp up on Meet-Up early in the week and I decide to check it out. I have been in the habit of avoiding group tramps but this is a chance to get out with some of the leaders from the Meet-Up group and to check out the slip on the Otaki Gorge Road. An unanticipated advantage of a group trip becomes apparent after the trip when Rachel posts her photos - they are far better than I have managed on my phone and she graciously agrees to let me display them here (only the photos around the slip are mine).

The weather forecast is rubbish for the Sunday so the plan shifts towards the end of the week to a trip up to Kime then return to Field for the night.  It should be pretty easy going although there is a small matter of an odd extra 4 Km and 300 metres climb to get past the slip.

After a few delays and a stop for coffee it's about 10am when we leave the car on a grey day at the car park on Shields Flat. It's about a kilometre short of the slip. Diggers and bulldozers are operating on a vast hill of spoil but the slip itself is out of sight. A group of four (two chaps and two women) has arrived just ahead of us and head along the road to see if they can get across the slip. They are soon back after being told in no uncertain terms that they're not crossing.




The slip isn't visible but the pile of spoil is just 
to the left of centre 

The bypass starts up the gully to the left of the caravan

The bypass is well marked from the carpark, crossing a paddock then heading steeply up an old forestry track under pines. It climbs fairly steeply and there's little to see through the trees although machines can be heard working below. It's sort of pleasant when the track levels to stroll along with soft pine needles underfoot.

The track soon rounds a spur and enters a gully that has been clear felled and replanted. After a total of about 300m climbing it turns left into a more recently upgraded 4WD track and immediately starts descending. The road soon reaches a wide space with a couple of vehicles parked and the marked route heads off into the bush to follow a winding track down a spur, at one point steep enough for someone to have attached a very long rope through the trees.

Vignesh emerges out of the gully

Vignesh and Scott negotiating the descent

At the bottom there's a left turn (you would have thought right) on to an old but very well cut 4WD track which finally deposits us onto the Otaki Forks Road again - about a Km past the slip which is out of sight around the hill.

There's a further kilometer to the bridge over the Waiotauru River and the start of the tramp proper.

We're pretty slow up the hill so it's a late lunch at Field where the group from the carpark has settled in and a few others are sleeping or milling around. I discover that my topo map has Field hut in the wrong place - a bit odd given the hut has been around for quite a long time. There is a flash new toilet though - the old one has been pushed on it's side and I assume will be removed some day.

Field Hut

As the weather forecast has improved we are going to head on up to Kime for the night with maybe a jaunt up to Mt Hector. It's still cold though and probably a bit windy up the hill so I crack out the coat.  The tops start pretty much straight after Field hut and there is nothing to see in the clag. Even less to see once my glasses fog up (mental note to get the contacts out for the next trip). The wind is not strong which is lucky as it's pretty cold and there's a fair amount of moisture in the air.

Clag on Judd Ridge - the track is not all so over engineered

We are making very slow progress so the day starts drawing in as we are still heading up the ridge. It's a pretty straight forward route though so there are no concerns.

At one point we suddenly notice that the tussock has taken on a golden light - it's a bit weird as there is no change in the cloud but we figure that somewhere behind us the sun is setting. It quickly fades and it's just about dark when we arrive at Kime around 6pm.

There's one chap in residence who we think has come up from Tutuwai Hut via Bull Mound - good travel given the short daylight hours. Scott is keen to head on up to Hector as it is a strategic point in a strategy game that he is involved in. I figure that there is an outside chance of a break in the cloud and a view of city lights on the horizon, besides, I haven't really done enough for the day so I add some more layers and we head out under lights.

As we leave the calm in the dell around the hut, the wind steadily rises and the wind chill increases. We're just short of the top of Field Peak when Scott gets an attack of the cramps which are not about to go away - nothing for it but to head back to the hut.

Kime hut has a harsh rap as a cold hole. I suspect this is probably because the old hut was a cold hole and there were some issues with the building of the new hut so it hasn't managed to throw off the reputation. Let's face it - at 1400m next to a tarn and with a few traces of snow about - of course it's cold!  The temperature in the evening is just under 8 degrees dropping to a bit over 5 during the night. The hut is clean, spacious and light, certainly better than its predecessor.

Nostalgic diversion

Old Kime and building materials for new Kime

New Kime taking shape

You can't even tell where she stood now

Dinner for the evening is a fine chicken curry courtesy of Vignesh and his wife. I do my best not to burn it on my gas burner (not using my penny stove for a change). Scott also drags various treats out of his pack including Garage Project beer and pop-corn. Augmented by Rachel's marshmallows we have more than enough and turn in a little after 9.

It's a pretty quiet night. The other tenant gets up well before dawn and disappears. Then Scott is up and about to head up the hill - Rachel and I decide to join him so we kit up rapidly and head out.

Kime Hut almost sees the dawn

It's windy on the ridge but not wet and the cloud is breaking around the peaks providing tantalising glimpses of the sun and surrounding ridges and peaks.

Here comes the sun - just off the top of Field Peak

Coming off Field and eyeing up Hector

A minute or two later - Neill Ridge to the left

At the top of Hector Scott hunkers down over his cell phone behind a rock to do arcane things. This is Rachel's first trip up here and it's good that we get a few views across into the Wairarapa, glimpses of the Southern Crossing and Marchant Ridge and Cone come and go. Neill Ridge looks pretty uninviting in this wind with cloud shredding through the dips but it would be fun to head along and down.

Memorial at top of Hector

Gazing at the view 

Neill Ridge

We head back to Field for breakfast. Vignesh is ready to go so he and Scott head on down while Rachel and I have breakfast and tidy the hut. 10 minutes latter Scott pops back in to pick up the clothes he'd left behind.

Yep - there's a little bit of winter about ... just

Rachel sets a cracking pace and we are at Field hut not too long after the others and I've shed a few layers on the way. The other tenants are gone after neither filling in the log book nor replacing the firewood they used. Probably didn't pay their hut fees either.

We pause briefly then Vignesh launches off down the ridge at speed. We see an older couple on the way up but otherwise it is pleasant travel in damp bush and little wind; not too cold and the forecast rain never arrives.  It's a really good track through nice bush.

Trackside fungus

For the last 300 vertical meters the track breaks in and out of bush and we get a few views into surrounding valleys but nothing as far as the main range.

At the bottom we elect to pop along and check out the slip. It's an impressive sight - the road is covered in shattered rock, mud and shredded trees. The slip drops steeply to the river far below and is not safe to cross at the road level but workers have bulldozed terraces across further up. We grovel up through scrappy bush and supplejack beside the slip until we are above one of the terraces. The ground around the slip is fractured and loose but there's enough vegetation to provide hand and foot holds.

Heading up to the slip which is ahead and up to the right

The edge of the slip

Rachel, Scott and Vignesh

Scott ventures onto the slip - there doesn't appear to be any material likely to come down from above and the surface is stable enough, about 10m out he turns and bum slides down to the bulldozed track. Vignesh then Rachel follow suit and finally I essay a somewhat more elegant scree run down.

There have clearly been a few other people taking the same route however I wouldn't recommend it unless you assess the risks pretty carefully (condition of the slope, loose material that may come down from above, run-out below etc) and don't even think of it when the machines are operating.

We walk across the terrace and down through pines to a staging area with a lot of diggers then down to the road for the short walk back to the car. A couple of chaps are chatting next to a 4WD and we wonder if they are going to challenge us but they don't seem to be connected with the site works, we exchange a few words and head on our way.

We've made much better time than yesterday and it's good to get back to Wellington in daylight and without having to contend with the worst of the Coast traffic.

So all up, the weather wasn't flash but was better than expected. We got some glimpses of view from Hector and a number of us managed some firsts - for me a night in the new Kime and an up close look at the slip. Good fun.

Southern Crossing

Not Another Southern Crossing

***TBC***
Andrew and Mike

It’s hard to think of a new angle on a trip across the Southern Crossing. It’s a classic Tararua tramp, but so well traversed by so many feet that all sorts of invention is applied to make a more interesting story. This ranges from the traditional one day and moonlight versions, through to weird stunts involving anything from boats to nudity.

This trip is prosaic; for me, a return to an old acquaintance who maybe this time will bestow a perfect day and stunning views, and a first time introduction for Mike. As for Josh, I’m afraid it’s a weekend with a cold and regrets over an opportunity missed.

In the week leading up to the trip, the weather started playing chicken. Perfect clear days piled on top of each other in a sequence that surely couldn’t last up to and through the weekend. The laws of Wellington’s average weather meant a run of 10 good days was as likely as … well, you get the picture.

The usual sort of transport planning, taking advantage of good natured partners and sorting out group gear occurs in the last few days prior. However, the run up is blighted by uncertainty due to fitness. The first hypochondriac out of the blocks is me. A festive bout of gammy foot has rendered me grumpy and couch bound since Christmas Eve. The foot is still in recovery mode and inflicts occasional traumatic flash backs; it is clearly the height of poor judgement to force it into a tramping boot and flog it up and down mountains for a weekend.

Josh comes up with a less debilitating and more transient condition and succumbs to man flu a couple days prior to take off. Not to be outdone, I throw myself over the back of a car whilst biking to work on Thursday. Despite various bruises, a road test of my helmet, and bits of skin and pride left on the Petone Esplanade I protest that the show must go on. I can still carry a walking pole in my left hand if needed and if my foot plays up I'll wear one jandal.

To add a little more spice we decide that we will road test my new ten cent stove. Made from a couple of Sprite cans it is a creative marvel and promises to be possibly effective and certainly entertaining. I decry Mike for cowardice and lack of faith when he suggests carrying a spare butane stove. The only admission of potential for prototype failure will be a couple of spare OSMs; the breakfast, lunch and dinner of champions.

Friday

The show starts on Friday; arriving at work with a tramping pack ready to beat a hasty and early exit. I take the opportunity to show slightly bemused colleagues the marvels of a gerry-built alcohol stove. The unspoken consensus is clear: nerd.

We leave Wellington with its weird and wonderful seven’s crowd behind, and head up the coast in solid traffic. An exchange of texts determines that Josh has grumpy man flu and is in no fit state to withstand the inevitable hoots of derision should we pop in on the way through. Instead we pick up dinner from the aptly named Heaven’s Pizzas in Waikanae, some of which lasts as long as the Otaki Forks car park.

A helicopter hunting trip is returning to the road end with at least 4 dead deer and the same number of not dead hunters. This is probably regarded as a highly successful ratio in hunting circles.

Our support crew and someone else's helicopter

It’s just after 7pm as we cross the bridge and head for Judd Ridge in bright afternoon sun. As the track zigzags up the first face we catch increasing glimpses up into the Otaki River catchment with the main range behind, from below the sound of the river in the gorge drifts up. The track is very well formed and easy going, so we chat about anything from escape velocity to investment funds.

The sun sets and we pause to capture the burnt orange sky around the silhouette of Kapakapanui. There’s no wind and few clouds. Torches are out for the last few hundred meters to Field Hut, arriving just before 9.30; about 2 hr 15 after setting out.

Kapakapanui is the lump on the right

Field is a great old classic hut. It has a warm feel and plenty of space but tonight there are only 6 staying, including a Pom and Aussie who we passed on the way up. We chat on the verandah watching the stars brighten and enjoying the warm, windless evening. Given the forecast and the long stint of good weather we are a bit surprised (and a little relieved) by the low turnout. All lights are out and the final sleeping bags rustle by 11.

A cloudy morning at Field Hut

The night is dead quiet and even the snorers are somewhat subdued. In the morning there are a few desultory trills from a bird by way of a dawn chorus and the hut slumbers until after 7.

Saturday

The morning brings the first test for the ten cent stove. It has no trouble heating water for coffee for two which we enjoy on the verandah as a procession of runners comes through. The Tararua Mountain Race is about a month away, so we see 6 athletes making the most of the weather to get some good training in.

They all pause for a brief chat; one turns out to be a walker (built like a Kenyan ultra runner) who is giving the runners a good walk for their money and another’s pack informs the world “Activity Paused” in tones that you could imagine could become really irritating.

A German woman also passes through, who had left Palmerston North at 4am and is also heading to Alpha. We later learn her name is Yana but more about her soon.

Eventually we tidy the hut and head on and up a little after 9. There’s a high overcast and it is still. After Table Top (1047m), the view east into Penn Creek opens up and we note a fair amount of cloud forming around the main range.

As we head from Dennan to Bridge Peak (1421m) there is a steady procession of returning runners (one with telling mud stains up his front) and a couple of parties that had stayed at Kime. One man has a massive pack that looks like a luggage trolley crashed into his back. He and young son are returning instead of going across the tops due to son’s sore foot (who incidentally had skipped impatiently ahead down the track; hmm). Finally, the other couple from last night are returning saying they didn’t bother climbing from Kime to Hector due to the cloud. The wind is starting to rise to confirm their story.

There’s no rush so we take a few breathers and I help Mike eat all his scroggin for the weekend. The warm, moist norwester piles across Judd Ridge and up towards the main range; clouds condense in the updrafts and start to congregate around the peaks.

Breasting Hut Mound (1440m) reveals the build of the new Kime Hut in full swing. There are tonnes of gear strewn around the bowl (including a small digger) and a couple of blokes are kanger-hammering pile holes. They have completely taken over the hut and even have a fridge.

Soon to be non-existent Kime hut and building site

Kime hut itself is widely regarded as a miserably cold, damp fridge, but some heartfelt doggerel thumb tacked to the wall attest that it will be missed. The toilets however would not be missed by any but the several species of green slime that have taken up residence.

Yana has managed a car key swap with some acquaintances, who tell us that it’s windy and pretty tough going from Hector. We pause for a bite and chat in the lee of Kime Hut then take a nosey around the building site. The framing is prefabricated but it looks like they are building the floor from the piles up. Although it is Saturday the workers are hard at it and we leave them alone.

The cloud closes and the wind rises as we climb up Field (1483m) then Hector (1529m). We will most definitely not being gazing around distant horizons. We agree that the wind is ‘fairly windy’ to ‘quite windy’ on the modified Wang-Beaufort scale (‘very windy’ by most other assessments).


We are pleased to see the memorial on Mt Hector loom through the cloud as this is the high point of our trip and the highest Mike has been in the Tararuas. Although we can’t see much, the photo is on Facebook and people are already commenting before we turn our faces south down the ridge to the Beehives. It is kind of weird to be in a place where the weather has killed the unwary before, and is not behaving as predicted, whilst watching mundane comments pop up on the phone.

The memorial on Hector, not the best conditions

Although quite windy, it’s not cold or raining so we imagine worse conditions and do a bit of navigation practice whilst rehearsing the order of the peaks we pass so as to better recognise them in the other direction.

In the lee of the ridge we come across a single walker. Getting closer I recognise the face and ask him if he did the same route in June last year. Much to his credit he asks if I travelled the route with him “in the blizzard.” I’m absolutely tickled to see him again. It was a tough crossing and it had been good to have another person in view. This time I find out that his name is Reuben.

After saying our goodbyes I point out to Mike the totally unprompted use of the ‘B’ word, and from someone who is clearly a hard bitten veteran of the worst these Mountains can inflict upon a soul. Today however the track is dry, someone has trimmed the tussocks and the going is very easy despite the wind and lack of view.

We take a moment at Atkinson (1472m) to look at the start of False Spur and note that track marking would make it hard to miss the right turn along the Dress Circle.

The cloud starts breaking and the first we see is the valley west of False Spur. It positively glows in the sun and more and more comes into view as we dip then climb to Aston (1376m). Soon after there is more blue than grey and we are looking over a sunny Wairarapa and north past False Spur to Neill Ridge, Concertina Knob (we think), and Maungahuka disappearing into the clag that is still piling over the tops from the west.

Same day, different weather.  False spur in the background

A couple then a single pass in the opposite direction on one day missions to Otaki Forks while we amble along to Alpha (1361m) knowing we have plenty of time and enjoying what was supposed to have been the conditions for the whole trip.

We arrive at the hut at 3.30 after a fairly leisurely 6 and half hours. It is the first time I can remember being here with dry boots. Yana arrives an hour or so later, then the Aussie and Pom an hour and a half after that. We are quite happy as it’s a good chatty bunch.

Alpha hut and cell phone coverage

The stove works again heating water for dinner for two with no troubles. As we eat we take the opportunity to interrogate Yana. Her husband doesn’t tramp, so she goes on her own and she relates storeys of many tramps on Taranaki, Volcanic Plateau, Ruahines and Kahurangi. It is an impressive list accumulated in 8 years with time off for a daughter. She’s good company and clearly has no problems setting off on fairly ambitious trips on her own. She tells us on one trip she had some time to spare, so lived in the Kahurangi Park for as long as she could find food left in the huts, occasionally reaching a road end with a phone to tell her contact not to worry.

Just on twilight there’s a stamp on the verandah and a man emerges from the gloom. He has just come across the tops and describes the wind as forcing him to crab along. Tomorrow he says is going to be much worse according to the forecast (which has clearly deteriorated). Outside the wind is indeed rising and we have little difficulty believing that it is pretty harsh above the bush line.

Alpha is very comfortable; dry, warm and clean. The toilet however is disgusting. We argue whether it is worse than Kime and agree that although more brown than green, the fact that the brown is solid, caked on fly dirt gives it the edge. When one finally succumbs to the need to attend the facility, the blowflies rouse themselves to batter their way around the small cubicle until you have the good sense to turn the torch off.

Lights are off by 9.30 and we drift off to the sound of the wind which later on combines with the solid effort put in by the snorers.

Sunday

The hut starts stirring at 6. It is still somewhat windy out and we can imagine the sun rising over the Wairarapa and setting orange fire amongst the beech trees; we don't go out for a look.

The solo tramper is off first and we follow him at 7.15 after a quick sweep of the hut. We catch him before Hell’s Gate and are slightly nonplussed by the hymn music emanating from his pack. He doesn’t refer to it and we are too polite to enquire whether this is some sort of miracle or has a more prosaic explanation.

In conversation he expands on his description of the conditions on the tops declaring that ‘no man would survive today’.  Fairly melodramatic but yesterday clearly made a lasting impression on him.

Having spent the last few weeks regaling Mike with descriptions of Marchant Ridge as being up hill in both directions; an interminable slog through mud and roots, and a soul destroying waterless drag, it was beholden on me to be as wrong as possible.

The wind has dropped to a refreshing breeze and there are enough windows in the bush to look back up at the clouds behind Alpha showing the tell tale signs of high winds, trace the emerging line of Quoin Ridge, point out Mt Reeves, Bull Mound Track disappearing down to Cone Hut, the far off Haurangis, and anything else that catches the eye. On this side of the range the day is very hot and gives the opportunity to view the landforms and fix them in the mind for future reference.

A hot day on the Marchant ridge; the Hutt valley somewhere behind

In this way we natter our way along the ridge and time passes very pleasantly. The final drop down to Kaitoke is scorching hot and dry and we see the first new people of the day just before reaching the road end at 1.40, around 6 and a half hours after setting out. The car left for us hasn’t been set fire to, which is nice, and we relocate to meet our respective partner and family at the Kaitoke water works to contemplate how nice and cool the water would be if we could be bothered to go swimming.

A quick check of the body shows that the shoulder is fine and although the foot is commenting quietly about what it has been doing, the voltarin seems to be keeping it in line. Sun strike is the worst that can be claimed out of the trip.

Post Script - some gear and track notes for future reference

We took it fairly easy and generally trimmed a little time off the DoC estimates, although travelling with two in pretty good conditions makes it easier. The track to Kime is very well formed, across the Southern it is pretty well worn although a little eroded in places, and muddy and slippery when wet in others. Cutting the tussock back has made a huge difference from Hector to Aston. Alpha to Omega is well formed and Marchant appears to have a lot of the dead fall cleared (bar a couple of clambers over big trunks). Marchant is good travelling in the dry but the same track can be a different proposition in winter.

The Penny stove did the job. It did need a second pre-burn to get going when started and as the jets take over the flames tend to dip quite a bit which suggests it could be very hard to start in any breeze. Need to test this. It coped for two people fine preparing hot drinks and dehy food. Anything more will likely slow things down a bit.

The Zamberlan boots that both Mike and I have ended up with are good and comfy. They have needed little or no wearing-in but provide a little less ankle support than previous (heavier) foot wear. So far the verdict is: very good performance and reasonably priced.

My new Swazi micro fibre T-shirt is good in normal conditions but hot in the sun and would benefit from something to protect the neck from the sun. The micro fibre bush shirt performed fine on the tops while Mike was wearing his rain jacket against the wind.

The Macpac 35l pack is just the right size and sits comfortably while walking. The back gets very hot though transferring heat directly into the camelback; there’s nothing like drinking something the temperature of urine! (Just stick it under the pack lid and it keeps cool). The opening at the top of the pack is annoyingly narrow when packing and, as recorded previously, it needs a raincoat to be water proof.

For the first time I carried walking poles which were never used but strapped onto the pack fine.

Waiohine - Kime

Waiohine - Kime

2-4 June 2012; Queens Birthday





Solo

The Plan: A light tramp, with no extra kit and surviving on One Square Meal (OSM) bars. Head in from Waiohine car-park to Bull Mound via Cone Hut and on to Alpha hut; evaluate and head on for Kime hut for the night if going well, otherwise night over at Alpha. The next day head to Mt Hector and down Neill Ridge to Cone ridge then to Waiohine car-park via Cone saddle. Not quite what happened though…

Forecast: Good weather in the Wairarapa and Hutt; some showers from the northwest on the Kapiti coast. No weather warnings. But again, not quite what happened…

Saturday 2 June: Waiohine – Alpha - Kime

At 0740 the car is locked and it’s time to head up the ridge towards Cone Saddle (after noting a club van that must have arrived not long before). The morning is frosty and misty but cloudless and still.

The track climbs quickly the first 250m, meeting the dawn as it drifts down the ridge. The grade eases slowly up to 680m and after sometime there is a well posted turn west and down to Cone Hut, arriving at 0905, somewhat under DoC’s 2½ hr estimate.

There is only one river crossing today so it’s doesn’t take much to decide to remove boots and socks despite the hard frost in the Tauherenikau Valley. This gives dry feet for the trip up Bull Mound, 730m above the valley floor. There are patches of snow and ice on the hilltop bog as the track ducks in and out of Dracophyllum, leather wood and beech scrub. The Wairarapa is clear but Neill Ridge to the north is ominous; a hogs back cloud pushes up against the ridge from the north, spilling over into the upper Tauherenikau.

The track eventually dives back into the bush and drops precious meters only to climb again up out of Hells Gate. It is 1130 when Alpha Hut appears and the weather is starting to close in. Half an hour is enough to text home (I know there's coverage from previous experience), have a bite to eat, don a few more layers of clothes, and write a note in the log book. By now, any previous thoughts of going further than Kime hut have been dropped. The hut notice board says it’s 3-4 hrs to Kime and in this weather it would be foolhardy to commit to anything else.

A wiry, older Maori chap turns up. He is doing a one day from Kaitoke to Otaki and leaves Alpha a few minutes ahead. We trade the lead across the tops and it is a comfort to know that there is someone else about, particularly as he has done this route 4 times already this year.

On the tops the wind quickly gets up, the temperature drops and the extra layers are put to good use (although I should have taken a little extra time to drag out over mitts and adjust my new coat). Glasses are quickly rendered worse than useless and stashed in a pocket on the grounds that seeing everything fuzzily is better than seeing nothing clearly.  The track is mostly pretty easy to follow though and the other chap is in view much of the time.

The wind howls across the ridge from either side upsetting balance and occasionally throwing in sleet or freezing rain. The track wends over interminable knobs and peaks; at times covered in snow.  It is about an hour to the top of Aston and a sign saying 3-4 hrs to Kime; slightly demoralising given the same time estimate at Alpha Hut. As well as the driving rain, boots are soon soaked through from the ice encrusted puddles. Footing is invisible beneath the tussock which hides slick mud and sudden drop offs. The result is drunken lurching with the wind adding an unhelpful push at inopportune moments.

With head down and concentrating on the track ahead it is a pleasant surprise when the cross on Mt Hector appears in the snow. It’s a bit too miserable to spare more than a passing thought for the trampers killed in WWII. However on the other side the wind drops away and we head down through the mist, over Field Peak arriving at Kime at 1450. Here my nameless companion says goodbye, calls his transport, and sets off for Otaki forks. It will probably be dark by the time he gets there.

There are a few parties in the hut; a couple of Outdoor Pursuits women doing crosswords, a lone bloke and a party of youngish chaps. It’s cold inside without a fire, and the idea of drying clothes by wearing them is soon given up as a bad job. By 1700 the sleeping bags are out and it’s only a trip to the loo that will shift me. A chocolate OSM serves for dinner.

There's little wind here so the mist sits; the moon peeks fitfully through the clag but later in the night the wind comes up and showers of rain roll through. The temperature in the hut drops to about 5 degrees overnight but the new light weight sleeping bag holds up well.

Sunday 3 June: Kime – Alpha - Cone

The hut starts stirring at 0700. The single bloke is off first for Otaki forks. The two women are going to head for Elder Hut and the other party to Alpha Hut.

At 0820 the sopping, cold gear warms slowly on the way up Field Peak to Mt Hector. The wind and driving rain soon makes a nuisance of itself but the new coat performs well and it’s warm enough.

At Mt Hector, the start of the track to Neill Ridge is not obvious but there is only really one possible direction. The wind is fierce making it difficult to stand, let alone travel in a straight line. As the rounded top of Mt Hector gives way to a razor edged ridge it becomes easy to follow the route, although the track is not always that obvious. Once again the nuisance glasses are rendered opaque and consigned to a pocket (there is also a realistic fear that they will be whipped away).

The map doesn't show the myriad small knobs that adorn the ridge and in the flying, shredded cloud it is difficult to judge progress. Each knob clambered over gives way to another saddle with the wind howling through. Occasionally a small cairn passes within myopic range confirming the route.

Eventually, however it is apparent that there have been no cairns for a while and no signs of tracks in the tussock; it is time to stop and take stock in the lee of a boulder. Sure enough, the compass and altimeter confirm that the ridge being descended is heading in the wrong direction. The climb back up to the last cairn is depressingly steep.

Even there the next cairn is not to be seen and the lack of visibility makes it difficult to reconcile the map to the terrain. Where I think the track should go seems to drop off impossibly steeply (I find out later that it does). There is more than one option open so after a bit of dithering and a couple of unsure starts, discretion wins over valour, and the only guaranteed direction is selected – back to Mt Hector.

The wind is still blasting across the ridge and its very difficult regaining the lost meters so the sight of the cross at Mt Hector looming through the clag is (once again) welcome. Now it's just the Southern Crossing to contend with.

The wind and rain have put paid to most of the snow, but not the mud. Fortunately the track is largely easy to follow, so it’s head down and plug on. The up-hills are reduced to a trudge and finding secure footing is an ongoing niggle. The level of swearing at errant wind gusts, slips, and recalcitrant gear indicates that a level of fatigue is setting in.

Finally it is clear that the descent from Alpha has started and at long last the bush line heralds Alpha Hut around 1320. A couple have just come up from Tutuwai and are sheltering in their sleeping bags. It is not difficult to talk them out of considering the crossing to Kime. They provide a hot, sweet cocoa which helps immeasurably.

After putting a note in the look book and texting the changed intentions home (including the likelihood of an extra night out), it’s back into the bush a little before 1400.

It is pleasant and peaceful below the bush line and a reasonable rate is possible although the up-hills are still slow. The open areas on Bull Mound are windy and give a view of just how horrible Neill Ridge is. The track drops off the Mound into the bush again then it’s all downhill.

By a third of the way down, reaching the car-park before dark is looking highly unlikely. At the bottom, the river is up and a stick helps stability.  However the legs are pretty tired now and at 1600 Cone Hut is extremely welcome. With light already getting dim I decide to stay the night; wet gear is peeled off; dry clothes donned and it's straight into the sleeping bag.

A little after 1700 a hunter turns up; he plus dog have been up Cone Ridge and had nosed up Neill Ridge but rapidly decided it wasn't the place to be. He takes pity and provides a hot drink which finishes off the warming up process. Later I find out there was also a club trip that had intended to go up Niell Ridge but turned back because of the conditions on the tops and ended up bivvying out below the bush line.

The hunter chats as he eats and settles in for the night.  In the course of discussion the story comes out that last night he accidentally let a shot off in the hut while cleaning his rifle, much to the surprise of a father and 2 sons that were present. Fortunately he was pointing the gun up and out the door at the time. He says something about the safety having been knocked off and the first time it had occurred in 30 years of hunting.

Cone Hut has always been a hut seen en passant and barely spared a glance, with its dirt floor, rough sawn planks for the sleeping platform and appearance of rotting quietly into the landscape. However it is pleasant by candle light and comfortable even without a fire to warm it. From now on I will not hear a bad word about it.

An OSM for dinner washed down with water fills the stomach but the aches and pains are enough to keep sleep hovering. Enthusiastic snoring from the other side of the platform guarantees it. Jethro the dog is pretty well behaved except when he tries to change sleeping companions a couple of times during the night and has to be firmly discouraged.

Monday 4 June: Cone - Waiohine

A little before 6 a loud alarm goes off. The hunter goes through his morning routine and offers another brew as he gets his kit together for a dawn hunt, down the right bank towards block XVI. Jethro has had more then enough of sleeping and is ready to be up and about, although he apparently doesn’t assist with the hunt apart from in a moral support capacity.

By 0700 it is getting towards light enough, so an OSM for breakfast; a quick squeeze to get rid of the worst of the water; into kit and out the door.

At 0730 it's, light under the canopy and quiet; the ground is relatively dry. First off is a climb of a little over 300m which is done in half an hour, then a long traverse along the ridge before dropping into the Waiohine. White mist fills the Tauherenikau Valley as it drops behind, while in front the sun rises over Waiohine to filter horizontally through the trees. One foot is sporting a pressure bruise from a fold in the boot making it more of a hobble than a stride this morning.

It’s a relief to reach the car just after 9am; remove boots and hunt for the car key. It’s not far to Aidan and Janne’s for breakfast, shower, inspect the mangled feet then lunch.  OSMs are all very well but a bit of home cooking is very welcome after a weekend of them.

Gear Notes

Time for new boots; painful feet just aren’t necessary.  Also time to get disposable contact lenses, glasses are a hassle on the tops in bad weather.

The new Macpac 40L Torlesse pack is a good sized weekend-staying-in-huts bag. There are a few down sides: a pack that needs a rain cover is a bit of a nuisance; the top attachment for the cover is not great; the hip belt is a bit insubstantial and the “water proof” lining doesn’t look set to last. But it’s good value at $90.

My old gaiters pretty much disintegrated; they are literally on their last legs.

The new Hollyford, Event membrane raincoat performed well; a good solid shell and reasonably adjustable with a handy map pocket.

The Macpac Express light weight sleeping bag performs well with a layer of under clothes at 5 degrees in Kime hut.

Under-Armour leggings performed extremely well. Comfortable walking and beat off the wind and driving rain; get another pair.

DoC hut tickets are available at Featherston Mobil. They were open about 0700.