Days 129-133: Across a River, Down a River, Up a Hill

What an up and down few days - both in terms of elevation and mood! We made it across the Ahuriri River, down the Timaru River valley, and over Breast Hill. We had some easy walking, tough walking and incredible views along the way.


Day 129 started with a cold morning. We managed to warm up a bit with a climb up to the top of the east branch of the Ahuriri River. The beginning of the climb was not bad, until we hit a completely trailless, unmarked section near the top. We were expecting this - the trail notes exclaimed that this section "provides a good transitional tramp for moderately experienced trampers looking to go the next step." However, we still ended up making a poor navigational choice, and ended up spending half an hour mired in a steep, narrow stream gorge full of vicious speargrass, before deciding to climb up and out. Once we got out, we were able to see a few marker poles in the distance, and the going was quite a bit easier.

At the top, we joined the river and started descending through the river valley. It was the typical river valley walking we've gotten to know and love - pretty rough, tough, slow going. Eventually, the valley widened up, and the going became much easier. We also got some great views of the valley when we climbed over a tricky gorge.

The lower Ahuriri River (east branch) valley from atop a gorge

That night, we camped near the river, only a few kilometers from where we'd have to cross the main Ahuriri River the next morning. Quite a few sandflies showed up (boy, we've missed them!), but for whatever reason they didn't seem hungry - they mostly buzzed around and didn't really bite us. A welcome surprise!

It's no hut, but this campsite wasn't bad

The next morning, we woke up to clear (and still cold!) weather. A quick walk brought us to the Ahuriri, which was running normally, and was a relatively easy crossing. We were again happy to have good weather though - the main channel was running pretty fast, and it came up to our mid thighs. Rain could have easily made it impassable.

The main Ahuriri River valley, just after we crossed. Crazy cliffs - this river is no joke!

From there, we still had a full day of walking ahead of us, including 1000m of climbing to Martha Saddle, and a 500m descent to our hut. Luckily (?) almost the whole way was along a 4wd track, which made it really easy, well graded going. There were 2 downsides to the 4wd track though - first, the mountains were littered with tracks, which made it feel a little less wildernessy. Second, Liz and I both agree that, for big climbs, we prefer going straight up, and getting it over with, rather than trudging uphill for kilometers on well graded track.

Ohai, coal. Found in our lunch hut.

The climb to the saddle took a few hours and zapped us way more than we were expecting. We were both exhausted and kind of cranky when we finally reached the top. Plus it was (still) freezing, and clouds were rolling in. It started raining, with lots of cold wind, on our way down. Yay!

While this is not the most interesting photo, somewhere in it is Mt. Martha (Alunkal)

We finally reached Top Timaru Hut, and were happy to find that it was an awesome hut! "Renovated" in 2011 (it looked more like it was completely rebuilt), it was well insulated, clean, and we had it all to ourselves. This hut really saved us - we were worn down, tired, and I was at the point where I was finding it hard to contemplate getting through the next day of walking, let alone finishing the rest of the trail. Major low point!

Sometimes we have to get a little creative to make the twin quilt work in huts

But the next morning, Liz and I felt much, much better. I guess all we needed was a warm night and a good sleep. It didn't hurt to wake up to awesome views of snow-topped mountains all around us. Even though we knew we had a tough day of walking ahead of us, we were in high spirits as we set off down the Timaru River valley. It was rough walking - lots of steep sidling, boulder hopping, river crossings, climbing, descending, and all the other fun things that come with walking in a narrow river valley.

Beautiful morning above Top Timaru Hut, with fresh snow on the peaks

Did I mention it's been cold here lately? It was still FREEZING that day. We were both completely geared up - winter coats, hats, and gloves. To prove that it was actually cold, it started snowing on us. The snow was strange, like miniature snowballs instead of snowflakes. It didn't accumulate much, but there was enough in some spots to make it slippery, which slowed us down even more. The forest was pretty magical during the snowfall though.

Snow! Sort of... they were little snowballs instead of flakes. Liz claimed it was raining Dippin' Dots

Climbing over a tricky gorge in the Timaru River valley

We eventually made it up to Stody's Hut, after our preferred kind of climb (straight up). It was... not quite as nice as the last hut. It had a dirt floor (covered in some boards & flat stones), and was pretty drafty. However, it had a huge fireplace, and plenty of firewood! We lit a roaring fire, cooked a hot dinner, and tried to warm up a bit after a cold day.

Mountains above Stody's Hut, still with snow

Day 132 was awesome. We left Stody's Hut and climbed along a ridgeline towards Breast Hill. We had amazing views of the surrounding mountains along the way. Also, it was cold, again. But the views distracted us.

Beautiful views on the ridge leading up to Breast Hill

The views from the top of Breast Hill were even more incredible - we could see Lake Hawea and the southern Alps. All of it highlighted by patches of sunlight being swept through by pretty strong winds. From here, it was hard to even remember how down we were feeling just 2 days ago.

Lake Hawea and the Southern Alps from Breast Hill

Wow, even with some low clouds, the views over the lake were amazing!

Snowy tussocks!

We took about 50 pictures of the cool rock formations on top

The descent from Breast Hill was described ominously by the trail notes - phrases like "drops 950m" and "challenging section". It wasn't nearly as bad as we were expecting though. There were a few steep spots, but for the most part the trail was good, and we were down by mid-afternoon, ahead of schedule.

Cool bumpy ridges off to our right on the way down

Be prepared for all weather conditions!

We cruised into Hawea, a small town next to the lake. We stopped at Sailz, a cafe/restaurant in town. They were super TA-friendly! They even had a guest book that tons of TA hikers had signed. They chatted us up, we ate several meals at once, and then enjoyed a free pot of tea. Great way to be welcomed back to civilization after 5 tough days!

Possibly the most ridiculous street name ever. Liz is "parading"

The northeast winter is international news. While we miss lots of people, we're not sorry to be missing the "Arctic Vortex"

We stayed in a "lodge room" at the local hotel (basically a hostel dorm room) that night, then went back to Sailz for breakfast the next morning before heading off for an easy day of walking to Wanaka.

Hawea River was awfully high - glad we didn't have any crossings today!

Today was a busy day in town! We picked up our bounce box from the post office, which had fresh pairs of shoes (pair #3 for both of us) and contacts for both of us. We did some food shopping, and I caught up on the blog. Tomorrow we head off to the Motatapu Alpine Track, which is supposed to be pretty challenging. We've made it easier on ourselves by planning for short days though. One day we only walk 6kms between huts - practically a rest day! We'll emerge from the mountains and head into Queenstown in about 5 days.

We're both feeling much better than we were around the Ahuriri River. I guess your body & mind can go through some serious swings when you are putting this much stress on them, day in and day out, for 5 months. We're down to 450 kms left though, and I know we'll finish strongly. But after we do, I'm looking forward to a little relaxation!