A rest at Hanmer Springs

March 4 and 5

Hope-Kiwi Lodge to Hanmer Springs

KM 2090

Distance: 15km 

Elevation: ascent 150m, descent 270m

Steps: 27,900

Walking Time: 7:30am - 12:15pm

The Hope Kiwi Lodge was busy overnight, with nearly all of the 17 formal bunks full. There are an additional three benches with mattresses in the common room / kitchen area, so the lodge officially sleeps 20. 

The first one up was the last to arrive at the lodge the night before, a bike-packer heading over the Harper Pass (yes, with a mountain bike!). He must have left by 5:30am; well before dawn, and we wondered at his eyesight!

The lone south-bound tramper left soon after dawn, and the group of seven women had gotten themselves and their things sorted by 7:00. This left our little tramily of the two of us, Linsey and Nigel, to pack leisurely and tidy the lodge before leaving. All of us, as well as the seven women, of course, were looking forward to civilisation - especially showers - by the end of the day.

The day's walk was mostly through beech forest, a terrain which at this latitude is supporting many wasps, who feed on the beech honeydew. The wasps are not the only consumers of the sweet honeydew, black mold also thrives on it, covering much of the trunk in places. (or something like that... if anyone understands the ecosystem here, please let us know!). There was some walking along streams winding through grassy valleys as well - with breathtaking views as always! In the right context, even matagouri can be beautiful! (the right context being: not touching you). I've also uploaded a video of walking through this gorgeous terrain, here:

The forest section also offered up some interesting tree trunks;

valley views;

and fun river crossings.

We had a choice to walk all the way to Boyle Outdoor Education Centre, or leave the trail about 10km earlier where it abutted the state highway. Since we were going to hitchhike into Hanmer Springs anyway; and since we had heard that the intervening 10km of trail was very overgrown and unpleasant, we decided to take that earlier route. 

We are far from being purists on the trail, now!

We were picked up and taken most of the way to Hanmer Springs by Nate, a young man who is traveling the country in his van, taking as much time as he feels he needs to do so. He's having a wonderful time, and based on the glint in his eye as Vaughan and I described our time on Te Araroa, he might add some hiking into his travels as well.

Once in Hanmer Springs, we found ourselves lodging for the night, took much-needed showers, and then headed out for some much-needed food that was neither pasta, nor dehydrated. Laundry also took some time, with Vaughan taking one for the team this time (again!) and wearing long-john pants and a poly-pro top in the heat of summer, as those were the only clothes he didn't need to wash. Eliza had no clean bottoms, so she hid out in the room for the duration. 

This morning, after our standard breakfast in our room, we headed out for second breakfast at a cafe. This consisted of a donut and a quiche for Eliza, and a cheese roll and a large blueberry muffin for Vaughan. While we know we won't be able to continue these eating patterns once we're off the trail, our tongues and stomachs are very much enjoying the ability to eat just about anything we want, for now!

The rest of the day was spent in leisure, with Eliza even getting a massage, which even came with helpful tips about some additional stretches we can both do on the trail. Oh, and we topped up our food reserves again for the next section.

We are on the trail for seven to nine days, depending on how long we make a couple of the days. We are traversing several mountain passes, including the second-highest point on Te Araroa, and come out at St Arnaud. You can look forward to a bevy of updates in about a week's time.

Until then, I will leave you with this, a sampling of bath bomb scents available at the Hanmer Springs market. Have a look at the second row, especially.