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Thousand Acre Plateau—and still counting…

5 April 2010 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Tramping/hiking trips | 5 comments

Following on from my previous article Matiri Valley—gateway to spectacular landscapes, I’m about to tell you about my trip to the Thousand Acre Plateau.

Lake Matiri Hut to plateau rim

After a comfortable and peaceful night at Lake Matiri Hut, I was ready to take on the 800-metre climb to the plateau. About 15 minutes north of the hut is Bay Creek which, apparently, can rise quickly after heavy rain. When I forded it, it was barely knee-deep.

Right across Bay Creek is a track junction with old, wooden signposts from the Forest Service days. “McConchies Hut” points to the right, up Matiri Valley, and “Poor Pete’s Hut” to the left, where I was headed.

Bay Creek

Bay Creek

The climb towards the plateau starts there and then—steep and relentless. The well marked tramping track climbs steadily through beech forest, over zillions of tree roots (“slippery when wet”). After 45 minutes or so, at about 700 metres, I was in for the first reward: A small clearing on the edge of a cliff that makes for a tremendous viewpoint over picturesque Lake Matiri and serpentine Matiri River, 350 metres below.

Lake Matiri

Looking down to Lake Matiri, 350 metres below

Lake Matiri

Lake Matiri

Matiri River

Serpentine Matiri River, north of Lake Matiri

Soon after the viewpoint, at 800 metres, the track levels off considerably and—with a few ups and downs—meanders through bush that’s dominated by grass trees (Dracophyllum). Then the gradient picks up again, and at about 900 metres the final “assault” to the plateau begins. The track zigzags steeply through (and over) limestone blocks, a sure sign of getting within reach of the plateau’s rim.

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Matiri Valley—gateway to spectacular landscapes

24 February 2010 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Tramping/hiking trips | 2 comments

The Matiri Valley Road is the southernmost gateway to Kahurangi National Park. It gives access to some of the park’s most spectacular landscapes: The Hundred and Thousand Acre Plateaux.

In this article I am going to tell you about the first leg of a journey I made in December last year.

Lake Matiri

Overlooking Lake Matiri from Lake Matiri Hut

Lake Matiri Map

Matiri Valley Road

The turnoff to Matiri Valley is on State Highway 6, about 6 km northeast of Murchison by the Buller River bridge. The initial 7 km of road are sealed, the remaining 8 km are unsealed. Across the Matiri River bridge follow the Matiri West Bank Road sign. The last kilometre to the Matiri Carpark is on a badly potholed farm road. After rain the potholes fill up to large puddles and their depth is not always apparent. Drive carefully and leave farm gates as you find them (open or shut).

Beyond the Matiri Carpark the farm road continues for another 2 km to the West Branch Matiri River. This stretch is rugged and crosses several streams, and should only be attempted with a four-wheel drive vehicle.

Matiri Carpark to West Branch Matiri River

Since my car is a two-wheel drive, my tramp began at the Matiri Carpark. About a half-an-hour past the carpark I came across a small herd of cattle. Some of the “ladies” were quite friendly and seemed to enjoy having their photo taken—what made me think so? Well, they followed me, obviously keen to check out their photo on my camera…

The farm road was straightforward to follow, albeit quite mucky in places. It had been raining for a few days, and there was a lot of sodden dung all over the road and the potholes filled to the rim.

Nevertheless, the scenery made up for what was underfoot. The views up the valley and of the Matiri River were pleasant to the eye. It was a hot day and I regretted not having carried some extra water. Because of the ever-present dung I was reluctant to drink any water from the streams that run across the road in a few places.

Yet, I wasn’t far away from the waters of the much cleaner West Branch Matiri River, which I reached just under an hour after leaving the carpark.

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Huts might fly—and they do!

1 November 2009 in Backcountry huts, Curiosities, Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness | 2 comments

The other week when I ventured to Lodestone, I arrived at Flora to find that half of the carpark was cordoned off. A crime scene? Highly unlikely. There, on a trailer behind a DOC ute, sat a wee backcountry hut. A couple of guys wearing hi-vis vests were looking skyward, patiently waiting for something to happen. What was it, I wondered.

Flora Carpark

Flora Carpark taped off.

While I put on my boots and readied myself for my tramp to Lodestone, I heard the crackling noises of radio calls going back and forth. Seeing the ropes draped over the hut, I quickly realised that I was about to witness an aerial hut relocation.

Sure enough, after further radio calls, one of the guys wearing a hard hat asked me to stay behind the line, as a chopper was coming in shortly. Suddenly the peace and quiet was swallowed up by the deep, beating noise of helicopter rotor blades.

Helicopter on the approach to Flora Carpark

Here she comes, straight in over Flora Saddle.

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Lodestone—drive, climb, view—all in a day’s work

20 October 2009 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography, Tramping/hiking trips | 4 comments

Lodestone is a mountain on Kahurangi National Park’s Arthur Range. At 1462 metres it offers breathtaking views, and from the Nelson region it can be reached and climbed in a single day.

The prospect of climbing and descending more than 1400 metres in one day may sound daunting. However, the good news is that over 60% of it (930 metres) can be done by car. From the Motueka River West Bank Road an unsealed road leads up Graham Valley where it branches off into Graham Valley South Branch Road. This road is narrow and very steep, climbing over 700 metres within four kilometres. As a sign at the bottom of the valley rightly points out: “Drive with extreme caution”. At the end of the road is Flora Carpark, simply referred to as “Flora” by locals.

Shelter at Flora Carpark

Shelter at Flora Carpark.

Lodestone map

Lodestone reference/overview.

Flora is the gateway to a number of fantastic tramps in Kahurangi National Park, one of which is the climb to Lodestone. It can be done as a there-and-back via the south ridge (2 to 3 hours return) or as a loop by returning via the southwest ridge, Flora Hut and Flora Saddle (3 to 4 hours). A good level of fitness, adequate gear (wet weather, wind) and footwear (tramping boots) are essential. Carry water as well, as there are no streams or tarns along the way.

Lodestone southeast face

Lodestone southeast face, viewed from Graham Valley.

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Nelson’s western vista—what are we looking at?

12 July 2009 in Photography | 9 comments

It all started with a phone call from my friend Ian last week. From his place he gets a clear view of Nelson’s western ranges, and he remarked on how stunning the snow-clad mountains looked. Since I live near Tahunanui Beach, I wondered whether I should go down with my camera and have a look. A short time later Ian and I were at Tahunanui’s back beach with my camera in tow.

Indeed, the mountains looked rather beautiful, calling for a panorama shot. Unfortunately I left my tripod at home, and the best I could do was a handheld photo shoot, trying to keep the camera level with the horizon and estimating the scene overlap. 50 seconds and 16 shutter releases later, I had digitalised the view.

Combining the photos to a panorama was next (after a nice lunch at the Beach Café). There are a lot of photo stitching programmes out there, among them Tobias Hüllmandel’s PanoramaStudio which I find excellent and fast.

What are we looking at?

Over the years I’ve managed to climb most prominent peaks that surround Nelson, and was able to name them and point them out to Ian.

Since the result of my handheld photo shoot is viewable, I thought it would be nice to produce an online reference, and here it is:

Nelson's western vista

The mountain panorama’s viewing angle stretches roughly over 100°, from the Lookout Range in Kahurangi National Park all the way to Abel Tasman National Park, with Tasman Bay in the foreground.

You can view/download the panorama as a small or (very) large file, free for private, non-commercial use:

(To download the panorama right-click on the link and select Save Link As [in Firefox] or Save Target As [in Explorer].)

Lobelia macrodon—one of twelve lobelia native to New Zealand

5 July 2009 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography | No comments

More than half of New Zealand’s known native plant species (2450 of them in 2004) occur in Kahurangi National Park, one of my favourite tramping “playgrounds”. Over the years I’ve certainly begun to appreciate the diversity of plant life in Kahurangi. Regardless of the location, altitude and exposure to nature’s elements, some plant has made itself at home there.

I have also learnt that unless I keep an eye out for them, most plants go unnoticed, usually because they are quite small and at the same time blend in well with the surroundings.

However, now and then a plant seeks attention: “Hello there, come and have a look at my pretty flowers!” As happened with the plant portrayed in this article. It called out to me from below Kakapo Peak, which is a well-known day trip from Fenella Hut.

The pretty white flowers happily posed in front of my camera lens. Upon my return home, I was faced with the quest of finding out the name of the plant. None of my books and online searches gave me any answers. It was time to ask an expert, such as Nelson botanist Shannel Courtney:

Shannel’s verdict: “Your plant is Lobelia macrodon—one of twelve named species of native lobelia. This one is confined to scree margins and bare ground of the northern South Island down to about Mt Hutt in South Canterbury, and it is the most fragrant of all of them. John Salmon has it illustrated on page 244 of his field guide—he calls it mountain pratia as it used to be called Pratia macrodon (all the Pratia are now Lobelia). But there are about six species of mountain lobelia so this isn’t a good common name.”

Thank you Shannel!

(Shannel Courtney works for the Department of Conservation in Nelson, and is a committee member of the New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. In 2008 he was presented with the Loder Cup, New Zealand’s premier conservation award.)

Lobelia macrodon

Lobelia macrodon flowering below Kakapo Peak in March.

What’s in a name? French botanist Charles Plumier (1646–1704) named the plant genus Lobelia and the botanical family Lobeliaceae in honour of Flemish botanist Matthias de L’Obel (1538–1616).

Teddy bear George admiring Lobelia macrodon

There’s that bear again! (See Bear sightings in Kahurangi National Park.) For size reference, the bear’s height is a mere 0.4 foot (130 mm).

Kakapo Peak

Kakapo Peak (south face, 1783 m).

Southwestern view from Kakapo Peak

Southwestern view from Kakapo Peak.

CameraTo view my other Kakapo Peak photos please browse my gallery or view the slideshow.

Mountain ribbonwoods—a deciduous tree native to New Zealand

31 May 2009 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography | 3 comments

No matter what time of the year you go bush in New Zealand, it’s always green. Unlike other parts of the world, New Zealand has very few trees that are deciduous (shed their leaves annually). Mountain ribbonwoods (Hoheria glabrata) is one of them.

When I traversed the Upper Nuggety Creek Flat in the Marino Mountains, I noticed a large number of small trees scattered throughout the flat’s eastern slope. Their soft, bright green leaves were flapping in the wind, and my immediate thought was, “these are deciduous trees—are they native?”

Upper Nuggety Creek catchment

Upper Nuggety Creek catchment

Mountain ribbonwoods on the eastern slope of Upper Nuggety Creek Flat

Mountain ribbonwoods on the eastern slope of Upper Nuggety Creek Flat

Indeed they are! Mountain ribbonwoods (aka Mountain lacebark and houhere in Māori) comes in two “flavours”: Hoheria lyallii and Hoheria glabrata. The former grows up to six metres high, mainly on the eastern side of the South Island’s main divide, and the latter up to ten metres high primarily on the western side. Both are found along forest margins, stream terraces and in shrublands from 600 to 1050 metres altitude. In late summer they produce a spectacular display of cherrytree-like, sweetly fragranced blossoms.

Mountain ribbonwoods—Hoheria glabrata

Mountain ribbonwoods—Hoheria glabrata

Mountain ribbonwoods blossom

Mountain ribbonwoods blossom

On my quest to find other deciduous trees that are native to New Zealand, I found only two other ones:

  • Tree fuchsia—Kōtukutuku—Fuchsia excorticata
  • Hectors tree daisy—Olearia hectorii

QuestionIf you know any deciduous trees that are native to New Zealand, that I haven’t mentioned above, I would appreciate your comment below.

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