Start of the Trip - CollingwoodKaramea - Heaphy TrackRolling River, WangapekaMurchison, New ZealandLewis passArthurs PassRakaia RiverLake Clearwater, New ZealandLake Ohau, New ZealandWanaka, New ZealandArrowtown, New ZealandTe Anau, New ZealandTuatapere, New ZealandTe Waewae Bay
 | walk4kiwis |  | A long walk to Save the Kiwis |  | Lake Ohau, New Zealand |
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Feb 26 2010, 11:29 AM
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Lake Ohau, New Zealand
From here it was another hour or so yomp to the homestead and our stop for the night.
Mesopotamia, one of the iconic high country sheep stations of NZ. Up to a couple of years ago, this was a 26,000 hectare property, with several homesteads and even it’s own school, which officially closed last year.
Now it is 5,000 hectares, with a 30 year hunting and tourism concession over the other 26,000 now under DoC. While wandering around the property that evening, we met a chap who used to muster up in the hills who, when we told him our plans to get to the Royal hut next day informed us "we were dreaming". After chatting with him for a while, he advised us not to try the Te Araroa Track and instead, go up Forest River and over the Bullock Bow Saddle, a route I had actually looked at some time ago. He said the track was easier going and most of it followed an old 4 wheel drive track, which sounded appealing. He also said it wouldn’t take nearly as long. Yeah Right!
We were up and gone at first light and it really was a glorious start to the day. Sun shining on the mountain tops, deer watching us from a distance and not a cloud in the sky (boy, we were sorry about that later). The climb up and over the saddle was long and steep, a climb of over 1000 meters to the top at 1625m.
The views were fantastic and we could see the next day’s challenge, Stag Saddle on the other side of the valley.
By this time the temperature had reached over 30 degrees and even the wind was warm. We had a quick lunch at the top and then headed down to Bush Stream to pick up the track to the hut. A lot of this route was over scree slopes and avalanche debris and with the sun beating down reflecting off the rock, you can imagine how hot it was. Yes, I know, last week I was bitching about the rain and cold, no pleasing some people! We eventually got to the valley floor and pushed our way through the usual collection of matagouri, waist high tussock and wild spaniard. We finally arrived at the Royal Hut nearly 11 hours after leaving Mesopotamia. A very long and hot day. Royal hut was so named because Prince Charles apparently stayed here some years ago. I just hope it was in far better condition then than it is now! What a tip! By far the most rundown and uncared for hut I have seen on the entire trek. Dirty, rubbish everywhere, food containers with contents left all over the place and even the old horse-hair mattresses!
The following morning saw us gone before day break, complete with headlamps as we were aware the climb up to Stag Saddle was a 4 and a half km track and to allow 3 and a half hours to do it.
As the sun rose behind us we were a third of the way up, again, a really fantastic morning. Before we knew it, (2 and a half hours later actually) we were on the saddle! At 1945 meters the highest point of my trek. Looking south, we had the most incredible views over Lake Tekapo, Lake Pukaki, down towards the Lindis Pass and behind us the route we had just come up. It really did look pretty steep but I guess doing it at this time (and partly in the dark so we couldn’t actually see how steep it was) we really had no problems at all getting up to the top.
Going down the valley became more and more difficult with no track as such and only the very occasional pole marker. The ground was very uneven and broken, the descent was steep and slippery and you couldn’t see your feet through the thick tussock. About 45 minutes later Phil pulled up with a very sore knee and slowed up considerably. I took what I could fit into my pack from him and on we went. By now the sun was right above us and it was getting hotter than yesterday. Luckily we were following a stream down so water wasn’t a problem. The day dragged on and got hotter and so did we. Poor Phil was in a lot of pain and the going wasn’t getting any easier. Finally, 5 hours after leaving the saddle, we hit an old 4 wheel drive track which we knew would lead us to an old musterers hut. called Camp Hut, it is a great wee place. A huge improvement on our last night’s abode. I was concerned about the fact that we had arranged for Marilyn to meet us at 2 o’clock that afternoon and it was 2.00 now with still at least 3 hours to go at a normal pace. Phil felt he could carry on at a slow pace so after a break we set off again. Even at this hour it was still baking hot and we were both getting pretty badly sun and wind burnt despite all the precautions we took. The going stated to improve a little and we were making reasonable time when we spotted the poled route taking us out of the river valley and straight up a bloody long steep mountainside. Talk about the sting in the tail! I don’t think either of us had sweated so much before. After an almost vertical climb of nearly 400 meters, we finally reached the top and started sidling around the ridge line to the road end at Tekapo ski field. As we neared the road end, I could hear the sound of road working machinery away in the distance. I looked at my watch, saw it was 4.15, guessed whoever it was working would most likely knock off at 4.30, so said to Phil I would run and try to get to them before they finished and see if someone would come and pick him up at the road end as we still had about 8 kms to walk down the road before our meeting point with Marilyn. Running with a full pack and boots on in 30+ degrees might be great training for the Royal Marines or SAS, but it ain’t no good for an overloaded, overheated old geezer, believe me. I finally stumbled (literally) across this construction crowd doing some road realignment work about 2 km down the road. I have never felt so utterly stuffed in my life! They were a great bunch of guys and within a few minutes we were in a ute and heading back up the hill to pick Phil up. I am sure he was even more relieved to see these guys than I was. When I mentioned that we were supposed to have been meeting Marilyn at the bottom of the road 3 ½ hours ago, Steve, the owner of the operation, said he had noticed a camper had been parked at the bottom of the hill for a few hours and then ran us down to where it was parked. The relief all round was enormous and after several gallons of good old Raro (almost pure sugar drink), we started slowly reviving. I finally plucked up the courage to take my boots off, and sure enough, three toenails completely knackered. No doubt that running down hills on gravel roads in tramping boots is injurious to one’s digits.
Due to various reasons, we decided to stay in the Lake Tekapo Motor camp for the night. Grief, how I hate these places. What is it that makes the people who run these places so grumpy, rude and so unhelpful? They charge like wounded bulls and then charge extra for everything else. Give me a lovely little river or beach to park on every time.
Back to reality the next day and the prospect of having to limp along 35 km to Lake Pukaki on the road alongside the huge canals here in MacKenzie country that are part of the Tekapo-Pukaki-Ohau power schemes. Phil decided he thought he would be better off taking another day off so I set off on my own for what I thought would be a boring road walk. How wrong I was. It was great. This time the breeze was nice and cooling and the views were, again, fantastic. Across the burnt plains up onto the Alps and Mt Cook there in all its glory.
We spent the next night on the shores of Lake Pukaki and it actually rained! For a full 30 seconds! The weather over the Alps looked a bit threatening but it stayed up on the mountains and again the morning was wonderful.
Phil joined me on this second and last day of canal walking from Pukaki to Lake Ohau. I must mention here the wonderful colour of the water in these lakes.
A real turquoise blue, caused by the "rock flour" ground out of the glaciers that feed the rivers that flow into these lakes. So the pair of us cripples and Tiri of course, hobbled along against the backdrop of the Alps and the sun on our backs the 25 km to Ohau.
This really is an interesting part of the country and other than our injuries and chapped lips it’s a pretty damn fine life!
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