Wed 06.04.16. My tramp to Camp Stream Hut, Map ref: BY17 105487. I drove 30 km along Lilybank Rd, Lake Tekapo east shore, past Mt Hay Station, Richmond Station & Round Hill Ski Field turnoff. Further on, in Mt Gerald Station, just beyond Coal River Bridge, the turnoff to the DOC carpark, where the Camp Stream Hut track started, in Te Kahui Kaupeka National Park - Gathering of the waters. The DOC sign board at the carpark was wrong, stating the walk was 6 km to Camp Stream Hut. DOC website stating 9 km one way was more accurate.
From the Coal River carpark the DOC marker poled track followed a farm road beside high deer fencing, passing paddocks & streams in glacial kettle holes till it reached a farm gate at the Mt Gerald Station / National Park boundary. A DOC sign at the border gate stated 3 km Rex Simpson Memorial Hut, 4 km Camp Stream Hut. Wrong again. The rough track, one way distance to Camp Stream Hut was 7 km from the Mt Gerald Station / National Park deer fence.
Following DOC marker poles, through matagouri, then snow tussock, the rough track followed an old fence line up steep, glacial terraces till it reached another farm road with another DOC sign pointing to Rex Simpson Memorial Hut & Camp Stream Hut in opposite directions. The Camp Stream Hut trail followed the old farm road over a Mt Gerald Saddle, Map ref: BY17 096499, about 1400 m height through snow tussock down to meandering Camp Stream in a snow tussock valley between Mt Gerald east side & Mt Braun Elwart west side.
Mt Gerald Saddle gave grand western views of Lake Tekapo, Mt Mistake, Godley River Valley & Alpine Ranges. Mt Gerald Saddle road gave eastern views of Camp Stream going down, past river terraces, to the back of Round Hill & Mt Richmond in the Two Thumbs Range. Camp Stream was bounded by Mt Gerald in the west & Two Thumbs Range in the east. Looking up valley, Mt Gerald east side showed no signs of glacial terracing.
At Camp Stream crossing another DOC sign gave directions, but no km distances to Camp Stream Hut, Rex Simpson Memorial Hut & Stag Saddle on the Te Araroa Trail. (3 000 km trail from Cape Reinga to Bluff). That signage was alarming, as I map estimated the distance from that Camp Stream crossing point to Stag Saddle, about 10 km, 700 vertical metres, a day's hike. With bad distance signs, DOC asked for idiot trampers to get lost in the mountains.
Round a curve on the road on Mt Braun Elwart southern ridge, Camp Stream Hut was on a river terrace below Mt Braun Elwart southern ridge & below another southern ridge terrace of a nameless mt. Mt Richmond, curved northwards past Round Hill, as a great wall of avalanche rock looming above the lot.
Camp Stream Hut was occupied, two campers scoffing in midday sun. I turned back & returned the way I'd come over Mt Gerald Saddle road.
My times: Mt Gerald Station / Coal River DOC carpark, farm road & rough track to the bottom of the glacial terraces: 1 hour.
Rough track, 500 vertical metres climb up Mt Gerald glacial terraces to another farm road: 1 hour.
Farm road over Mt Gerald Saddle to Camp Stream Hut: 1.5 hours.
Return from Camp Stream Hut to Mt Gerald Station / Coal River DOC carpark: 3.5 hours.
Total distance 18 kms. Total 700 vertical metres climbed. A full day's 7 hour walk, excluding pic & scoff times. Hill walking fitness, Topo 50 map, water, food, all weather gear needed. Cell phone coverage - only where Mt John / Lake Tekapo south shore can be seen. No cell phone coverage when surrounded by mts, hollows, or valleys.
Fri 05.05.16. My tramp to Camp Stream Hut from the S: From Lilybank Rd, 25 kms from Lake Tekapo village, I drove 3 kms up Round Hill Ski Field road & parked my car at the DOC carpark by Round Hill Ski Field gate, overlooking Coal River. A DOC sign indicated Richmond Trail 3 kms, Round Hill Ski Field 5 kms.
I went N. By Mt Gerald Station deer fence, I crossed Coal River & climbed the steep N bank by a tributary stream smothered in matagouri. Map ref: BY17 075456. Avoiding matagouri & deep snow tussock to the stream source, I wandered up moraine, N facing hummocks & glacial terraces to the edge of Coal River gorge - about 1 hour's tramp over alpine vegetation, like scab weed, mikimiki & snow tussock.
In snow tussock, sidling the S end of Mt Gerald, Map ref: BY17 108468, I crossed a high tussock valley with views of Mt Erebus NW & Round Hill SE, Mt Richmond behind.
Through tussock land, I tramped Camp Stream river terraces, between Mt Gerald S end & the S end of Mt Braun Elwart towards Camp Stream Hut on a river terrace above Camp Stream. E of Camp Stream Hut, Two Thumbs Range included 2 more mt ridges with the great wall of Richmond Range louring above the lot. A vast panorama, including 5 mt ridges above river terraces & valley streams, on my way to Camp Stream Hut.
I crossed Camp Stream & lunched at Camp Stream Hut. No one else in sight.
Inside: the corrugated iron hut had 3 small windows; 6 bunk beds; a wood burning stove; a wooden bench; kitchen bench; miscellaneous eating / water utensils; candle holders; business cards; intentions book.
Outside: Long drop toilet with a grand view of Round Hill & Richmond Range. Firewood was stored in 2 corrugated iron water cisterns & under corrugated iron sheets. An axe in a wood stump invited chopping. Red deer antlers hung above the wooden door. A sign on the door read:
Camp Stream Hut
1898
Mackenzie Alpine Trust
Time: 3 hours from DOC carpark on Round Hill Ski Field road to Camp Stream Hut. Distance: 6 kms.
I returned to my car via the farm road over Mt Gerald Saddle, as above, recrossing Camp Stream & climbing to an old trig beacon, 1421 m on Mt Gerald S ridge. A longer return trek, distance 7 kms, time 4 hours.
Beware: On Mt Gerald, SW facing, moraine slopes there were dangerous, deep holes, formed by hidden streams, covered in tussock land. Using my walking stick, I probed ahead in deep tussock to stop me falling in holes. I saw two wallabies leap out of a hole & disappear into tussocks while bounding away. As I had no Personal Locator Beacon, (PLB costly, no hiring business at Lake Tekapo) if I fell into a hole & broke a limb, it would be a helluva job for LAND SAR finding me. If ever? Safety: I always gave my Topo 50 map ref intentions to family before I tramped the Alps.
Total time: 7 hours, excluding lunch. Total distance: 13 kms. 500 vertical metres climbed. Topo 50 map & tramping gear required, as above,
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Te Araroa Trail
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Sunday, April 3, 2016
Reckoning: CERA's Hydra Legacy after five years' Canterbury Occupation
CERA Legacy focus. Saturday 02.04.16. The Weekend Press published a full page CERA notice. The CERA notice avoided mentioning CERA's hydra legacy:
*CERA's 28 month occupation of Christchurch CBD while demolishing buildings & buying CBD properties for CERA's Blueprint precincts.
*CERA's five years' post-quake meddling in Christchurch City Council affairs like putting an observer into Council meetings & trying to get Council to speed up consents processing.
*CERA trying to force Council to sell its assets like Lyttelton Port & Christchurch Airport to pay for CERA's Blueprint precincts. e.g. Selling of Council's City Care maintenance company.
*CERA doing nothing about ECAN stooges, National govt appointed commissioners who usurped former elected ECAN, causing Canterbury water-affairs strife like dairy farmers intensifying on Canterbury Plains which was unsuitable for such farming.
*CERA doing nothing about MoE's closures & mergers of Canterbury schools.
*CERA doing nothing about EQC's ineptitude, EQC still fobbing off overcap $100 000 house repairs to insurers more than five years post-quakes.
*EQC's ineptitude, 1 000s of faulty undercap $100 000 house repairs, especially house-foundation repairs needing to be remedied by EQC's contractors.
*CERA's slow beginning of CERA's Blueprint anchor projects, like Convention Centre / Te Pae, the 35 000 seater roofed Stadium, the Metro Sports Facility, all of which to date were vast demolition-sites, leaving the CERA occupied CBD a SMF-cordoned mess.
*CERA's red-zone walks to Christ Church Cathedral ruin & red-zone bus-tours & Restart Cashel Mall & revamped Hagley Cricket Oval & Margaret Mahy Family Playground & the Bus Interchange on Council land.
*CERA's Blueprint Justice & Emergency Services building between Lichfield St & Tuam St, stuffing cops & courts & corrections & fire & ambulance services & Civil Defence into one precinct.
*Christ Church Cathedral ruin still fence-cordoned in Cathedral Sq. CERA did nothing to stop ex politicians Burdon & Anderton & Heritage-hailers from delaying the Anglican diocese rebuild of Christ Church Cathedral. (2024: Cathedral reinstatement mess: cost-reduction plan to not install base-isolaters beneath the Cathedral. 2026 Reinstatement was still delayed by poor funding!).
*Cathedral Sq: Central Library / Turanga rebuild was not done yet. (Completed 2018). Abandoned multi-storey Rydges Hotel & abandoned Millennium Hotel / Distinction Hotel were still closed. (2023. Rydges Hotel & associated shops & the abandoned multi-storey carpark were still eyesores). Part-demolished, asbestos riddled BNZ ruin was still a graffitied mess. (September 2018. Spark multi-storey grew up on the BNZ demolition-site). Multi-storey Novotel was for sale. Ibis Hotel, Hereford St was for sale as CERA's Cathedral Sq was inactive. (September 2018. Novotel was OK. Ibis Hotel was OK, but was pestered by vagrants sleeping nearby & harassing Hereford St passersby).
*Insurers' slow claims settlements.
*SCIRT's incomplete, shoddy road repairs.
*CERA's acquisition or taking of 7 000+ red-zone, residential properties & scores of CBD commercial properties for CERA's 20 odd Blueprint projects like the East Frame. To date CERA had not said what it would do with all the red-zone, residential property & red-zone, commercial property it had taken. (2020. Labour government would hand back the residential red-zone "parkland" to Council for safe-keeping / maintenance, including the Avon River to Pacific corridor).
Five years post-quakes, CERA's legacy not only included the above mess, but its hydra buds formed more bureaucracy which still interfered with Council affairs. The Weekend Press, a CERA notice:
"CERA
CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE
RECOVERY AUTHORITY
Te Mana Haumanu ki Waitaha
THE CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE
RECOVERY AUTHORITY COMES TO AN
END ON MONDAY 18 APRIL 2016
CERA was established by the Government to lead and coordinate the region's recovery in the wake of the devastating earthquakes of September 2010 and February 2011.
This short-term organisation was given a five-year lifespan and will be formally disestablished on Monday 18 April 2016.
In October last year the Transition Recovery Plan was publically released which explained where some of CERA's functions would move to and which ones would be wound down. That transition started in December last year when the first of CERA's functions were taken over by other Government agencies.
The Transition Recovery Plan is published here www.cera.govt.nz/transition [CERA Disestablishment website] and physical copies are available to read at Christchurch Libraries.
What you need to know
The agencies that inherit CERA's functions will be the contact points of information once CERA office is closed.
Regenerate Christchurch
Regenerate Christchurch is a new joint Crown-Council entity which will oversee the long term development and enhancement of the central city, Christchurch's residential red zone and New Brighton. It will do this by engaging with communities, stakeholders and decision makers. [After NZ Labour govt took over, it would wind-up Regenerate Christchurch earlier than former National govt had planned].
Otakaro Limited
Otakaro Limited is a new Crown company established to deliver key anchor projects and precincts in Christchurch and manage any potential future sale of Crown owned land in the central city. [Dispose of CERA's land takings]. www.otakaroltd.co.nz
Land Information New Zealand (LINZ)
On 1 December 2015 LINZ inherited the remaining responsibility for:
*Demolitions and clearing of Crown Owned property in the residential red zone.
*Maintenance of Crown owned land in the residential red zone.
LINZ will not be making decisions about the longer-term use of the residential red zone.
www.linz.govt.nz
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE)
On 1 December 2015 MBIE took over responsibility for:
*The remaining residential rebuild work, including finding solutions for emerging residential rebuild issues and monitoring the pace and rate of insurance settlements.
*Analysing progress of the rebuild, providing procurement advice, and informing and engaging with the construction market.
www.mbie.govt.nz
Ministry of Health / Canterbury District Health Board
On 1 December 2015 the Ministry of Health, working closely with the Canterbury DBH, took on some additional leadership responsibilities for coordinating psychosocial health work.
On 1 March 2015 they took responsibility for monitoring and reporting on community well being.
www.health.govt.nz www.cdhb.govt.nz
Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet
On 1 March 2015 the Greater Christchurch Group, a business unit within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) was established. The Group's responsibilities include:
*Providing policy advice to Ministers and Government on the regeneration of greater Christchurch, including the future uses of the Christchurch residential red zone.
*Monitoring and reporting on the overall progress of regeneration.
*Part funding and jointly governing repairs to horizontal infrastructure such as roads and
underground pipes.
*Administering the new Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill.
www.dpmc.govt.nz
CERA's website www.cera.govt.nz will be archived for general reference and can be found through the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet's website www.dpmc.govt.nz from 18 April 2016.
However, for all inquiries and up-to-date information please phone the appropriate inheriting agency.
John Ombler
Acting Chief Executive
Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority"
Ombler took over CERA after former CERA boss Sutton resigned.
CERA didn't say that most of the CBD rebuild after five years & rebuild elsewhere after five years (new residential developments & shops & offices) was done by the private sector, not CERA.
After CERA was disestablished on 18.04.16 into the above government tentacles, CERA documents & websites & internet connections were absorbed into the CERA Document Archive, ceraarchive.dpmc.govt.nz managed by the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet. So all my CERA links on my blog received a "CERA has been disestablished" link, referring readers to the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet. CERA links like media releases & CERA reports & demolition-lists & zoning information etc, which was available on the CERA website could henceforth be found in the CERA Document Archive.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Regenerate Christchurch Early End (Stuff Co).
*CERA's 28 month occupation of Christchurch CBD while demolishing buildings & buying CBD properties for CERA's Blueprint precincts.
*CERA's five years' post-quake meddling in Christchurch City Council affairs like putting an observer into Council meetings & trying to get Council to speed up consents processing.
*CERA trying to force Council to sell its assets like Lyttelton Port & Christchurch Airport to pay for CERA's Blueprint precincts. e.g. Selling of Council's City Care maintenance company.
*CERA doing nothing about ECAN stooges, National govt appointed commissioners who usurped former elected ECAN, causing Canterbury water-affairs strife like dairy farmers intensifying on Canterbury Plains which was unsuitable for such farming.
*CERA doing nothing about MoE's closures & mergers of Canterbury schools.
*CERA doing nothing about EQC's ineptitude, EQC still fobbing off overcap $100 000 house repairs to insurers more than five years post-quakes.
*EQC's ineptitude, 1 000s of faulty undercap $100 000 house repairs, especially house-foundation repairs needing to be remedied by EQC's contractors.
*CERA's slow beginning of CERA's Blueprint anchor projects, like Convention Centre / Te Pae, the 35 000 seater roofed Stadium, the Metro Sports Facility, all of which to date were vast demolition-sites, leaving the CERA occupied CBD a SMF-cordoned mess.
*CERA's red-zone walks to Christ Church Cathedral ruin & red-zone bus-tours & Restart Cashel Mall & revamped Hagley Cricket Oval & Margaret Mahy Family Playground & the Bus Interchange on Council land.
*CERA's Blueprint Justice & Emergency Services building between Lichfield St & Tuam St, stuffing cops & courts & corrections & fire & ambulance services & Civil Defence into one precinct.
*Christ Church Cathedral ruin still fence-cordoned in Cathedral Sq. CERA did nothing to stop ex politicians Burdon & Anderton & Heritage-hailers from delaying the Anglican diocese rebuild of Christ Church Cathedral. (2024: Cathedral reinstatement mess: cost-reduction plan to not install base-isolaters beneath the Cathedral. 2026 Reinstatement was still delayed by poor funding!).
*Cathedral Sq: Central Library / Turanga rebuild was not done yet. (Completed 2018). Abandoned multi-storey Rydges Hotel & abandoned Millennium Hotel / Distinction Hotel were still closed. (2023. Rydges Hotel & associated shops & the abandoned multi-storey carpark were still eyesores). Part-demolished, asbestos riddled BNZ ruin was still a graffitied mess. (September 2018. Spark multi-storey grew up on the BNZ demolition-site). Multi-storey Novotel was for sale. Ibis Hotel, Hereford St was for sale as CERA's Cathedral Sq was inactive. (September 2018. Novotel was OK. Ibis Hotel was OK, but was pestered by vagrants sleeping nearby & harassing Hereford St passersby).
*Insurers' slow claims settlements.
*SCIRT's incomplete, shoddy road repairs.
*CERA's acquisition or taking of 7 000+ red-zone, residential properties & scores of CBD commercial properties for CERA's 20 odd Blueprint projects like the East Frame. To date CERA had not said what it would do with all the red-zone, residential property & red-zone, commercial property it had taken. (2020. Labour government would hand back the residential red-zone "parkland" to Council for safe-keeping / maintenance, including the Avon River to Pacific corridor).
Five years post-quakes, CERA's legacy not only included the above mess, but its hydra buds formed more bureaucracy which still interfered with Council affairs. The Weekend Press, a CERA notice:
"CERA
CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE
RECOVERY AUTHORITY
Te Mana Haumanu ki Waitaha
THE CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE
RECOVERY AUTHORITY COMES TO AN
END ON MONDAY 18 APRIL 2016
CERA was established by the Government to lead and coordinate the region's recovery in the wake of the devastating earthquakes of September 2010 and February 2011.
This short-term organisation was given a five-year lifespan and will be formally disestablished on Monday 18 April 2016.
In October last year the Transition Recovery Plan was publically released which explained where some of CERA's functions would move to and which ones would be wound down. That transition started in December last year when the first of CERA's functions were taken over by other Government agencies.
The Transition Recovery Plan is published here www.cera.govt.nz/transition [CERA Disestablishment website] and physical copies are available to read at Christchurch Libraries.
What you need to know
The agencies that inherit CERA's functions will be the contact points of information once CERA office is closed.
Regenerate Christchurch
Regenerate Christchurch is a new joint Crown-Council entity which will oversee the long term development and enhancement of the central city, Christchurch's residential red zone and New Brighton. It will do this by engaging with communities, stakeholders and decision makers. [After NZ Labour govt took over, it would wind-up Regenerate Christchurch earlier than former National govt had planned].
Otakaro Limited
Otakaro Limited is a new Crown company established to deliver key anchor projects and precincts in Christchurch and manage any potential future sale of Crown owned land in the central city. [Dispose of CERA's land takings]. www.otakaroltd.co.nz
Land Information New Zealand (LINZ)
On 1 December 2015 LINZ inherited the remaining responsibility for:
*Demolitions and clearing of Crown Owned property in the residential red zone.
*Maintenance of Crown owned land in the residential red zone.
LINZ will not be making decisions about the longer-term use of the residential red zone.
www.linz.govt.nz
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE)
On 1 December 2015 MBIE took over responsibility for:
*The remaining residential rebuild work, including finding solutions for emerging residential rebuild issues and monitoring the pace and rate of insurance settlements.
*Analysing progress of the rebuild, providing procurement advice, and informing and engaging with the construction market.
www.mbie.govt.nz
Ministry of Health / Canterbury District Health Board
On 1 December 2015 the Ministry of Health, working closely with the Canterbury DBH, took on some additional leadership responsibilities for coordinating psychosocial health work.
On 1 March 2015 they took responsibility for monitoring and reporting on community well being.
www.health.govt.nz www.cdhb.govt.nz
Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet
On 1 March 2015 the Greater Christchurch Group, a business unit within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) was established. The Group's responsibilities include:
*Providing policy advice to Ministers and Government on the regeneration of greater Christchurch, including the future uses of the Christchurch residential red zone.
*Monitoring and reporting on the overall progress of regeneration.
*Part funding and jointly governing repairs to horizontal infrastructure such as roads and
underground pipes.
*Administering the new Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill.
www.dpmc.govt.nz
CERA's website www.cera.govt.nz will be archived for general reference and can be found through the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet's website www.dpmc.govt.nz from 18 April 2016.
However, for all inquiries and up-to-date information please phone the appropriate inheriting agency.
John Ombler
Acting Chief Executive
Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority"
Ombler took over CERA after former CERA boss Sutton resigned.
CERA didn't say that most of the CBD rebuild after five years & rebuild elsewhere after five years (new residential developments & shops & offices) was done by the private sector, not CERA.
After CERA was disestablished on 18.04.16 into the above government tentacles, CERA documents & websites & internet connections were absorbed into the CERA Document Archive, ceraarchive.dpmc.govt.nz managed by the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet. So all my CERA links on my blog received a "CERA has been disestablished" link, referring readers to the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet. CERA links like media releases & CERA reports & demolition-lists & zoning information etc, which was available on the CERA website could henceforth be found in the CERA Document Archive.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Regenerate Christchurch Early End (Stuff Co).
Thursday, March 10, 2016
Rex Simpson Hut, Mt Gerald Station, Mackenzie Country
Mon 07.03.16. As I wanted to climb to Rex Simpson Memorial Hut, Map ref: BY17 091514, I drove along Lilybank Rd, below Two Thumbs Range, from Lake Tekapo village, 30km along Lake Tekapo E shore, past Mt Hay Station, past Richmond Station, past Round Hill Ski Field turnoff, deep into Mt Gerald Station. Just across Coal River Bridge, I turned right at DOC's Te Kahui Kaupeka (Gathering of the Waters) sign & parked my car 800m along the road at the DOC carpark. A DOC sign at the carpark stated it was 2km to Mt Gerald Station / DOC boundary; 5km to Rex Simpson Hut; 6km to Camp Stream Hut.
I'd found DOC signs false in the past. My Topo50 map, guesstimate distance from the DOC carpark to Rex Simpson Hut - 8km. DOC did straight line estimates on a map & didn't include all the curves & loops in a tramp.
It was an easy walk to DOC's boundary sign, past a matagouri banked stream, flowing in a glacial kettle hole down to Coal River & Lake Tekapo & past red deer / sheep paddock fences. At the boundary gate another DOC sign read: 3km Rex Simpson Hut; 4km Camp Stream Hut. (Again false, I found the distance to Rex Simpson Hut more than 5km, considering boggy ground by the farm fence & losing track in matagouri while going up glacial terraces! And DOC marker poles weren't easy to see in the matagouri.)
A month ago I'd set off to find Rex Simpson Hut, but beyond the boundary fence, DOC marker poles were obscured by matagouri, so I missed the uphill turn at the third marker pole. From there the path followed an old fence up glacial terraces, first through matagouri, then tussockland. Instead I wandered along Mt Gerald Station boundary fence, a high, red deer fence, to Mt Gerald Stream fencing & back. Along the way I found a red stag skull with 10 point antlers, which I backpacked 8km to my car.
I counted 4 dozen cattle grazing in matagouri land beyond Mt Gerald Station fence. Every stream I crossed was full of cow shit! Soft ground near the streams was eroded by cattle hooves. Why did DOC & ECAN allow cattle to pollute high country streams?
The tramp to Rex Simpson Hut was steep, beginning at 800m at the DOC carpark, then rising 500 vertical metres to a farm road in tussockland at 1300m where another DOC sign read: Rex Simpson Hut 1km, Camp Stream Hut 2km. After nearly 3 hours uphill tramping to the sign, I knew the DOC signage was false, as my walking speed was 2-3km / hour, on flats or in high country.
Rex Simpson Hut nestled on a Mt Gerald N-S slope with grand views of Lake Tekapo, Alpine ranges, Godley River Valley & Macaulay River Valley. Rex Simpson Hut was locked, owned by Alpine Recreation. A small side room with 2 bare bed boards was left unlocked for anyone caught out by bad weather. After using the stinking long drop toilet, I returned to my car. Estimated return distance: 18km. Return time: 7 hours. Hill walking fitness, food, water, all weather gear required. Cell phone coverage when facing distant Mt John, SW end of Lake Tekapo.
Mon 14.03.16. I climbed up to Rex Simpson Hut again, 2.5 hours, as I knew the way. I wanted to climb above Rex Simpson Hut to lower Snake Ridge, 1500m. Snake Ridge went all the way up to Beuzenberg Peak 2073m, a distinctive ridge & peak in the the Two Thumbs Range, seen from Lake Tekapo village about 30km away.
At a stream above Rex Simpson Hut I topped up my water bottle & slogged up to lower Snake Ridge top through snow tussock & over rocks & bogs. There was a path to lower Snake Ridge top, but it was obscured by tussock. I found the path later on my way down.
Snake Ridge top, undulating at first, then sinuous, gave grand views: E over tussock land & Camp Stream high valley below Mt Braun Elwart 2086m, W across flat topped Mt Gerald 1551m, Godley River, Lake Tekapo, Mt Mistake, Pikes Peak & Gammack Range. Beyond I saw snowy Mt Tasman, but Mt Cook was hidden by cloud. SW across Lake Tekapo, Old Man Range, Ben Ohau Range & other ranges were seen. Mt John was a glacial, scoured lump, SW side of Lake Tekapo. E side of Lake Tekapo progressively larger lumps were seen: Wee McGregor, Mt Hay, Mt Edward, Mt Ardmore, Mt Richmond, above Round Hill Ski Field.
From Snake Ridge top, NE across Camp Stream tussock valley, Mt Hope 2086m, N beyond Mt Braun Elwart was seen, Stag Saddle joined Mt Hope to Beuzenberg Peak, all forming Camp Stream headwaters. From lower Snake Ridge, where I turned back at 1pm, a full day's climbing was needed to ascend Snake Ridge to Beuzenberg Peak & return to Rex Simpson Hut.
My walking times: Coal River, DOC carpark up to Rex Simpson Hut & lower Snake Ridge top - 4 hours. Return to DOC carpark - 4 hours. Estimated distance - 20km. Height: DOC carpark to lower Snake Ridge top - 700 vertical metres. Hill walking fitness, all weather gear, food, water, NZ Topo50 maps required. Terrain: steep & harsh, no cover.
Wed 15.11.23. Tramped to Rex Simpson Hut again, a cool, breezy day, confirming the above times & distances. My cell phone fitness app said I'd climbed 117 floors!
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
I'd found DOC signs false in the past. My Topo50 map, guesstimate distance from the DOC carpark to Rex Simpson Hut - 8km. DOC did straight line estimates on a map & didn't include all the curves & loops in a tramp.
It was an easy walk to DOC's boundary sign, past a matagouri banked stream, flowing in a glacial kettle hole down to Coal River & Lake Tekapo & past red deer / sheep paddock fences. At the boundary gate another DOC sign read: 3km Rex Simpson Hut; 4km Camp Stream Hut. (Again false, I found the distance to Rex Simpson Hut more than 5km, considering boggy ground by the farm fence & losing track in matagouri while going up glacial terraces! And DOC marker poles weren't easy to see in the matagouri.)
A month ago I'd set off to find Rex Simpson Hut, but beyond the boundary fence, DOC marker poles were obscured by matagouri, so I missed the uphill turn at the third marker pole. From there the path followed an old fence up glacial terraces, first through matagouri, then tussockland. Instead I wandered along Mt Gerald Station boundary fence, a high, red deer fence, to Mt Gerald Stream fencing & back. Along the way I found a red stag skull with 10 point antlers, which I backpacked 8km to my car.
I counted 4 dozen cattle grazing in matagouri land beyond Mt Gerald Station fence. Every stream I crossed was full of cow shit! Soft ground near the streams was eroded by cattle hooves. Why did DOC & ECAN allow cattle to pollute high country streams?
The tramp to Rex Simpson Hut was steep, beginning at 800m at the DOC carpark, then rising 500 vertical metres to a farm road in tussockland at 1300m where another DOC sign read: Rex Simpson Hut 1km, Camp Stream Hut 2km. After nearly 3 hours uphill tramping to the sign, I knew the DOC signage was false, as my walking speed was 2-3km / hour, on flats or in high country.
Rex Simpson Hut nestled on a Mt Gerald N-S slope with grand views of Lake Tekapo, Alpine ranges, Godley River Valley & Macaulay River Valley. Rex Simpson Hut was locked, owned by Alpine Recreation. A small side room with 2 bare bed boards was left unlocked for anyone caught out by bad weather. After using the stinking long drop toilet, I returned to my car. Estimated return distance: 18km. Return time: 7 hours. Hill walking fitness, food, water, all weather gear required. Cell phone coverage when facing distant Mt John, SW end of Lake Tekapo.
Mon 14.03.16. I climbed up to Rex Simpson Hut again, 2.5 hours, as I knew the way. I wanted to climb above Rex Simpson Hut to lower Snake Ridge, 1500m. Snake Ridge went all the way up to Beuzenberg Peak 2073m, a distinctive ridge & peak in the the Two Thumbs Range, seen from Lake Tekapo village about 30km away.
At a stream above Rex Simpson Hut I topped up my water bottle & slogged up to lower Snake Ridge top through snow tussock & over rocks & bogs. There was a path to lower Snake Ridge top, but it was obscured by tussock. I found the path later on my way down.
Snake Ridge top, undulating at first, then sinuous, gave grand views: E over tussock land & Camp Stream high valley below Mt Braun Elwart 2086m, W across flat topped Mt Gerald 1551m, Godley River, Lake Tekapo, Mt Mistake, Pikes Peak & Gammack Range. Beyond I saw snowy Mt Tasman, but Mt Cook was hidden by cloud. SW across Lake Tekapo, Old Man Range, Ben Ohau Range & other ranges were seen. Mt John was a glacial, scoured lump, SW side of Lake Tekapo. E side of Lake Tekapo progressively larger lumps were seen: Wee McGregor, Mt Hay, Mt Edward, Mt Ardmore, Mt Richmond, above Round Hill Ski Field.
From Snake Ridge top, NE across Camp Stream tussock valley, Mt Hope 2086m, N beyond Mt Braun Elwart was seen, Stag Saddle joined Mt Hope to Beuzenberg Peak, all forming Camp Stream headwaters. From lower Snake Ridge, where I turned back at 1pm, a full day's climbing was needed to ascend Snake Ridge to Beuzenberg Peak & return to Rex Simpson Hut.
My walking times: Coal River, DOC carpark up to Rex Simpson Hut & lower Snake Ridge top - 4 hours. Return to DOC carpark - 4 hours. Estimated distance - 20km. Height: DOC carpark to lower Snake Ridge top - 700 vertical metres. Hill walking fitness, all weather gear, food, water, NZ Topo50 maps required. Terrain: steep & harsh, no cover.
Wed 15.11.23. Tramped to Rex Simpson Hut again, a cool, breezy day, confirming the above times & distances. My cell phone fitness app said I'd climbed 117 floors!
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
Monday, February 15, 2016
Deja vu: Earth-Surfing, Valentines Day Quake
Post Valentines Day Quake, CBD focus. Deja vu: Sunday 14.02.16, Christchurch. M5.7 quake, depth 15km, 15km east of Christchurch, 1.13pm (GeoNet). Pegasus Bay Fault was quiet since the 23 December 2011 Xmas Quake Swarm. It was active again. Leah & I were in Timaru at the time, 162km south of Christchurch having lunch at Sticky Cafe, Pak 'n Save. Leah felt the quake. I didn't. On our drive back to Fairlie Leah checked out GeoNet & texted our sons who text-replied:
Luke, Berwick St rental: "Big! Biggest one I've felt in a long time. Very jolty, rolled on for quite a while. Lots of aftershocks since." Luke was doing salvage work the last couple of years, dangerous work in an active quake-zone.
Jake, Cassels Brewery, Garlands Rd: "I'm totally fine. House etc & friends all good. No worries :) When the quake hit it just so happened that all of us six chefs were congregated all in the same area of the kitchen when stuff got a bit wobbly. I instinctively took my earth-surfing stance & had my 23cm knife pointing outwards from me, gripped in my right hand :) Luckily no one else was standing too close to me. Ha Ha."
Jake's "earth-surfing" was apt, if one wasn't diving for cover, or rushing for a door-frame for protection. Seismic-waves rolling underfoot, caused bent knees & arms akimbo for balance. I once described to an Oamaru friend that surviving a big quake was like being bashed at the bottom of a rugby-scrum, or being dumped by a huge wave. No control.
I updated my Facebook status letting family & friends know we were OK. Several "likes" & compassionate responses. No troll comments.
Over the next few days, TV1 & The Press reported there were no fatalities, but there were rockfalls at Godley Head, Whitewash Head, Sumner's Richmond Hill & Peacocks Gallop. There were reports of liquefaction at Kairaki Beach & Parklands roads were liquefactioned again with sinkholes & sewage-leaks: Bower Ave, Broadhaven Ave, Courtfield Cl, Hurst Pl & Linkwater Way. Deja vu: Post 23 December 2011, Xmas Quake Swarm, I'd snapped those liquefactioned Parklands roads.
Christ Church Cathedral's west facade crumbled more, despite steel-buttressing which was dubbed the "Battering Ram".
EQC accepted claims for the Valentines Day Quake. Given EQC's ineptitude over the last five years with shoddy repairs, 1 000s of repairs & claims still unresolved & insurers still waiting for EQC to decide on overcap $100 000 properties for previous quakes, some Valentines Day claimants would wait more years for their claims to be resolved by EQC & insurers!
Sunday 21.02.16. Deja vu Cathedral Sq: A protest about EQC & insurer delays in resolving claims. Deja vu: 08.08.12 Protest I'd attended at Clarence St & Princess St, protesting EQC & insurer delays. Latest protest, five years post 22 February 2011 Quake: 4 500 repair / rebuild claims, still unresolved; 5 500 repairs on EQC / Fletcher shoddy repairs claims, unresolved. What were PM Key, CERA minister Brownlee, CERA minions & the Human Rights Commissioner doing about EQC's & insurers' slackness?
Saturday-Sunday 27-28.02.16. Deja vu Leah's London St teaching & to see our sons. Saturday: I trekked Christchurch CBD's deja vu rebuild: Cashel Mall: The Terrace, I saw new greystone steps on Avon River bank. (Just a waterfowl toilet!) I saw BNZ & ANZ rebuilds & a huge parking garage behind The Crossing on Lichfield St. I saw Justice & Emergency Services Precinct going up between Lichfield St & Tuam St. All those new buildings had sturdy steel-frames. Pagoda Court ruin, Colombo St, was dwarfed by BNZ & ANZ rebuilds. Rebuilds now darkened Cashel Mall again, forming a west-east wind-funnel from Bridge of Remembrance. (2018-19. Pagoda Court would be demolished for a Kathmandu rebuild).
Deja vu New Regent St: Not Funny, as five shops were still red-sticker-cordoned (27.02.16) by Council as dangerous after five years of quakes. Council only woke up to the danger after the recent Valentines Day Quake! That was par for Council, like Council libraries closed for repairs long after quakes: South Library, Fendalton Library, Bishopdale Library...
Deja vu Cathedral Sq: Christ Church Cathedral ruin: Still fenced-cordoned after five years' neglect. I saw widened cracks on all exterior walls. I saw loose Oamaru whitestones on cladded corners & buttresses & window arches. Heritage-hailers wanted to restore that rubble-walled ruin! I wandered Christ Church Cathedral border, snapping weedy neglect, widened cracks, loose stones & protest slogans chalked on flagstones, curbs & boards on the closed Millennium Hotel / Distinction Hotel opposite the Cathedral. Next door, the multi-storey BNZ ruin was part-demolished, covered in graffiti. (September 2018. I would see that BNZ would be completely demolished for new multi-storey Spark steel-framed offices.) What a mess CERA left Cathedral Sq after five years' occupation!
On the south side of Christ Church Cathedral ruin, on the greystone border-wall & greystone paving I saw chalked protest signs:
JACK + PACK [Shoddy jack-&-pack, foundation-repairs by Fletcher contractors].
VULNERABLE [To flooding & liquefaction according to EQC assessments].
FLETCHER'S KEY'S
CLOWNS [Fletchers, Crown company did shoddy post-quake repairs to 1 000s of houses].
THE FLAG OR THE PEOPLE [PM Key's $26m flag referendum].
LIES LIES & MORE LIES
HONORABLE PM KEY IS A SELF CENTRED LIAR
CRIMINALS
CORRUPT INSURANCE COMPANIES & GOVT DEPARTMENTS
GET OFF YOUR ARSE GERRY [Brownlee] & OUT OF THE POCKET OF THE INSURANCE COMPANIES
INSURANCE BULLIES
TOWER
STILL WAITING [Tower, Crown insurance company delayed many payouts].
CORRUPTION RULES CHCH!
STUCK
TAKING TOO LONG
Manchester St: At the new Margaret Mahy Family Playground I saw kids playing while Parents relaxed below poplars on Avon River bank. There was no shade over the new playground, yet.
Deja vu Oxford Tce: five years post-quakes below multi-storey Rydges Hotel ghost, Our City ghost was scaffolded & SMF-cordoned. Ditto Provincial Council ghost on the opposite Avon River Bank. (2021. Repairs would begin on Our City, the old building would be scaffolded & covered in white-plastic. Provincial Council was still mothballed, awaiting repairs).
Deja vu Hereford St / Cambridge Tce: I saw a new carpark garage going up on multi-storey Central Police's implosion site.
Durham St Nth: Awly Building, the new glass-&-steel multi-storey office block loomed above Provincial Council ghost.
Deja vu Victoria Sq to Cathedral Sq: I saw CERA's Blueprint Convention Centre / Te Pae. Five years post-quakes, there was no rebuild yet. Just a vast SMF-cordoned, dusty demolition-site. (September 2018. the Convention Centre / Te Pae's steel frame was going up. September 2019. Ditto, some cladding was installed. 2020. Te Pae was almost completed, progress delayed by Covid-19 pandemic. 2022. Te Pae would open).
Gloucester St Bridge: After three years' cordon-closure, Gloucester St Bridge was being restored by SCIRT. On a SMF-cordon I found a SCIRT suggestion-book. I wrote: 5 YEARS! TOO SLOW!
Deja vu Durham St Nth / Kilmore St: I saw G.ap Filler activities like food-trailers, Commons sports, dancing & band-playing by the wooden Arches on Crowne Plaza Hotel demolition-site. I saw Town Hall was being restored. At Last!
Deja vu Hagley Park: I saw the Year of the Monkey, Chinese New Years' Lantern Festival. There were 1 000s of viewers. It was CERA's last year of Christchurch occupation. CERA would morph into Regeneration Christchurch, organ-grinded by PM Key & minister Brownlee. Key would eventually leave parliament & Brownlle would become Speaker.
Deja vu: Monday 29.02.16. Leap Year Day Quake: 3.32am, M4.3, 5km depth, 5km south of Christchurch. (GeoNet). Port Hills fault again. We'd returned to Fairlie. But our sons awoke to strong jolts. There were so many known & unknown crustal faults in & around Christchurch. When one ruptured, another soon ruptured, different faults rupturing for Valentines Day & Leap Year Day aftershocks. Port Hills volcanic cracks still flexed, causing unpredictable waves for more Earth-Surfing....
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Submarine faulting beneath Pegasus Bay (NIWA).
See EQC has about 5500 shoddily repaired homes to fix (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Christchurch quake Still waiting for repairs 5 years on (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Hundreds protest outstanding EQC & insurance claims in Cathedral Square (The Press / Stuff Co).
See PM John Key's opinion of Christchurch's recovery (The Press / Stuff Co).
See A city of two halves new quake reignites old battles (The Press / Stuff Co).
See New Regent St owner agrees to engineering inspections (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Quake claimant to fellow IAG customers clog the system (The Press / Stuff Co).
Luke, Berwick St rental: "Big! Biggest one I've felt in a long time. Very jolty, rolled on for quite a while. Lots of aftershocks since." Luke was doing salvage work the last couple of years, dangerous work in an active quake-zone.
Jake, Cassels Brewery, Garlands Rd: "I'm totally fine. House etc & friends all good. No worries :) When the quake hit it just so happened that all of us six chefs were congregated all in the same area of the kitchen when stuff got a bit wobbly. I instinctively took my earth-surfing stance & had my 23cm knife pointing outwards from me, gripped in my right hand :) Luckily no one else was standing too close to me. Ha Ha."
Jake's "earth-surfing" was apt, if one wasn't diving for cover, or rushing for a door-frame for protection. Seismic-waves rolling underfoot, caused bent knees & arms akimbo for balance. I once described to an Oamaru friend that surviving a big quake was like being bashed at the bottom of a rugby-scrum, or being dumped by a huge wave. No control.
I updated my Facebook status letting family & friends know we were OK. Several "likes" & compassionate responses. No troll comments.
Over the next few days, TV1 & The Press reported there were no fatalities, but there were rockfalls at Godley Head, Whitewash Head, Sumner's Richmond Hill & Peacocks Gallop. There were reports of liquefaction at Kairaki Beach & Parklands roads were liquefactioned again with sinkholes & sewage-leaks: Bower Ave, Broadhaven Ave, Courtfield Cl, Hurst Pl & Linkwater Way. Deja vu: Post 23 December 2011, Xmas Quake Swarm, I'd snapped those liquefactioned Parklands roads.
Christ Church Cathedral's west facade crumbled more, despite steel-buttressing which was dubbed the "Battering Ram".
EQC accepted claims for the Valentines Day Quake. Given EQC's ineptitude over the last five years with shoddy repairs, 1 000s of repairs & claims still unresolved & insurers still waiting for EQC to decide on overcap $100 000 properties for previous quakes, some Valentines Day claimants would wait more years for their claims to be resolved by EQC & insurers!
Sunday 21.02.16. Deja vu Cathedral Sq: A protest about EQC & insurer delays in resolving claims. Deja vu: 08.08.12 Protest I'd attended at Clarence St & Princess St, protesting EQC & insurer delays. Latest protest, five years post 22 February 2011 Quake: 4 500 repair / rebuild claims, still unresolved; 5 500 repairs on EQC / Fletcher shoddy repairs claims, unresolved. What were PM Key, CERA minister Brownlee, CERA minions & the Human Rights Commissioner doing about EQC's & insurers' slackness?
Saturday-Sunday 27-28.02.16. Deja vu Leah's London St teaching & to see our sons. Saturday: I trekked Christchurch CBD's deja vu rebuild: Cashel Mall: The Terrace, I saw new greystone steps on Avon River bank. (Just a waterfowl toilet!) I saw BNZ & ANZ rebuilds & a huge parking garage behind The Crossing on Lichfield St. I saw Justice & Emergency Services Precinct going up between Lichfield St & Tuam St. All those new buildings had sturdy steel-frames. Pagoda Court ruin, Colombo St, was dwarfed by BNZ & ANZ rebuilds. Rebuilds now darkened Cashel Mall again, forming a west-east wind-funnel from Bridge of Remembrance. (2018-19. Pagoda Court would be demolished for a Kathmandu rebuild).
Deja vu New Regent St: Not Funny, as five shops were still red-sticker-cordoned (27.02.16) by Council as dangerous after five years of quakes. Council only woke up to the danger after the recent Valentines Day Quake! That was par for Council, like Council libraries closed for repairs long after quakes: South Library, Fendalton Library, Bishopdale Library...
Deja vu Cathedral Sq: Christ Church Cathedral ruin: Still fenced-cordoned after five years' neglect. I saw widened cracks on all exterior walls. I saw loose Oamaru whitestones on cladded corners & buttresses & window arches. Heritage-hailers wanted to restore that rubble-walled ruin! I wandered Christ Church Cathedral border, snapping weedy neglect, widened cracks, loose stones & protest slogans chalked on flagstones, curbs & boards on the closed Millennium Hotel / Distinction Hotel opposite the Cathedral. Next door, the multi-storey BNZ ruin was part-demolished, covered in graffiti. (September 2018. I would see that BNZ would be completely demolished for new multi-storey Spark steel-framed offices.) What a mess CERA left Cathedral Sq after five years' occupation!
On the south side of Christ Church Cathedral ruin, on the greystone border-wall & greystone paving I saw chalked protest signs:
JACK + PACK [Shoddy jack-&-pack, foundation-repairs by Fletcher contractors].
VULNERABLE [To flooding & liquefaction according to EQC assessments].
FLETCHER'S KEY'S
CLOWNS [Fletchers, Crown company did shoddy post-quake repairs to 1 000s of houses].
THE FLAG OR THE PEOPLE [PM Key's $26m flag referendum].
LIES LIES & MORE LIES
HONORABLE PM KEY IS A SELF CENTRED LIAR
CRIMINALS
CORRUPT INSURANCE COMPANIES & GOVT DEPARTMENTS
GET OFF YOUR ARSE GERRY [Brownlee] & OUT OF THE POCKET OF THE INSURANCE COMPANIES
INSURANCE BULLIES
TOWER
STILL WAITING [Tower, Crown insurance company delayed many payouts].
CORRUPTION RULES CHCH!
STUCK
TAKING TOO LONG
Manchester St: At the new Margaret Mahy Family Playground I saw kids playing while Parents relaxed below poplars on Avon River bank. There was no shade over the new playground, yet.
Deja vu Oxford Tce: five years post-quakes below multi-storey Rydges Hotel ghost, Our City ghost was scaffolded & SMF-cordoned. Ditto Provincial Council ghost on the opposite Avon River Bank. (2021. Repairs would begin on Our City, the old building would be scaffolded & covered in white-plastic. Provincial Council was still mothballed, awaiting repairs).
Deja vu Hereford St / Cambridge Tce: I saw a new carpark garage going up on multi-storey Central Police's implosion site.
Durham St Nth: Awly Building, the new glass-&-steel multi-storey office block loomed above Provincial Council ghost.
Deja vu Victoria Sq to Cathedral Sq: I saw CERA's Blueprint Convention Centre / Te Pae. Five years post-quakes, there was no rebuild yet. Just a vast SMF-cordoned, dusty demolition-site. (September 2018. the Convention Centre / Te Pae's steel frame was going up. September 2019. Ditto, some cladding was installed. 2020. Te Pae was almost completed, progress delayed by Covid-19 pandemic. 2022. Te Pae would open).
Gloucester St Bridge: After three years' cordon-closure, Gloucester St Bridge was being restored by SCIRT. On a SMF-cordon I found a SCIRT suggestion-book. I wrote: 5 YEARS! TOO SLOW!
Deja vu Durham St Nth / Kilmore St: I saw G.ap Filler activities like food-trailers, Commons sports, dancing & band-playing by the wooden Arches on Crowne Plaza Hotel demolition-site. I saw Town Hall was being restored. At Last!
Deja vu Hagley Park: I saw the Year of the Monkey, Chinese New Years' Lantern Festival. There were 1 000s of viewers. It was CERA's last year of Christchurch occupation. CERA would morph into Regeneration Christchurch, organ-grinded by PM Key & minister Brownlee. Key would eventually leave parliament & Brownlle would become Speaker.
Deja vu: Monday 29.02.16. Leap Year Day Quake: 3.32am, M4.3, 5km depth, 5km south of Christchurch. (GeoNet). Port Hills fault again. We'd returned to Fairlie. But our sons awoke to strong jolts. There were so many known & unknown crustal faults in & around Christchurch. When one ruptured, another soon ruptured, different faults rupturing for Valentines Day & Leap Year Day aftershocks. Port Hills volcanic cracks still flexed, causing unpredictable waves for more Earth-Surfing....
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Submarine faulting beneath Pegasus Bay (NIWA).
See EQC has about 5500 shoddily repaired homes to fix (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Christchurch quake Still waiting for repairs 5 years on (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Hundreds protest outstanding EQC & insurance claims in Cathedral Square (The Press / Stuff Co).
See PM John Key's opinion of Christchurch's recovery (The Press / Stuff Co).
See A city of two halves new quake reignites old battles (The Press / Stuff Co).
See New Regent St owner agrees to engineering inspections (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Quake claimant to fellow IAG customers clog the system (The Press / Stuff Co).
Saturday, February 13, 2016
Catlins Coast Letter
10.02.16. A letter to our sons:
Hope your trip to Nelson & beyond went OK Luke & that everything's OK at Cassels Brewery Jake. I didn't feel Tuesday's mag 5.7 Kaikoura quake, too far south. Did you?
Leah's now back into her second week's teaching at Lake Tekapo & I've climbed Mt John 4x since her return, to get hill-walking fit again. I climbed once with Leah last weekend & the other 3x mingled with tourists, mainly Chinese. Nice sunny February weather. I'm hoping to find 2 DOC huts up Lake Tekapo on Mt Gerald Station & do more Mt Hay Station tramps this summer. Hopefully Leah will start Monday evening, yoga classes at Lake Tekapo, so I'll have looooong Mondays for my walks. As it's high tourist season, thousands of tourists pass through Lake Tekapo daily, with overcrowding at the camp site & public toilets. And rubbish discarded on the shore too. The new pedestrian bridge to the Church of the Good Shepherd is a good wander.
Our Catlins Coast trip we did in the last week of Leah's Xmas holidays:
Day 1: Drove Fairlie to Dunedin & stayed at Leith Valley camp site, in wooden chalet rooms. That weekend Dunedin had a vintage car rally, so the camp site was full of vintage campers & vintage cars too. Wandered Dunedin Botanic Gdns & student rental streets near University of Otago. We saw those streets on TV when students' booze up shenanigans hit the news. Some rentals have odd names above doors. Wandered varsity grounds too, Bought Thai takeaways near the camp site.
Day 2: Drove Dunedin to Balclutha to Kaka Point on Catlins Coast. Lunch at rainy Balclutha. Drove beside wide Balclutha River a bit to Kaka Point with great views of the bay where Balclutha River meets the Pacific. Drove a dirt road to Nugget Point & walked a DOC track to the light house with views of a seal colony on rocks below & Nuggets / stacks scattered in the sea beyond the light house. Looking southwards from Nugget Point I counted 4 headlands & bays.
Catlins Coast consists of a series of rugged headlands & bays with hilly farmlands behind, where the tarred road sidles the headlands. We drove dirt roads to reach the coast.
We had blue cod, chips & salad supper at the only bar / restaurant in Kaka Point. A sandy beach walk settled our food. We slept at a B & B near the restaurant.
Day 3: Busy. Drove southwards to Surat Bay, a few cribs at Newhaven & more cribs at Pounawea across the bay. Great views of Surat Bay from Pounawea camp site.
Drove to Owaka with its new aluminium, waka sculpture. Saw Owaka Museum & its history of Catlins Coast shipwrecks. Saw an Owaka house with hundreds of teapots in the garden.
Drove to Purakaunui Bay: Sheep on the dirt road, two seals on the beach & DOC campers nearby. The tall cliffs by the bay are worth the side trip. A good surfing bay.
Drove southwards: Walked to Purakaunui Falls, Drove further south & walked to Matai Falls & Horseshoe Falls above. Walked a bit of the Rail Trail through a rocky, bushy cutting.
A Rail Trail information board read:
"The building of the Catlins River Railway line between Balclutha and Tahakopa was started in 1879 and completed in 1915. It closed in 1971. The line was of great significance for the 19th and 20th century settlement of the Catlins, as it provided reliable transport for people, timber, farm produce and supplies before roads and road transport improved.
'In common with many early branch lines it was very tortuous, with deep cuttings. Because of the nature of the country many steep grades were encountered.' (Russel Glendenning - legendary local railway man).
The 1 in 40 average grade of this section of the line was one of the steepest in the South Island railway system and the fully laden trains struggled to keep going uphill when the rails were slippery."
Further south we enjoyed views of Tautuku Bay & Peninsula from Florence Hill Lookout: Waves rolled in from the Antarctic, a bushy sandy beach below.
Drove through coastal bush & stopped at Papatowai for a windy, beach walk & coffee at the Lost Gypsy Gallery, a hippy bus filled with funny gadgets for sale.
Drove south through native bush & walked to Lake Wilkie, a glacial, kettlehole lake, in native bush. A farmer wearing gum boots, was worried about a drunken worker, lost in the bush. We told him we'd seen the drunkard, waving a beer bottle, wandering way back on the main road. The farmer drove off to find him.
Didn't see Cathedral Caves - closed for the day.
Drove south through more native bush & walked to McClean Falls.
Drove south through coastal bus to Waikawa where we settled into a two bed room house opposite Waikawa Museum.
Early evening we drove to Curio Bay to see the fossil forest at low tide: There were many lengths of petrified wood on a tidal rock platform. I slipped on kelp while coolpixing. Like at Lake Tekapo, there were many tourists along Catlins Coast. Leah chatted to a Chartres Frenchman cyclist, who'd already cycled Australia & was now doing NZ. Leah told him we'd visited Chartres Cathedral during our 1981 Eurrail trip.
A bronze plaque on the roadside near the fossil forest read:
"CURIO BAY FOSSIL FOREST
This forest grew in the Jurassic period. About 160 000 000 years ago. In a semi-tropical climate and consisted of trees like the kauri and lesser trees such as cycads and conifers. As well as fern like plants. Grasses & flowering plants had not yet come into existence.
The forest occupied the low swampy coast of a land that once extended south from this point. The coast continued north-west from this area across northern southland. And most of the rest of NZ was beneath the sea.
The forest was killed suddenly by being buried under a flood of ash from a volcanic eruption on the ancient land. And the ash now forms the hard sandstone beds in the cliff edges. Long after the ancient land disappeared and present NZ emerged. These sandstone strata were cut back by action of the sea. To reveal the broken logs and stumps still in the original position of growth. The present rock shelf around the stumps is the original floor of the Jurassic forest.
Known fossil forests of this age are very few throughout the world. And this the most varied and remarkable of them all.
This forest is absolutely protected and it is an offence to damage or destroy it in any way, or to remove any souvenir from it."
Day 4: Returned to Fairlie via Catlins Coast again, Dunedin & stayed a night at a two bed room holiday home at Waikouaiti. Nice sandy beach there, a big hill, Cornish Head above the north end of the beach.
Our new Nikon Coolpix camera worked well, so we have pics to show. Lots of native bush & bird life along Catlins Coast, like spoonbills, gulls, pied stilts, oyster catchers, paradise shelducks, NZ pigeons...
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
Hope your trip to Nelson & beyond went OK Luke & that everything's OK at Cassels Brewery Jake. I didn't feel Tuesday's mag 5.7 Kaikoura quake, too far south. Did you?
Leah's now back into her second week's teaching at Lake Tekapo & I've climbed Mt John 4x since her return, to get hill-walking fit again. I climbed once with Leah last weekend & the other 3x mingled with tourists, mainly Chinese. Nice sunny February weather. I'm hoping to find 2 DOC huts up Lake Tekapo on Mt Gerald Station & do more Mt Hay Station tramps this summer. Hopefully Leah will start Monday evening, yoga classes at Lake Tekapo, so I'll have looooong Mondays for my walks. As it's high tourist season, thousands of tourists pass through Lake Tekapo daily, with overcrowding at the camp site & public toilets. And rubbish discarded on the shore too. The new pedestrian bridge to the Church of the Good Shepherd is a good wander.
Our Catlins Coast trip we did in the last week of Leah's Xmas holidays:
Day 1: Drove Fairlie to Dunedin & stayed at Leith Valley camp site, in wooden chalet rooms. That weekend Dunedin had a vintage car rally, so the camp site was full of vintage campers & vintage cars too. Wandered Dunedin Botanic Gdns & student rental streets near University of Otago. We saw those streets on TV when students' booze up shenanigans hit the news. Some rentals have odd names above doors. Wandered varsity grounds too, Bought Thai takeaways near the camp site.
Day 2: Drove Dunedin to Balclutha to Kaka Point on Catlins Coast. Lunch at rainy Balclutha. Drove beside wide Balclutha River a bit to Kaka Point with great views of the bay where Balclutha River meets the Pacific. Drove a dirt road to Nugget Point & walked a DOC track to the light house with views of a seal colony on rocks below & Nuggets / stacks scattered in the sea beyond the light house. Looking southwards from Nugget Point I counted 4 headlands & bays.
Catlins Coast consists of a series of rugged headlands & bays with hilly farmlands behind, where the tarred road sidles the headlands. We drove dirt roads to reach the coast.
We had blue cod, chips & salad supper at the only bar / restaurant in Kaka Point. A sandy beach walk settled our food. We slept at a B & B near the restaurant.
Day 3: Busy. Drove southwards to Surat Bay, a few cribs at Newhaven & more cribs at Pounawea across the bay. Great views of Surat Bay from Pounawea camp site.
Drove to Owaka with its new aluminium, waka sculpture. Saw Owaka Museum & its history of Catlins Coast shipwrecks. Saw an Owaka house with hundreds of teapots in the garden.
Drove to Purakaunui Bay: Sheep on the dirt road, two seals on the beach & DOC campers nearby. The tall cliffs by the bay are worth the side trip. A good surfing bay.
Drove southwards: Walked to Purakaunui Falls, Drove further south & walked to Matai Falls & Horseshoe Falls above. Walked a bit of the Rail Trail through a rocky, bushy cutting.
A Rail Trail information board read:
"The building of the Catlins River Railway line between Balclutha and Tahakopa was started in 1879 and completed in 1915. It closed in 1971. The line was of great significance for the 19th and 20th century settlement of the Catlins, as it provided reliable transport for people, timber, farm produce and supplies before roads and road transport improved.
'In common with many early branch lines it was very tortuous, with deep cuttings. Because of the nature of the country many steep grades were encountered.' (Russel Glendenning - legendary local railway man).
The 1 in 40 average grade of this section of the line was one of the steepest in the South Island railway system and the fully laden trains struggled to keep going uphill when the rails were slippery."
Further south we enjoyed views of Tautuku Bay & Peninsula from Florence Hill Lookout: Waves rolled in from the Antarctic, a bushy sandy beach below.
Drove through coastal bush & stopped at Papatowai for a windy, beach walk & coffee at the Lost Gypsy Gallery, a hippy bus filled with funny gadgets for sale.
Drove south through native bush & walked to Lake Wilkie, a glacial, kettlehole lake, in native bush. A farmer wearing gum boots, was worried about a drunken worker, lost in the bush. We told him we'd seen the drunkard, waving a beer bottle, wandering way back on the main road. The farmer drove off to find him.
Didn't see Cathedral Caves - closed for the day.
Drove south through more native bush & walked to McClean Falls.
Drove south through coastal bus to Waikawa where we settled into a two bed room house opposite Waikawa Museum.
Early evening we drove to Curio Bay to see the fossil forest at low tide: There were many lengths of petrified wood on a tidal rock platform. I slipped on kelp while coolpixing. Like at Lake Tekapo, there were many tourists along Catlins Coast. Leah chatted to a Chartres Frenchman cyclist, who'd already cycled Australia & was now doing NZ. Leah told him we'd visited Chartres Cathedral during our 1981 Eurrail trip.
A bronze plaque on the roadside near the fossil forest read:
"CURIO BAY FOSSIL FOREST
This forest grew in the Jurassic period. About 160 000 000 years ago. In a semi-tropical climate and consisted of trees like the kauri and lesser trees such as cycads and conifers. As well as fern like plants. Grasses & flowering plants had not yet come into existence.
The forest occupied the low swampy coast of a land that once extended south from this point. The coast continued north-west from this area across northern southland. And most of the rest of NZ was beneath the sea.
The forest was killed suddenly by being buried under a flood of ash from a volcanic eruption on the ancient land. And the ash now forms the hard sandstone beds in the cliff edges. Long after the ancient land disappeared and present NZ emerged. These sandstone strata were cut back by action of the sea. To reveal the broken logs and stumps still in the original position of growth. The present rock shelf around the stumps is the original floor of the Jurassic forest.
Known fossil forests of this age are very few throughout the world. And this the most varied and remarkable of them all.
This forest is absolutely protected and it is an offence to damage or destroy it in any way, or to remove any souvenir from it."
Day 4: Returned to Fairlie via Catlins Coast again, Dunedin & stayed a night at a two bed room holiday home at Waikouaiti. Nice sandy beach there, a big hill, Cornish Head above the north end of the beach.
Our new Nikon Coolpix camera worked well, so we have pics to show. Lots of native bush & bird life along Catlins Coast, like spoonbills, gulls, pied stilts, oyster catchers, paradise shelducks, NZ pigeons...
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Roys Lagoon Birdlife, Mt Hay Station, Mackenzie Country
Tues 08.12.15. I parked my car beside Lilybank Rd in Lake Tekapo Regional Park & wandered up Ebenezer Ln through pine forest. About 1 km up the gravel lane, I crossed Mt Hay Station fence by a locked gate, as I wanted to birdwatch at Roys Lagoon about 4 kms away. Map ref: BY17 029268. As Mt Hay Station is a working sheep station permission must be obtained from owners before any climbing / walks on the station.
I followed a farm track past stony, moraine hills & a dry dam, then continued along the farm track, rounding a grassy, moraine hill to a farm gate by a series of willowed tarns. I saw two foraging, pied stilts & several paradise shelducks on the tarns. Five black swans flew off towards Roys Lagoon, a hidden lagoon in a glacial kettle hole, unseen from Mt John summit above Lake Tekapo.
A spur winged plover stood on a tarn shore while I wandered past, with grand views of Mt Edward, Mt Maud, Mt Dobson, Mt Ardmore & Mt Hay. I followed another farm track past a dry tarn & rounded another grassy, moraine hill towards the homestead & Roys Lagoon.
I wandered the grassy, moraine hill south of Roys Lagoon, as it gave high views of the lagoon. I saw flocks of ducks, too small & distant to identify with my binoculars, but flocks of Canada geese, black swans & brown cygnets were easy to see floating on Roys Lagoon. I spotted a couple of Australasian harriers soaring & hunting rabbits. Ditto a NZ falcon flapping its wings, hovering & hunting too. A couple of black backed gulls & a southern pied oystercatcher flew by.
As the moraine hillside was north facing, there were many alpine cushion plants & mat plants, Raoulia & Scleranthus species, amongst purple topped grasses & tussocks. Light green, Raoulia scabweed bloomed masses of tiny, yellow flowers, pollinated by scurrying, NZ native bees, their pollen sacs full. An olive green Raoulia species had slightly bigger, matted foliage & creamy flowers.
I returned to my car, over moraine hill country, via another series of dry & watered tarns, closer to Lilybank Rd. The circular walk was about 10 kms. A shorter, more direct walk to Roys Lagoon can be done from Mt Hay Station homestead, situated 8 kms along Lilybank Rd.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
I followed a farm track past stony, moraine hills & a dry dam, then continued along the farm track, rounding a grassy, moraine hill to a farm gate by a series of willowed tarns. I saw two foraging, pied stilts & several paradise shelducks on the tarns. Five black swans flew off towards Roys Lagoon, a hidden lagoon in a glacial kettle hole, unseen from Mt John summit above Lake Tekapo.
A spur winged plover stood on a tarn shore while I wandered past, with grand views of Mt Edward, Mt Maud, Mt Dobson, Mt Ardmore & Mt Hay. I followed another farm track past a dry tarn & rounded another grassy, moraine hill towards the homestead & Roys Lagoon.
I wandered the grassy, moraine hill south of Roys Lagoon, as it gave high views of the lagoon. I saw flocks of ducks, too small & distant to identify with my binoculars, but flocks of Canada geese, black swans & brown cygnets were easy to see floating on Roys Lagoon. I spotted a couple of Australasian harriers soaring & hunting rabbits. Ditto a NZ falcon flapping its wings, hovering & hunting too. A couple of black backed gulls & a southern pied oystercatcher flew by.
As the moraine hillside was north facing, there were many alpine cushion plants & mat plants, Raoulia & Scleranthus species, amongst purple topped grasses & tussocks. Light green, Raoulia scabweed bloomed masses of tiny, yellow flowers, pollinated by scurrying, NZ native bees, their pollen sacs full. An olive green Raoulia species had slightly bigger, matted foliage & creamy flowers.
I returned to my car, over moraine hill country, via another series of dry & watered tarns, closer to Lilybank Rd. The circular walk was about 10 kms. A shorter, more direct walk to Roys Lagoon can be done from Mt Hay Station homestead, situated 8 kms along Lilybank Rd.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
Monday, December 7, 2015
Old Woolshed & Mt Maud, Mt Hay Station, Mackenzie Country
Tues 01.12.15. I parked my car about 10 kms along Lilybank Rd below Mt Hay, as I wanted to walk to the Old Woolshed on Mt Hay Station below Mt Maud & Mt Dobson. Map ref: BY17 062283. It was a vast watershed, draining streams from My Hay, Wee McGregor, Mt Ardmore, Mt Dobson & Mt Maud. Near a ruined shepherd's hut several streams joined to form Edward Stream below Mt Edward.
I sidled round the north end of Mt Hay, following Mt Hay's moraine tail over hummocky country, past two tarns. Northwards, were grand views of Wee McGregor & Mt Ardmore. Eastwards, beyond the moraine hummocks & tarns, a grassy basin, watered by streams & surrounded by mountains. The grassy basin sloped gently down to a rocky stream bed which went round the end of Mt Dobson SW ridge, forming a rocky portal, with Mt Hay tail on the opposite bank.
Streams & farm fences crossed the grassy basin, as well as a farm track which went over Mt Hay tail from Mt Hay Station homestead to the south end of Mt Ardmore. On other walks I'd used the north end of the farm track to zig-zag up Mt Ardmore south ridge.
Eastwards, I followed another farm track on the stream bed through the rocky portal, Mt Maud & Mt Edward straight ahead. In the stream bed a Himalayan tahr ran away when it saw me.
I crossed another farm track which went from My Hay Station homestead & zig-zagged up Mt Dobson SW ridge. I'd used that farm track on another climb up the SW ridge. It took me 2 hours to reach the ruined shepherd's hut beside the stream, below a rocky hill with a cairn on top.
I climbed the rocky hill. Opposite was another hill with a cairn on top, the end of Mt Hay tail. The 2 hills formed another portal where a confluence of streams from surrounding mountains formed Edward stream, bending southwards, past willows, below Mt Edward.
From the hill top above the ruined shepherd's hut, I had upstream, valley views of Mt Dobson slopes, Tekapo Saddle & Mt Maud, their streams draining into Edward Stream.
On my wander from My Hay I'd aimed for 2 distant poplars below Mt Maud. From the hill top I saw the poplars were surrounded by willows on a stream bank. I resolved to return another day to climb Mt Maud second west ridge. The return trek to my car also took 2 hours. Total distance 10 kms.
Thurs 10.12.15. I parked my car about 8 kms along Lilybank Rd, beyond Mt Hay Station homestead, as I wanted to climb Mt Maud second west ridge, above Edward Stream, near the Old Woolshed. Map ref: BY17 099271. From the sheep yards by Lilybank Rd, I followed a farm fence past a willowy swamp & climbed the steep farm track, sidling past the south end of Mt Hay.
The farm track went through moraine, hummock country & over Mt Hay tail to the braided stream draining My Hay Station mountains: Mt Hay, Wee McGregor, Mt Ardmore, Mt Dobson, Tekapo Saddle, Mt Maud, Mt Edward. Crossing over the moraine tail all the mountains were seen, a magnificent panorama.
On the farm track, which eventually zig-zagged up Mt Dobson SW ridge, I crossed the braided stream & wandered down to the ruined shepherd's hut, where Edward Stream bent south below Mt Edward.
I crossed the hill behind the ruined shepherd's hut to poplars & willows by another Edward Stream tributary, a confluence of streams From Mt Dobson SW ridge, Tekapo Saddle, Mt Maud & Mt Edward NW ridge.
I crossed a stony, dry, riverbed, between Mt Edward NW ridge & Mt Maud first west ridge & followed a double farm fence, up valley, on the east bank of Edward Stream, below Mt Maud towards Tekapo Saddle. The double fence was old & new fences. The dilapidated, old fence had weathered, rimu, fence posts. The new fence had treated, wooden, fence posts. Edward Stream valley I wandered - Mt Dobson SW ridge west, Tekapo Saddle north, Mt Maud east.
At one point upstream, a low tussock ridge projecting from Mt Dobson SW ridge went east to Mt Maud first west ridge, forming a rocky canyon, Edward Stream flowing through the canyon. I avoided the canyon by following the fence over the stream at the Canyon's exit & following the fence over the low ridge to recross Edward Stream the other side, below Mt Maud second west ridge.
I climbed Mt Maud second west ridge through tussocks & Spaniard grass to the rocky top. I followed a goat track along the rocky, ridge top, crossed a saddle, climbed past 4 rocky outcrops & stopped for lunch at about 1300 m, viewing Mt Maud scree line below. I was slightly lower than Tekapo Saddle, 1387 m, seen across the valley head further north.
I had west views of the zig-zag, farm road going through tussock land up Mt Dobson SW ridge & over the top glimpsed Mt Ardmore's rocky summit ridge & beyond to Alpine ranges across lake Tekapo. South I looked down Edward Stream valley, Mt Maud & Mt Edward east & distant Lake Tekapo Village, Mt John & Old Man Range south west.
I texted Leah successfully from Mt Maud second west ridge, as I was unable to text her earlier near Mt Hay Station homestead, due to blocking hills. I didn't continue up the second west ridge to Mt Maud summit, 1797 m, as the tussock ridge became dangerously steep & rocky.
The walk / climb to my lunch stop up Mt Maud second west ridge took 3 hours. Conditions - nor'wester breeze, cloudy & cool. After midday, clouds disappeared, the afternoon a scorcher. I returned to my car in another 3 hours. Total distance 13 kms.
As Mt Hay Station is a working sheep station permission must be obtained from the owners for any walks or climbs. Fitness, map, all weather gear, food, water, emergency kit are essential.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
I sidled round the north end of Mt Hay, following Mt Hay's moraine tail over hummocky country, past two tarns. Northwards, were grand views of Wee McGregor & Mt Ardmore. Eastwards, beyond the moraine hummocks & tarns, a grassy basin, watered by streams & surrounded by mountains. The grassy basin sloped gently down to a rocky stream bed which went round the end of Mt Dobson SW ridge, forming a rocky portal, with Mt Hay tail on the opposite bank.
Streams & farm fences crossed the grassy basin, as well as a farm track which went over Mt Hay tail from Mt Hay Station homestead to the south end of Mt Ardmore. On other walks I'd used the north end of the farm track to zig-zag up Mt Ardmore south ridge.
Eastwards, I followed another farm track on the stream bed through the rocky portal, Mt Maud & Mt Edward straight ahead. In the stream bed a Himalayan tahr ran away when it saw me.
I crossed another farm track which went from My Hay Station homestead & zig-zagged up Mt Dobson SW ridge. I'd used that farm track on another climb up the SW ridge. It took me 2 hours to reach the ruined shepherd's hut beside the stream, below a rocky hill with a cairn on top.
I climbed the rocky hill. Opposite was another hill with a cairn on top, the end of Mt Hay tail. The 2 hills formed another portal where a confluence of streams from surrounding mountains formed Edward stream, bending southwards, past willows, below Mt Edward.
From the hill top above the ruined shepherd's hut, I had upstream, valley views of Mt Dobson slopes, Tekapo Saddle & Mt Maud, their streams draining into Edward Stream.
On my wander from My Hay I'd aimed for 2 distant poplars below Mt Maud. From the hill top I saw the poplars were surrounded by willows on a stream bank. I resolved to return another day to climb Mt Maud second west ridge. The return trek to my car also took 2 hours. Total distance 10 kms.
Thurs 10.12.15. I parked my car about 8 kms along Lilybank Rd, beyond Mt Hay Station homestead, as I wanted to climb Mt Maud second west ridge, above Edward Stream, near the Old Woolshed. Map ref: BY17 099271. From the sheep yards by Lilybank Rd, I followed a farm fence past a willowy swamp & climbed the steep farm track, sidling past the south end of Mt Hay.
The farm track went through moraine, hummock country & over Mt Hay tail to the braided stream draining My Hay Station mountains: Mt Hay, Wee McGregor, Mt Ardmore, Mt Dobson, Tekapo Saddle, Mt Maud, Mt Edward. Crossing over the moraine tail all the mountains were seen, a magnificent panorama.
On the farm track, which eventually zig-zagged up Mt Dobson SW ridge, I crossed the braided stream & wandered down to the ruined shepherd's hut, where Edward Stream bent south below Mt Edward.
I crossed the hill behind the ruined shepherd's hut to poplars & willows by another Edward Stream tributary, a confluence of streams From Mt Dobson SW ridge, Tekapo Saddle, Mt Maud & Mt Edward NW ridge.
I crossed a stony, dry, riverbed, between Mt Edward NW ridge & Mt Maud first west ridge & followed a double farm fence, up valley, on the east bank of Edward Stream, below Mt Maud towards Tekapo Saddle. The double fence was old & new fences. The dilapidated, old fence had weathered, rimu, fence posts. The new fence had treated, wooden, fence posts. Edward Stream valley I wandered - Mt Dobson SW ridge west, Tekapo Saddle north, Mt Maud east.
At one point upstream, a low tussock ridge projecting from Mt Dobson SW ridge went east to Mt Maud first west ridge, forming a rocky canyon, Edward Stream flowing through the canyon. I avoided the canyon by following the fence over the stream at the Canyon's exit & following the fence over the low ridge to recross Edward Stream the other side, below Mt Maud second west ridge.
I climbed Mt Maud second west ridge through tussocks & Spaniard grass to the rocky top. I followed a goat track along the rocky, ridge top, crossed a saddle, climbed past 4 rocky outcrops & stopped for lunch at about 1300 m, viewing Mt Maud scree line below. I was slightly lower than Tekapo Saddle, 1387 m, seen across the valley head further north.
I had west views of the zig-zag, farm road going through tussock land up Mt Dobson SW ridge & over the top glimpsed Mt Ardmore's rocky summit ridge & beyond to Alpine ranges across lake Tekapo. South I looked down Edward Stream valley, Mt Maud & Mt Edward east & distant Lake Tekapo Village, Mt John & Old Man Range south west.
I texted Leah successfully from Mt Maud second west ridge, as I was unable to text her earlier near Mt Hay Station homestead, due to blocking hills. I didn't continue up the second west ridge to Mt Maud summit, 1797 m, as the tussock ridge became dangerously steep & rocky.
The walk / climb to my lunch stop up Mt Maud second west ridge took 3 hours. Conditions - nor'wester breeze, cloudy & cool. After midday, clouds disappeared, the afternoon a scorcher. I returned to my car in another 3 hours. Total distance 13 kms.
As Mt Hay Station is a working sheep station permission must be obtained from the owners for any walks or climbs. Fitness, map, all weather gear, food, water, emergency kit are essential.
Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
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