In late February 2023 I embarked on my longest walk in New Zealand, 13 days across the Southern Alps of the South Island. Go back to Days 9 – 10 or the beginning Days 1 – 3.

Day 11 – Mudflats Hut to Mid Styx Hut – 12.38 km – 6 hours – Yellow

My German hut mate for the night left in the dark to walk out along the trail I’d come in on yesterday, so when I awoke, I did my usual breakfast and pack up routine before heading out. The rain had stopped early this morning, but the grasses would no doubt be wet. The sky in the direction I was heading looked promising.

I crossed the river via the wire bridge and followed the trail along the grassland alongside the river. Not far along, it began to climb, but not high, perhaps 100m in elevation before levelling out in a wide flat trail similar to the one coming around the mountain yesterday. The trail continued for several kilometres, crossing many small streams, creeks and rock slides, but staying wide and flat, although edging higher as it went. The views along the river continued with Harman Hut, where the German girl had come from yesterday, somewhere down that way.

But I wasn’t going that far as my trail came to a T junction, the third trail heading over the Styx saddle, a low pass compared to many in the area. It wasn’t a difficult climb, more annoying as it was through tall grasses with little streams running across it, not to mention bogs here and there. I got wet as I crossed it, both boots and body due to the still wet grass, some of which were taller than me. I followed the trail markers towards the edge of the saddle hidden in mist. I passed a memorial of several people who’d died in a plane crash in the area in 1979.

The way down was more thick grasses and thin trees along small streams but the mist cleared and I could see the descent ahead.

It was fairly gentle for the most part, dropping more than 100m to the grassy river plains below.

It didn’t take me long, crossing the occasional wide creek before popping out on the grassy plains.

One more creek and I arrived at the Grassy Flat Hut. This is where I’d intended to walk to yesterday if it hadn’t been for the rain. I stopped, boots off and went inside to make a coffee and have lunch. I also checked the routes to the next hut. Over the wet winter, the heavy rains had washed away a section of the trail meaning that all walkers had to follow the trail to the Mid Styx Hut instead of just following the trail along the Styx River to the carpark. This meant I’d have to do a major river crossing at some point.

I headed out again after lunch, crossing some river flats, through grasses taller than myself, finding a way across a deep stream and then across the river to the far bank. From here I’d walk for an hour looking for the sign telling me where to cross the river, all the while watching the river grow deeper and wider.

I almost missed the sign, but headed down the bank to the river. There was no hope I was going to keep my boots dry here, so I ensured nothing was in my pockets and waded on it, using my poles to help stabilise me against the flow of the river. The water at its highest didn’t quite reach my crotch thankfully, and I made it without much of an issue. I then headed up a thin trail into the woods that climbed somewhat steeply at points, but eventually levelled out through the thin trees. I passed the point on my GPS map and kept walking to eventually come out at a little hut. This one had an old style fireplace and no toilet. So I set about getting ready for the evening, getting wood in ready for a fire. There were plenty of tools in the hut, so I got a spade and found a nice place to dig a hole away from the trail, for tomorrow morning’s business. Then I settled in, got the fire going and chilled out for the evening.

Day 12 – Mid Styx Hut to Hans Bay Campsite – 17.7 km – 6 hours – Pink

I awoke the next morning feeling good and ready for my final day in the wilderness, as tomorrow will be mostly a road walk from the DOC campsite to Hokitika. I was lying in bed thinking about getting up when it began to rain, so I got moving. I’d seen warnings that after heavy rain the Tyndall Creek and Styx River are dangerous to cross, and the first part of my day would be walking along Tyndall Creek. Halfway though getting ready it began to pour which disheartened me and I lay back in my bed considering staying in the hut for the day. Then I heard footsteps outside and opened the door to find two guys wet from the rain. They were just passing through and headed on along the trail. This pushed me to get moving and I packed, did my morning ablutions and headed out 30 minutes later. I weaved quickly through the forest along the trail for a kilometre until it began descending steeply, eventually coming out at Tyndall Creek.

After the warnings, I was nervous about following the creek as I was expecting to spend a lot of time climbing over the rocks in the raging creek as I’d done down Newton Creek. But I found much of the trail was on either side, through the trees and bushes, crossing it several times.

After 45 minutes, I emerged at the Styx River, crossed Tyndall Creek one last time before heading along the top of the bank on the true left side of the river – the left side in the direction it is flowing. I wandered through the forest at the top of the bank for 500m before climbing down a small creek to grassy plains.

I followed the plains for a kilometre and a half, occasionally diving into the forest. At the last hut there had been a map telling me where I was to cross the Styx river safely and it was near where I’d planned to begin climbing to Brown Hut. But due to the on-the-fly changes I’d made to my walk, along with the weather, I decided to skip this final climb and walk to the car park instead. I found the location the map had said and crossed the river without difficulty, again using my poles to stabilise me. On the other side I found the original trail and walked for less than 100m before the trail ended at a massive rock slide. This forced me to cross the river again. And again, it wasn’t difficult. Then another kilometre along, I saw a marker on the far side of the river so crossed a third time and found a 4 x 4 track.

I followed this for nearly a kilometre before finally emerging at the carpark. I knew if I stopped for any length of time the sand flies would feed, so I began the walk to my campsite hopeful that I might be randomly picked up like I had been on my road walk on day 6. The walk along Dorothy Falls Road to the campsite was about 6 km.

The road tracked through the forest for a bit, climbing here and there before passing the falls.

It rained on and off but not heavily as I passed some grazing fields with views of the mountains. I was passed by about a dozen vehicles from cars to large RVs, but no-one offered me a ride. Note, I wasn’t trying to hitch, just wondering if anyone would kindly offer me one.

My first sighting of the lake was half way along, a narrow gap of water with mountains on the far side.

The road the road weaved through more forest to emerge beside the lake. I walked the final couple kilometres as the road turned from the stones to tar seal and I knew the campsite was near when I rounded a corner to see a large cell tower.
I found the camp and walked around looking for a spot away from the RVs, of which there were plenty, and pitched my tent. This was the first I’d used it in the 12 days I’d spent walking. While it’s only light, the items I’d carried only to use on this particular night would come to 2.5 kilos more than 10% of my pack weight. When set up, I relaxed in the sun, drying clothes and boots while reading and catching up on everything I’d missed online over the past 6 days.

Day 13 – Hans Bay Campsite to Hokitika Central – 21 km – 1 hours – Red

I shouldn’t really include this day in my walk, as I decided not to walk the three hour trail along the ridge, instead trying to hitch a lift into Hokitika. It was a little cold over night in my tent as I’d gotten used to sleeping in huts with a fire. After having breakfast and packing, I set out along the road, putting my thumb out for the first time. I worked out it would take me 5 hours to walk the 21 km to Hokitika and was more than happy to walk if no-one picked me up. A handful of cars passed me before the end of the lake.

I then headed along Lake Kaniere Road – which sounds like you are saying Lake Canary – and had walked a total of 3 kilometres before a van pulled over to pick me up. A tour operator had just dropped a host of people off near the lake to ride bicycles back to Hokitika. We chatted the 20 minutes to the town, but as it was too early to book into my accommodation, he took me on a tour of the town.

Afterwards he dropping me off at a laundrette that he owned where I did all my washing and lay me tent out to dry in the glorious sun. When all was dry, I headed into town for lunch and then to my accommodation.

Overall

The thirteen day walk was different than I expected. I didn’t expect the first 6 days to be so flat along the Harper Pass, or that there would be so many TA walkers, but it was a good build up to being on a long term hike. In turn, I was expecting the second part to be more rugged and peaceful with big climbs and long descents, but it was more brutal than I expected. I’m glad I chose to take an emergency beacon this time just in case although thankfully I didn’t need it. I enjoyed my walk, but the overall most exhausting part was the rain, which overall made the trek less fun.

I do chalk it up as an achievement, crossing the large set of mountains in the country I grew up in, and marks the end of a year of walking in New Zealand.

Until next time,

The Lone Trail Wanderer

In late February 2023 I embarked on my longest walk in New Zealand, 13 days across the Southern Alps of the South Island. Go back to Days 7 – 8 or to the beginning Days 1 – 3.

Day 9 – Mid Taipo Hut to Newton Creek Hut – 6.9 km – 11 hours – Red

It had rained a little overnight and as today would be a long difficult day, I wasn’t pleased that everything would be wet. Clouds hung atop the ridges, and I hoped they’d blow over. In the hut were instructions to get to the beginning of today’s climb, so I followed them back to the turn off and easily found the trail leading up the mountain.

While I’d been told the trail would be steep, it wasn’t as bad as expected. I’d imagined the climb from yesterday after the three war cableway, just much longer. But it turned out to be a moderate climb, fairly constant up rocks and roots only damp from the overnight rain.

And, after 90 minutes I popped out at the top amidst the mist.

The sign at the bottom had said 2 hours to the Dunn Creek Hut, but it took another hour to make my way through wet flax and vegetation.

A couple of wet stream crossings and I crossed a marshy, grassy mud patch leading up to hut. It was in better shape than I’d expected, but the heating had been removed and I’m glad I’d decided not to stay there. I took my boots off, brewed a coffee and ate some lunch.

Half an hour later, I headed out again across the boggy grasslands following the trail markers.

Much of the climb to Newton Saddle was up Dunn Creek, and it was pretty lively as I went. The trail pushed up the centre of the creek over wet rocks and wasn’t very pleasant as it was slippery and slow as I tried to ensure each step was stable. Thankfully over the hours I climbed, the creek grew thinner. At one point I must have climbed up the wrong rocky gully as lost sight of the regular orange markers. My GPS confirmed I was off track and I was forced to bush whack my way across the grassy mountain slope until I saw the correct creek with the markers. Going down would have cost me extra time.

I was mostly dry as I walked, but the occasional gust of cold wind from across the saddle was pretty miserable. I saw the markers go up the very steep side of the grassy bank away from the creek, and I knew this was the final climb to the saddle. It was hard going. I couldn’t use my poles, so let them dangle from my wrists with the straps. Each step was finding a footing and dragging myself up by the grass, bit by bit until I got 30 metres from the top when I could again use my poles. I finally got over the top and looked down to regard where I came from…

The hundred or so metres across the saddle was fairly flat and it felt good to not have to climb. I stopped at the top of the descent and looked down.

The climb down was the opposite of the ascent. It was easy going at the top, trickles of water in the rocks, but as I went it got thicker and heavier the trail going down the centre of the Newton Creek. I descended into the mist which grew bright from the occasional ray of the sun, only to fade again. With several other water flows joining the creek it got heavier and the rocks larger. I slipped several times, catching myself on my poles, bending them slightly under the strain. Sometimes I had to let go of them and catch myself on my arms in the water. I don’t remember bashing my ribs, but perhaps coming down hard on my arms caused bruising on my left side. It didn’t affect my walking, or carrying, only turning over at night. I had scratches and bruises down much of my legs and again wished I’d brought the full length gators.

The day was getting on and I realised I wasn’t going to make it to the hut I’d originally planned to stay in. There was another, closer one, so I decided to walk there. But again, because I hadn’t preplanned it on my digital map, I had to guess where it was. And at 7:30 pm, I was also starting to worry that I was losing daylight. Based on where I thought the hut was, I’d likely be walking in the semi dark with my head lamp. Thankfully I train for endurance, so even though I’d been going for more than 10 hours, I still had more in me. Another large creek joined the Newton Creek, making it just too wild to be rock hoping in a raging river. Thankfully the trail finally cut along the side for the first time during this descent. Then, as I followed the trail, I came out onto a grassy patch and looked over to see a hut. I wondered about there being another hut not shown on the map, but went over to it and it turned out to be the hut I was looking for and hour earlier than I predicted. The sense of relief was unimaginable. I set about getting out of my wet gear, having a wet wipe ‘hikers’ shower and getting into warm clothing. I topped up my water for the next day from the river, set out all my gear before getting the fire going. I cooked some dinner and just stared into the fire for what felt like hours.

Day 10 – Newton Creek Hut to Mudflats Hut – 5.1 km – 3.5 hours – Green

After belting myself around yesterday, I woke somewhat refreshed and ready to continue my trek. I packed up and headed out into the wet morning grass. The trail continued through the woods beside the raging river and it wasn’t long before I arrived at the 200m descent I’d been expecting last night. I’m glad I didn’t have to do it in the twilight or the dark, the slippery roots and steep trail was slow going as I had to be careful of every step. Half way down there was a grove of thin trees giving me something to hang onto as I descended.

I finally got to the bottom after an hour and came out at the Arahura River, which I stood little chance of crossing. But, according to the map, around the corner was a triple wire crossing, so I began rock hoping along, careful on the slippery boulders. Then, it began to spit, heralding in the rain.

There was a small climb up to the wire bridge, but according to the map the other side was going to be a bit of a bush whack as I climbed to a trail. But, I found that the trail had changed, and straight from the end of the bridge it began to climb. It wasn’t as steep as the earlier descent, and got my blood pumping. At the top of the climb the trail went both ways and was quite wide.

I figured this would be a brief patch of wide trail, but was pleasantly surprised. For several kilometres, the trail stayed wide and flat. Perhaps this was part of an old settlers trail and had been around for many decades, maybe even from the 1800s, with only the occasional stream crossing that was a little rocky. It continued to rain, but there was a fair covering, so I wasn’t affected too much. I also got views of the grassy river plains below.

Then came the descent along a small stream heading towards the hut, and while I’d planned to walk further today, the constant rain was bugging me, so I decided after the extreme day yesterday, I’d get to the Mudflats Hut and call it a day.

The trail down wasn’t hard and I emerged at the base of the mountain on the wet grassy plains in the rain. I crossed a long wire bridge and crossed more grassy lands before I was forced up a steep climb where I came out at the hut. The rain was still coming down, so I ducked inside and got prepared for the night, a hiker’s shower, a change of clothes, collecting for firewood etc. I’d been there two hours in the ongoing rain when I heard footsteps outside and a slight German girl appeared at the door. She’d come along the river I was heading up tomorrow. We chatted for a couple of hours as I lit the fire before I got on with my evening.

Next, the final part, Days 11 – 13 of my Southern Alps Crossing.

The Lone Trail Wanderer

In late February 2023 I embarked on my longest walk in New Zealand, 13 days across the Southern Alps of the South Island. Go back to Days 4 – 6 or the beginning Days 1 – 3.

Day 7 – Rata Lodge Backpackers Otira to Dillon Hut – 14 km – 8 hours – Yellow

After a breakfast down at the local cafe, I packed and was delivered to the start point by the owner of the Backpackers. I’d originally planned to stop at Carroll Hut at the top of today’s climb, but after finding there was no heating there I decided to walk further. In the carpark I took my obligatory selfies to prove I was on the walk, then set off up the trail into the forest. I was barely 10 metres when a man emerged with pack on. He would be the last person I’d see for more than 24 hours.

The climb was by no means difficult but no easy fair either. I pushed on step by step and was rewarded by the occasional view out across the mountains. For the first steep climb of the walk, I finally got a good sweat on.

The good weather continued as I climbed out of the forest, passing the short stubby trees towards the top as I always seem to. I stopped and got another good shot along the range with Otira and Authur’s Pass in the distance.

The top two hundred metres the trail grew more rocky, feeling more exposed and dangerous.

But I finally crossed onto the tussock covered top and Carroll Hut came into view. At the hut I stopped for 30 minutes for lunch and to dry my sweaty clothes.

From here the trail was marked with posts, but the trail was not as well defined as before. This was fine atop the range which felt more like rolling hilltops than craggy mountain peaks.

As long as I could see the next pole, it didn’t matter that there were a meander of little trails leading to it. I go my first views down the other side where I’d eventually be descending to the river valley below.

The poles continued as did the suggested routes, which were fairly obvious due to the short vegetation. However, the mapping software I’d used to plot my course only listed the huts I’d planned to stay at, but as I’d decided to stay at a different one, I was forced to guess exactly where it was. Today was fairly easy, but later in my walk it would be more of an issue.

As the trail disappeared beneath the longer vegetation I was forced to bush bash from post to post. This was the beginning of my scratched legs woes, and my regret at not bringing full length gators.

The trail grew more prominent as I crossed into the tree line, with the usual orange triangles marking the route. At the top I easily descended 200m quickly before the trail got a little more precarious, but nothing too dangerous.

I came out atop a slip giving good views down. Then, near the base the trail lead through a rocky passage with a lone tree in the centre then popped out onto a rocky creek.

The creek was raging in places, and after a long day, I wanted to find the huts less than a kilometre away and rest. I skirted along the lower bank beside the creek, but couldn’t get past. So, trying to ensure my boots remained dry, I skirted back again looking for a place to cross. I found one, and jumped over, but I think my sunglasses came off my pack here, as I didn’t see them again. I walked along the other side, and found a place to cross.

Then it was up the bank and along a 4 x 4 track. I quickly saw the Dillon Homestead Hut and stopped to check it out. The homestead hut has been around since 1945 and has a lot of character in it. I could have stayed here and I’m not sure why I didn’t, but I chose to push on to the nearby Dillon hut, a far newer Department of Conservation hut. I wasn’t disappointed and as I had it to myself I got set up for my first night alone on this trek. And as it had been a warm day, I didn’t bother with a fire.

Day 8 – Dillon Hut to Mid Taipo Hut – 8.9km – 3 hours – Pink

Because yesterday was long day, and tomorrow will be too, I chose a more chilled walk today along the Taipo River. I’d planned to climb to the Dunn Creek Hut at the end of the day, but had read that it wasn’t in the best of shape and being rebuilt. Again my map didn’t have the alternative huts marked, so I was guessing by the end of the day. I headed out from Dillon Hut in an overcast sky.

As the river was wide and deep in places, I stayed on the left bank waiting for a three cable crossing I knew was further along.

To get to the crossing, I had to climb the side of a high rocky outcrop, then follow the path and a super steep descent where a ladder had been installed to help.

I crossed the bridge over a raging river, and on the other side, had a hard climb almost straight up the dirt bank that seemed endlessly.

It eventually flattened out before an easier descent down the side to pop out near the river, which had split in two.

I then followed vague trails along the river bank and grassy flats.

…before running into two guys who’d come from a hut further up the river. From a few minute chat, one suggested that if I was going up to Dunn Creek Hut to go up the creek instead of the trail further around as it was less steep. I’d originally planned to do that, but as I was no longer going to that hut tonight, I might have to be satisfied with the more difficult route up.

The river gully became quite tight with no way to walk along the side, so I was forced to push up the side of the bank on a forest trail. It was by no means a easy walk, and cemented in my mind that I wouldn’t be coming back to climb Dunn Creek.

I finally popped out at the Mid Taipo Hut having passed the less than obvious junction to tomorrow’s climb. There were bits of sun and it was warm. I decided to wash my sweaty clothes, so I stripped down tossed my clothes in a waterproof bag with some special organic cleaner and headed out to the river to do the washing. In my naked state, I kept an eye out should someone pop out of the wilderness, but no-one did. I took my washing back to the hut and hung it up outside, then went back to the river and bathed. The water was pretty icy, but I got it done and returned to the hut to chill out as it began to rain. I lit the fire to help dry the clothes and got on with my afternoon.

Next, Days 9 – 10 of my Southern Alps Crossing.

The Lone Trail Wanderer