22-28 March 2025

Leader: Steve Hudson

Back in July 2024 while organizing the next trip schedule, Peter asked me to meet up for a coffee and run over a trip he thought I could offer some advice on. Thompson Pass sits at the head of the D’Urville River and was the preferred crossing point of the Southern Alps for this trip. It had always been on my list to do so it wasn’t hard to sign up and offer to lead the trip.

The plan was to start at Matakitaki Station, east of Murchison and travel the entire length of the Matakitaki River, crossing two passes and ending up in the Waiau Valley before completing the last section of the St James Walkway through to Boyle Village on the Lewis Pass highway.

After the trip was added to the schedule it quickly filled up. On Saturday March 22nd, 7 members flew to Nelson and were joined by club local John Perrin, making a total of 8.

Our transport to the road end was pre-organised utilizing Nelson operator, Trips and Transfers. Our driver delivered us in comfort allowing a stop for lunch and coffee at the famous Wakefield Bakery.

After about an hour we arrived at the Matakitaki Road end. The once glaciated river valley is the longest in Nelson Lakes National Park. It is a stunning location and it takes around 3 days to get to its head. We thanked our driver who supplied some pre-tramp refreshments and commenced the 5 hour stroll, acclimatizing to the weight of our very heavy packs (in my case a 25 kg pantry), to Downies Hut. Along the route we passed motorbikes and a few others on quadbikes. Being the end of March, the roar was commencing, and it was a permissible transport option as far as the hut.

As the hut was already occupied by hunters, we set up camp closer to the river and settled in for our first night. A distant morepork added to the evening’s ambience.

Next morning, after a leisurely breakfast, we began tramping up the river then re-joined the track before climbing up and over Pretty Bridge (not a physical bridge) which by-passes a gorge in the river below, before dropping down to a few flats near the Matakitaki West Branch. After a minor altercation with a rock by one of the group, we passed the West Matakitaki and began to climb more steeply up the East Branch. We crossed a 3-wire bridge over a narrow section of the crystal clear river to the true left side. Another 2 hours had us at East Matakitaki Hut for the night. This original forest service SF70 hut is set on a stunning tussock flat in one of the most beautiful locations in any park around New Zealand. Being built in the 1960s and sitting less than three metres from the river, it amazes me that with the high number of flooding events, it has never been washed away.

Day three was going to be a tough one. We were up early and away before daylight. We crossed the river many times before the sun finally arrived to warm the valley. We spooked a couple of deer feeding on the flats close to where the beech forest section ends. At the head of the valley the distinctive wedge of David Saddle came into view and looked very steep. It reminded me of an earlier club trip when we had crossed it in the middle of winter with only ice axes and crampons.

After lunch we commenced the climb up and over D’Urville Pass. This was a steep gut that allowed quick access to the middle basin followed by a second climb to the pass. Once on top Thompson Pass was visible directly across the headwaters of the D’Urville basin. It looked very imposing and almost unimaginable that anyone would attempt to climb it directly. The accepted route was to drop down to the 1700 metre contour and sidle around as best as possible before tackling a higher crossing point to the right of Thompson Pass. The afternoon was getting on, so after a team chat, we felt we may struggle to make the crossing safely in the remaining daylight. The decision was to camp in the head of the basin and attempt the pass the following day. A quick txt to Tony confirmed the weather should be okay the following day, so we set up camp amongst the various flat points that were close by. We spotted a chamois close to our camp and then many stags were roaring above and below us. Overnight the cloud came in and early morning it was still present but showed signs of clearing.

After packing up we departed for the pass. We soon crossed a challenging scree slope, and some concerns with the difficult terrain on the route were raised amongst the team. After a collective discussion, and in the interest of safety, I made the call to abandon Thompson Pass, and instead, drop into the head of the D’Urville River. We soon found the route and easily made our way down through the headwaters until a sunny lunch spot was located at the bottom of the stream that flows from David Saddle. From here it was a simple case of following the track to the Upper D'Urville Hut. The track crosses some stunning sections of beech forest and eventually the bridge to Moss Pass appeared. Shortly after, there was a major side creek that the bridge had been removed from and this slowed down progress to get everyone across safely. After cursing DOC for removing the bridge, we arrived at George Lyon Hut. Just on dark, a young Tasmanian chap arrived at the hut, surprising us. He was keen to tell us he had come from the Waiau River, over Thompson Pass directly then sidled steeply down the scree slope before dropping into the D’Urville and all the way down to the hut.

Next day we continued in perfect weather down the valley stopping for lunch at Morgan Hut, then continuing until we found a good camp site just before the Tiraumea Saddle track.

The following morning, we kept to the river and surrounding flats before crossing to the track that takes you to the Sabine Valley. As we sidled around beside Lake Rotoroa, we spotted a helicopter slinging in a large bridge up the D’Urville Valley. It was at that point we clicked where it was going to. Rather than head up the Sabine Valley to the bridge, we crossed the river easily and cut around two hours off the track. A nice lunch at the spacious Sabine Hut then we began the climb up and out of the valley. This gave nice views of the lake and the lower sections of the D’Urville River. After a height gain of around 300 metres the track levelled out past some tarns and then it sidled for a few hours through some spectacular forest on an awesome track before arriving at Speargrass Hut for our final night.

Day 7 started out a little overcast but as had been the case every day, the cloud soon disappeared to reveal a sunny day. The walk out from Speargrass Hut is a case of dodging a few tree roots and the odd wasp nest before climbing up the last section to the Mt Robert Road carpark.

It was a nice feeling arriving at the carpark knowing the previous 115 kms was behind us as we walked the last section to the Alpine Lodge in St Arnaud.

Those on the trip were:

Jacqui Marshall, John Perrin, Julie James, Paula Richardson, Peter Davis, Rob Dey, Steve Hudson, Yingjun Shelton

Currently there is no photo album for this trip.