The Routeburn Track - one of the many 'Great Walks' in NZ
18.12.2008 - 22.12.2008
Erin took this video from Key Summit, which is a high point near the end of the Routeburn Track - one of the 'Great Walks' in NZ. The tall, pyramid-shaped peak is Mt. Christina, which to my knowledge is the tallest mountain in Fiordland National Park. After hiking for three days in mixed weather (rain, sun, some fresh snow ), the weather forecast called for clear skies and we decided to make a sunrise run up the hill. The effort paid off. Although there was a good deal of fog moving down the valley that morning, we were granted the occasional unobstructed view of the craggy, glaciated peaks that characterize New Zealand's Southern Alps.
The trek itself was fabulous, both in scenery and in structure. Hikers arrive at a spartan hut at the end of each leg of the trek, which are essentially open kitchen and common areas attached to bunk rooms. Quite a nice change from the typical soggy-tent backpacking that we usually did in Seattle! Each hut is located at a beautiful nook along the trail, either along a river, up on a bluff overlooking the valley, or nestled up against an alpine lake. We met some really enjoyable hut companions along the way, which was especially nice on our one rainy day.
In all, the trek took us five days (we liked up the Routeburn with another track called the Greenstone), and we arrived at our final destination thoroughly tired but extremely happy for the experience. We are spending the next few days relaxing and gearing up for our next trek, which will be another five-day trip up into Mt. Aspiring National park. Supposedly you can see some impressive glaciers along the way, so we're hoping the weather cooperates!
Merry Chistmas to you all!
Posted by nsnodgrass 23.12.2008 7:21 PM Archived in Backpacking | New Zealand Comments (3)
We made it to NZ. Cory Williams, a good friend of Nate's from Alaska, has been hosting us along with his girlfiend, Camella (from the UK). We've only been here a few days and can already tell it's an outdoor paradise. Nate drools when seeing the rivers and I gawk at the glaciers and turqoise waters. It's been a great start. Cory and Camella took us to the beach the first day (Haast) and then we took a short hike on day 2 along the Wanaka Lake. We've been so lucky to stay with friends and have dinners and long conversations every night.
How do you pack for this long of a trip? Nate and I have been talking about it since we first decided to go and after multiple debates, we did it! Here's the final tally of goods for 1 person:
