Robert (New Zealand) - Team Ed Go!

Ok, here's my very long post about the past week or so.

Surfing was a lot of fun. I didn't actually make too much of an ass of myself. I might even try again, if I feel like paying lots of money to rent a wetsuit and board. Who knows, maybe i have a future as a beach bum. Afterwards we had dinner at Jay and Marcie's house which is on a steep hillside overlooking the beach. You have to ride in a bucket cart to get up to it. We ate pizza and some possum that two students had skinned on their farm stay, and did some planning for our hiking trip.

Routeburn/Greenstone was amazing. The Routeburn is one of the "Great Walks", a desegnation of hikes in New Zealand that are relatively accessible, and especially beautiful. We split the group into two brigades for the hike, each hiking the loop in opposite directions. I was one of the student co-leaders for the Routeburn to Greenstone group. Being a leader was a good experience, but at times I sort of felt like I couldn't just relax and take in where I was the way I normally do on back country trips. Because the great walks try to be accessible to a large range of people, the campsites have very nice structures to stay in (which also cost a pretty penny). Doing back country trips with huts is new to me. I'm used to rolling into a campsite where the most you can hope for is a tent platform and an outhouse, and oftentimes all you get is a flat piece of ground. The huts we stayed in had up to 40 bunk beds, kitchen areas with gas stoves and sinks, common areas with fireplaces, and bathrooms with flush toilets. In a lot of ways I prefer a more "wilderness" experience, but having a hut at the end of a cold rainy hike is also very nice.

In any case, here's a not all that quick rundown of the trip day by day.

Day 1 - Glenorchy to Routburn Falls Hut
We spent the night before the trip in the town of Glenorchy about 7-8 hours south-west of Christchurch. We did a mass packing of group gear & food in the in the morning, packed up the vans and drove to the trail heads. The first day was mostly up-hill, and rather steep towards the end. The trail weaved through beech forests and boulders, past mountain creeks and waterfalls (so many waterfalls). Routeburn Falls Hut is right at the treeline overlooking the head of a massive valley. Quite a nice view. We celebrated the birthday of one of the students in our group with cookies, affirmations, and gifts of random crap that we could find around the hut.

Day 2 - Routeburn Falls to Lake Mackenzie
We started the day with a bit of silent alone time by the waterfalls above the hut. The morning was spent hiking through grassland in an alpine valley. Around noon we crossed over the mountain ridge, and by the virtue of rainshadow and mountain weather patterns, strait into clouds. Apparently there are amazing views as you skirt the ridge, but all we saw was white. In truth I kind of prefer it that way. Every once in a while the clouds open up a bit and you'll catch a glimpse of a view which is cool. The rest of the time you're hiking along a white void and have the distinct impression that you're tramping along the edge of the world. The last kilometer or two the trail descended into a dense beach forest. The place had a very mystical feel. The trees' trunks grow in a wavy pattern that almost looks like tendrils of flame. There are massive boulders scattered throughout the forest. Also, everything, and I mean everything, is covered in thick moss. At Mackenzie Hut we were treated to a talk by the hut warden that one of the students in the other brigade later named "Ranger Ridiculous". The man gave us a 25 minute talk about how to find the fire exits in the Hut (mind you it's only one room) in the style of stand-up comedy. He then proceeded to try to tell us that our group was a guided tour and not an educational group because Jay (our faculty member on the trip) had his hut tickets paid for by an organization (the college) and that we were going to be fined. Hopefully that's all been sorted out.

Day 3 - Mackenzie to Lake Howden
Day 3 was short and it was cold and rainy, but it was amazing none the less. We did the first two hours of the hike in silence. The trail went through more beach forest and then back up to the treeline. The trail crossed countless small waterfalls, each of which was beautiful but the highlight was Earland Falls which comes out of a cliff face hundreds of feet in the air and ends just a few meters from the trail. I was cold and wet and bordering on hypothermia when we passed so I didn't stop for long, but it was a powerful place. I am in love with New Zealand mountain waterfalls. We passed the other brigade just before arriving at Howden Hut, exchanged van keys, trail notes, and said quick hellos. With all our time in the hut we played a sort of telephone-pictionary game. Hilarity ensued.

Day 4 - Howden to Greenstone Hut
Day 4 was long, 24 Km. Fortunately it was relatively level the whole way and we had nice weather for it. We moved from the Routeburn track with is mostly alpine and in the mountains to the Greenstone track which follows the Greenstone River through a valley of pasture land, beach forest, and grassland. Greenstone (or pounamu to use the Maori name) is a rock similar to jade but almost as hard as diamonds. It was prized by Maori who see it as sacred. Jewelry and artifacts made of it were traded all over the country. The only place in the world where it's found is on the south island of New Zealand. The name of the south island in Maori is actually Te Wahipounamu, "The place of greenstone".
The greenstone river was one of the waterways where the Maori collected greenstone that had washed down from the mountains, hence its name. The day was mostly a blur. I actually ended up thinking about Beloit a lot. About people there, all that's happened in the past two and a half years, and what next year will be like. Hiking through waste high grass tufts in a mountain valley watching the wind rippling the plants around you was quite cool. Greenstone Hut was small compared to the first three (only 20 bunks). It had a nice porch overlooking the valley, but the sandflies (little biting flies similar to blackflies) were pretty bad outside.

Day 5 - Greenstone Hut to Kinloch Lodge
The last day was mostly a mad dash through the rain to get to the carpark. Still there were plenty of nice views of clouds on the mountains, the river, and waterfalls. Once we got to the carpark we drove to a hotel/lodge near the trailhead, showered, took advantage of happy hour at the bar, and had a delicious dinner. For those of you who don't know, on leap-year day it is traditional for women to propose to men. Susan (who is seriously opposed to the concept of marriage) and I had a bet going over whether if she proposed to Jon,(who's been jokingly pursuing her the whole program) he would accept or not. She proposed in the middle of dinner and he accepted. She now owes me ice cream.

We got back to Christchurch yesterday. It's sad to be out of "The Nature" and back to the city, but it's also nice that Christchurch is starting to feel a little bit like a home. I'm feeling kind of stupid because I left my hiking boots at Kinloch Lodge. Oh well, hopefully I can get them back somehow. I also need to figure out what I'm doing for my spring break (fall break technically I suppose) in a couple weeks.

Things I have been appreciating:
-Dry cloths
-People driving around Christchurch at 10pm singing Weezer at the top of their lungs
-That Josh Ritter has Historical Conquests streaming on his website (I didn't bring my iPod on this trip)
-Referring to outdoor activity of any sort as "going into The Nature"
-"Fling" candy bars ("Chocolate with no strings attached." the wrapper claims)
-Mountains
-Spacing out on cross-country van rides
-Backcountry hiking in general, I've been missing it