As announced earlier, here is an account of my latest tramping trip to the Mt Owen massif:
Overview of my four-day trip to the Mt Owen massif
Day 1: Courthouse Flat–Granity Pass
The starting point of my trip was Courthouse Flat at the end of the Wangapeka River Road. There are two options to gain the first 500 metres in altitude: Via the Ridge Track or the Blue Creek Track. The latter was my choice, meandering along an easy walking track next to Blue Creek for the first half hour or so. A few hundred metres before the Blue Creek Resurgence, the track branches off and becomes a tramping track. It follows Blue Creek for a bit before relentlessly and steadily climbing out of the valley. After some heavy rain the day before, a few showers kept on sweeping through from the west, making the track slippery and muddy in parts.
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