Seemed little point cracking out the remaining distance to Molesworth. I climbed more than 1000 m for the day, 17 km according to my GPS, with somewhat over five hours walking involved.

That’s a reasonable day at the office.

It was just about that point if I went any further I might as well continue on but I spotted a decent campsite. Doesn’t take much: flat, can get pegs in the ground, not lumpy, not likely to have boulders roll on me, near water, etc.

Yeah, I mucked around too long first thing didn’t get away very early. But really, I guess after yesterday’s efforts 17 km was sufficient. It was a day of views, that happens when you climb to 1420 m. Lake McRae looked good from on high, the ring of willow trees clearly discernible, the Canada geese not. I saw the lake is an anomaly, ie, a big lake on the top of a low mountain pass, but somewhere in the Lake McRae hut I learnt that it is been formed by two giant landslips. I could see where the rubble had slipped on the west, that must have been an unbelievable earthquake to shake all that down. The water wasn’t blue, from 500 m above it was silvery.

I kept thinking that if horses and cattle could crack out the saddle, I should be okay. But those farm animals are fit, and I’m still carrying almost two weeks’ food.

At the top was a scree slope to traverse, two goats way down below staring at me for a while before they made haste with their departure. No trouble for them. With the scree, little puffs of dust with each foot movement.

Once at the pass, looking to the north, down the Robinson Creek, I could see green around Molesworth, and the dry hills behind it, probably all the way to the saddles I will be climbing in a few days time.

Animal sighted: one deer, which departed the area quickly, and about 20 goats.

It was windy, but I just hunkered down beneath a willow tree. Into the tent early.

What’s the hurry?

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