A day of two halves

March 17

Top Wairoa Hut to Tarn Hut

KM 1902

Distance: 13.5km 

Elevation: ascent 930m, descent 735m

Steps: 26,800

Time: 7:50am - 4:30pm

We slept in a bit today because the only window in the hut faces the bush so the sun didn't reach us as early. Nevertheless we were away at around about our usual time with a mission in mind: skip the first hut and get close to the base of Mt Rintoul so we can attack the highest point in the Richmond Ranges the following day. 

The beginning of the track was an absolute treat, through beech forest following a pristine river as it tumbled down its valley in a series of waterfalls. Multi-coloured rocks were visible in the deepest pools due to the clarity of the water. We passed many potential swimming holes.

This section of track was widely billed to be "the most difficult section in the Richmond Ranges". This is due to the fact that this part of the trail is up and down through beech forest lining a stream gorge; several (9) stream crossings; and the trail is at times very narrow, sidling along above significant drop-offs. In other words, nothing that NOBO'rs haven't done before. So while we appreciated the warnings, it would have been more accurate to say "if you've done the rest of the South Island to here, you're good - enjoy the beautiful section!"  

Along the way we found a clump of feathers, possibly from a toutouwai/robin. No doubt the result of predation, but hopefully by a morepork or falcon, rather than an introduced predator.

On the topic of introduced animals, we saw two goats in the bush. Vaughan smelled the billy goats first, his former air quality team know all about the odour of male goats. They give off an unpleasant, musty smell which, once you know it, you won't easily forget.

But the Richmond Ranges are renowned for being up and down, and the second half of the day was a steep uphill climb (check the stats). This slowed us right down and we all adopted our own methods for dealing with tough walking. Linsey listened to jazz violin music, Eliza to podcasts, and Vaughan just mumbled to himself and sang verses from random songs that jumped into his head (Smashing Pumpkins was on the brain playlist today). The hill eventually led us to the tops, in this beautiful, stunted beech forest.

And this is our hut for tonight! Tarn Hut was constructed in 1956 but it looks like it's been upgraded since because it has a new woodburner and kitchen bench. It got cold very quickly once the sun went down, so we've got the fire going. It's only a six bunk hut, with three of us in residence, so it warmed the place up quickly. The 'front yard' is a pleasant glade which has a couple of picnic tables and a washing line. Perhaps the only negative is that there are wasps hanging around the tiolet, so we're all holding on until dark when they go to sleep!

A short walk from the hut is a tarn. A little muddy, but still nice reflections of the dense beech forest surrounding it. 

This is place we could all happily stay at for a couple of days. And we may have to do just that in another hut further along. With the slightest bit of reception at a peak today we checked the weather forecast. In two days we get a bit of rain, and in four days we will get A LOT of rain. It's most likely that we will have to stay put in a hut for at least an extra night to see out the weather. There are a couple of stream crossings as well, which we will need to take into consideration. The trail notes for the Richmond Ranges recommend being prepared to spend more time here if the weather packs in, which is why we planned an extra day of food, and were also conservative in our estimates of how far we could go each day. We can make it stretch to a second day if needed, and if things go really pear-shaped we have a bailout option to get us to Nelson if needed. Always be as prepared as you can!

We met just two people going the other direction, today. One was taking a sit-down break, and was quite startled to see us walking up the path. He said, "It's always when you least expect people, isn't it?" And Eliza, apparently having no filter left, and referring to several other times where she has been approaching a swimming hole along the track with... oblivious men... replied "At least your pants weren't down."

There was only awkward silence in reply, thankfully Vaughan and Linsey came around the corner just then and saved the day!