tramping new zealand

Heavy rain early on at Dalys Clearing Hut, but by the time I left, blue sky was apparent. Shadows could be seen.

I thought I should complete the loop on the old tram track, being half an hour shorter supposedly, but also more swampy.

Yesterday had little wet underfoot. Rather than repeating that time in the forest, continuing the loop would be all logged and halfway through, fully cleared farmland.

As it turned out, it wasn’t swampy at all. Just a creek to get my feet wet, then it was all plain sailing. The track was easier and clearly more used than yesterday‘s alternative.

The best bit was in the forest along the river. Some damage from Wednesday’s heavy rain was visible, but the river had dropped significantly. Very pretty. The track through the farmland was solid underfoot, then I was on a gravel road, then tarseal, and I was at the car park. Easy.

I departed for the southern part of the park before 10 am and took some time out in Katkati for an early lunch. After that, the traffic increased, and rain started to fall.

Will we ever have a summer this year?

Roadworks in Tauranga delayed me, but eventually I was putting my wet clothes and pack on again. Did it matter?

I was down at the southern end of the park, intent on spending the rest of the afternoon getting to another hut.

The first thing was crossing a stream that others might have danced across the slippery round boulders, but I was more cautious and waded across in my already wet boots.

The steep and winding path didn’t seem to be a tram track, and it took a long while to get to the easy slope and straight line of Kauri log haulage.

Eventually, I hit the north/south track, which was generally fairly level, although it wound around. The sign at the turn-off said it was half an hour to the next turn-off, but it took twice that for some reason, then the same to the hut, with a similar time taken.

The mud was scarcely like Wairaurahiri to Waitutu on the Southern Track in southern Fiordland, although the track was a lake in parts. I wondered if I’d have company in the hut due to the holiday weekend, but once again, I was on my lonesome in the basic but tidy Hurunui Hut.

No mattresses were initially visible, but they were in a steel-sheet-encased box.

Despite the poor weather and track closures, I’d managed to get to four of the seven possible huts in the Kaimais.

My knee was holding up, but I wasn’t sure about the rest of my body.