If yesterday I surprised myself in getting to my initially proposed destination, today, well, not so enthusiastic.
Maybe I spent too much time up behind the hut watching the sunrise and the clouds roll in. Then talking to the others in the hut. I must have felt the odd bit tired but I still managed to get away prior to 9 am.
Half an hour down the track I ran into someone coming up from John Tait after an earlier start, so that stopped me in my tracks for 20 minutes.
The weather from the 5 am mountain forecast was poor from lunchtime but by the time I stopped for lunch there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Maybe the 25 mm of rain predicted will happen, maybe not.
I was thinking again that I would go over the Saddle if it was before 2 pm, but it was almost 2 30 pm when I made it to the hut, full sunshine, hut to myself, ie, I’m going to stay the night. The sign was saying a big 6 hours which I didn’t believe, but it was time to take a break to contemplete these magnificent setting.
Actually I have a day up my sleeve I’ve found, if I want to stay at Sabine on Sunday and Bushline on Monday night, but I’ll have to stretch the food out for another night.
Not the biggest day but depending on the weather I might have a go at Blue Lake tomorrow.
Later two climbers, then another arrived, not worrying too much about the weather forecast. There was some peering at the gnarly east face of Mt Travers, discussion of various routes, consultation of maps and route guides.
The bad weather hasn’t arrived yet but it is going to hit. In the meantime the stars are out, and not long after, a quite orange full moon, illuminating the rock Mt Travers clearly in an other worldly way.
The pair threatened to be getting up at 4 30 am but there’s two bedrooms at the hut and they were stationed in the other one.
At this time of year everyone is a Kiwi. There were a few overseas types down at the lake but it seems with the shorter days the locals have come out, making the most of this long weekend and the last of the autumn weather.
A guide to the night’s accommodation: Upper Travers Hut
