2-3 February 2019
Leader: John Sturgess
This trip varied from the trip list as it was done in reverse to take advantage of the forecast wind drop for the tops on Sunday.
The not-so-best bits:
- Leader (scribe) turning up 10 minutes late having not realising there is an alternative road entering Otaki Forks road from the south thereby missing the other team members vehicles.
- The final grunt up ridge to spot height 666 at around 5pm when we then realised we had another 450 metres to climb.
- The amount of windfall on this ridge especially in the top section.
Best bits:
- Locating the old logging trails on the true left of the river where Tregear creek enters the Snowy. These were marked at regular intervals with pink tape and provided relatively easy graded travel above the Snowy to the foot of ridge leading to spot height 666.
- Neville out front disturbing a hind and yearling on this ridge.
- Finding no one else at the cosy 4 bunk Elder hut after a 10-hour day.
- Sleeping out on the veranda and watching the sun set over the sea in a pink and blue diorama as the lights of the towns on the Kapiti coast twinkled in the still evening light.
- Owen (our self-proclaimed food connoisseur) chastising Marian for putting peas in the same billy as his (burnt) sausages.
- Marian reclaiming her Mojo after a long absence from any serious tramping.
- The relatively quick climb to Aston on Sunday morning (1.75hrs) on a perfect sunny and windless day.
- The extensive views over the Dress Circle south to the Seaward Kaikoura's and to the northern peaks of the Tararua’s.
- Boiling numerous billies of water from a nearby tarn for a lunchtime brew on top of Mt Hector.
- The hot and dusty descent from Kime hut down the well-worn trail -past Dennan - finally Fields hut and the welcoming cool of the bush.
- The refreshing swim in the Waiotauru River as the late afternoon shadows closed in.
Those on the trip were:
John Sturgess, Marian Cox, Owen Cox, David Williams, Chris Keating, Neville Grubner
No photo album was created for this trip.