tussocks

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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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Stag Flat Shelter—replaced and relocated

24 May 2009 in Backcountry huts, Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography | 2 comments

Directly south of Little Wanganui Saddle on the Wangapeka Track lies Stag Flat, a bush-clad tussock basin. The first time I tramped through Stag Flat was eleven years ago, on my way through from the Wangapeka River to the West Coast. Stag Flat Shelter was about 200 metres off the main track and concealed by beech trees. I was quite taken by the cute little hut and decided I would spend a night there on my next visit.

Former Stag Flat Hut

Former Stag Flat Hut

View from the window of the former Stag Flat Hut

View from the window of the former Stag Flat Hut

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Mt Owen massif—wilderness at its best

17 May 2009 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography, Tramping/hiking trips | 4 comments

As announced earlier, here is an account of my latest tramping trip to the Mt Owen massif:

Map with Mt Owen massif trip overview

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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Marino Mountains—”marbellous” landscape in Kahurangi National Park

8 March 2009 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Photography | No comments

I have just returned from a fantastic tramp to the Marino Mountains in Kahurangi National Park, which is more commonly known as the Mt Owen area.

The Marino Mountains largely consist of 500 million-year-old limestone which, over hundreds of thousands of years, metamorphosed into crystallised marble, producing a fascinating karst landscape. Vast tussock grasslands are interspersed with unusual fluted outcrops, vertical crevasses and deep sinkholes, creating a truly “a-maze-ing” topography.

The photo below shows the author traversing the karst country between Sentinel Hill and the Nuggety Creek headwaters, at approximately 1400 m.

Update

Since posting this article, I have written a detailed account of my trip to the Marino Mountains.

Tramper traversing karst country in the Marino Mountains

Balloon Hut—let’s take off to the Tableland!

13 February 2009 in Backcountry huts, Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness | 1 comment

Balloon Hut

Many years ago, upon my first visit to Balloon Hut in Kahurangi National Park, I wondered where the balloons were. There were no moored balloons, hot-air balloons, party balloons or any other types of balloon anywhere up there. So why would anyone call this hut “Balloon”? It wasn’t until a subsequent visit that the scales fell from my eyes: “There it is!”

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Lake Angelus—peaceful waters

11 July 2008 in Backcountry huts, Nelson Lakes, New Zealand wilderness, Tramping/hiking trips | 3 comments

Lake Angelus is a pristine mountain lake in Nelson Lakes National Park. The lake lies in a basin dominated by tussock, and surrounded by rocky mountain ridges and peaks, such as Mt Angelus, towering majestically to the south of the lake.

Lake Angelus is a fairly popular destination and most trampers spend at least one to two nights at Angelus Hut which sits slightly elevated right by the edge of the lake offering a spectacular outlook. If you plan to visit Lake Angelus I recommend you allow for an extra day to explore the area and enjoy the peacefulness—and climb Mt Angelus perhaps (weather permitting, of course). On one of my visits, a very keen tramper (or mountain runner?) ran to Mt Angelus summit and back before breakfast!

Lake Angelus

Lake Angelus

There are four tracks/routes to Lake Angelus, each of them involves a climb of about 1000 m and takes roughly six hours to complete, depending on one’s level of fitness and the weather conditions. On DOC’s Approaches to Angelus: Tracks and walks publications page you can download a poster called ‘Approaches to Angelus track/route profiles’ (which I was commissioned to design) that contains a map showing the tracks as well as elevation profiles.

Quick links

More info

One thing to always keep in mind is weather! As is typical with most mountainous areas, the weather at Angelus can change very quickly. I’ve seen it myself when, literally out of the blue, a few clouds appear and within minutes: whiteout. I remember on one occasion during summer (February), there was a cold snap and within a couple of days a half metre of snow was dumped in the Angelus area. It was gone as quickly as it arrived, but snow dumps and other extreme weather can occur at any time of the year.

For a brief preview of the Angelus area take a look at my photos that show the lake in late summer as well as in spring when the ice and snow started to thaw.

How did the lake and mountain get their name? According to the book The Story of Nelson Lakes National Park (published by the Department of Conservation in 1988) this is how: “Angelus: Originally named Lake Rangimarie (which means ‘peaceful waters’) by L J Dumbleton. It was later named Angelus by some unknown party, probably after Dumbleton, Chittenden and Stanton climbed and named Mt Angelus on an Easter evening in 1947. Angelus is a devotional exercise commemorating the incarnation; repeated at morning, noon and sunset.”

When are you going to Lake Angelus? Or have you already been there? How did you get there and what did you think of it?

About spiders and pixies in the Mackay Downs

16 May 2008 in Kahurangi, New Zealand wilderness, Tramping/hiking trips | No comments

Nursery web spider - Dolomedes minor

While edging my camera lens closer and closer to a nursery web spider, I was thinking “is she going to jump me?” This beautiful, reddish-brown dolomedes minor has a leg span of 60 mm or more. The female builds a nursery web in which she deposits the egg sac. Whilst the young spiders hatch, their mother guards the nursery web from nearby or by sitting on top of it, as shown in my photos.

James Mackay Hut is the hut with the best views on the Heaphy Track, right down to the Heaphy River mouth and Tasman Sea, and across to the Gunner Downs.

Mackay Downs

Mackay Downs

Quick links

Between James Mackay Hut and Saxon Hut the track skirts the southern rim of the undulating Mackay Downs. Even on a grey day the golden tussocks glow against the green backdrop of stunted bush, and impressive granite boulders add to the magic of this remarkable landscape.

Heaphy Pixie

Speaking of magic, as you enter or leave the Mackay Downs, beware of the Heaphy Pixies! If you’re kind to them and respect their habitat, they are friendly and give you a smile as you pass. If you’re not, they may lead you astray and you could be lost in the Mackay Downs forever!

I was lucky—this Heaphy Pixie just blinked at me…

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