West Coast Wilderness

(karen)
A big shout out to our devoted fans! Cheers for all the comments you've left for us. Sorry for being incommunicado as of late, we just completed a fantastic 10-day guided trip down the west coast of the South Island with the Hiking New Zealand tour company. I'm convinced that the New Zealand west coast is one of the most spectacular pieces of land anywhere on Earth. You really can't miss. It's damn near impossible to look around and not find something that looks like a postcard. The yang to scenic yin has got to be the sandflies, however. They are slow, stupid, and terribly easy to kill, but what they lack in quality they make up for in quantity. My feet look like I've got chicken pox!

There were 8 of us on the tour, plus our kiwi guide Fiona. Our fellow travelers were Tam from Brisbane (AUS) and Simon from Perth (AUS), Priska from Switzerland, Ulf from Sweden, and Florian from Germany. We got along very well and had a great experience tramping through the bush. I've posted a few pictures here, but the bulk of the photos are on the flickr website in the West Coast Wilderness Folder.

Gordon's Pass Backpack
Our first overnight trip was in the Kahurangi National Park, which is actually the same park where the Heaphy track is loacted. We had a nice warm up hike to our campsite for the evening which was a natural overhanging rock shelter.


Before dinner we explored the surrounding area which has numerous deep sink holes from areas where the limestone caves that run throughout the region have collapsed. Overnight the weather turned cloudy and by morning a light rain was falling. We put on our rain gear and headed out for the summit of Gordon's Pyramid, above bushline. We hiked through the Tablelands which is a flat area of tussock surrounded by ridges, created by glaciers long ago. Once above bushline the rain worsened and the wind really began to howl along the ridges. I was happy to get off the ridges because I was nearly blown away at times! I was soaked through and through (as were most of our party) but somehow Steve managed to stay mostly dry. We stayed that evening in a cute little bach (holiday house) where we got to take turns in the best shower in New Zealand: an outdoor wood heated shower looking out on a picturesque river. I just wish I had more than a bandana to dry off with!



Inland Pack Track
We headed down the coast a bit for our next trip on the Inland Pack Track, which follows a path through river canyon areas. There was some concern if it was walkable due to the massive amounts of rain the day before, but luckily though the water level was higher than usual it was still safe. We squished our way through lots of mud at first, but soon found ourselves at the river. We followed the water downstream, crossing frequently. Most of the crossings were only up to the mid calf, but a few times we had to do buddy support crossings of four people with interlocked arms.


It seemed like we kept getting a little deeper with every crossing, but then we hit the grandaddy on (aptly named) Dilema Creek. The water was too deep to ford so Fiona taught us how to do a pack swim...which is pretty much exactly like it sounds. Everyone stripped down to the minimal amount of decent clothing and then one by one we walked out into the water, rolled onto our backs and kicked our way to the other side. Thank goodness for plastic garbage bags to keep my clothes and sleeping bag dry! It was a fantastic experience and I'm really glad to have done it. It took a long time for me to warm up after being in the river, but some hot chocolate and a long sit by the campfire worked their magic in the end.

Franz Joseph Glacier Walk
On day 5 we had a breif respite from backpacking and most of us took the optional guided glacier walk on the Franz Joseph Glacier. The Franz Joseph and Fox Galciers are unique because they descend into temperate rain forest near the ocean. This is because they receive vast amounts of snow fall and push through very narrow valleys which cause them to flow quickly. Unlike the glacier walk I've done in Alaska which was fairly flat and smooth, this glacier was filled with huge jagged ice formations into which the guides continually are cutting stair paths. Crampons were a must. If you squint your eyes it seems like you're climbing Mt. Everest!



That evening we had a traditonal hangi feast on the beach, which is similar to the Hawaiian luau. We built a fire in the sand and heated several large stones in the center. We put little packets of veggies, lamb and chicken in the center, covered it with wet towels and then again with sand. Two hours later we had a fantastic feast around the campfire. Sooo close to heaven.



Kayaking Okarito Lagoon
We spent another day exercising our top halves by kayaking through the Okarito lagoon which is famous for its variety of bird life.



Welcome Flat Backpack
Our final backpacking trip was two nights at the Welcome Flat Hut. We followed a glacial river through a glacially carved valley, surrounded by the ranges of the Southern Alps. It was breathtaking to be in temperate rainforests next to a baby-blue river, surrounded by snow capped peaks.


A perk of the Welcome Flat were the natural hot springs that had formed perfect soaking pools. It felt fantastic to sit in the hot water after a long day of hiking.


We were lucky to see the kea, or New Zealand mountain parrot, while at our hut. These beautiful birds are apparently some cheeky pranksters but we just watched them flair their green and orange wings as they swooped between the tree tops.

Queenstown
The trip is over now but many of us are still hanging out in Queenstown for a few days before we go our separate ways. Next trip is to the Milford Track so hopefully in another week we'll have a new batch of stories to share.