riverECHO

The four of us began the Routeburn Track at around 3pm on Christmas Day. The Routeburn Track is one of New Zealand’s “Great Walks,” which are very busy in the summer for good reason . . . beautiful locations, huge huts, and although lots of elevation gain, the actual trails are so well maintained that any level “tramper” could complete the track. It was a bit of a late start, but since the sun wouldn’t set until 10pm and we only had 3 hours to walk until we reached our first campsite at Lake McKenzie, we weren’t too worried about time. It was cloudy and misty when we left the trailhead and it actually didn’t clear up until the following afternoon once we crossed the saddle at Harris Pass. We set up our tents in a little bit of rain but enjoyed cooking dinner under a large shelter located at the campground. Our Christmas dinner: brie and crackers for an appetizer, freeze-dried-meal-in-a-bag “Chicken a la King” for an entrée, a chocolate bar for dessert, and box red wine for drink. We then strolled down the trail to the hut where we were invited to partake in singing Christmas Carols by candle light. Although we didn’t join in, we sat outside to listen while we watched the skies clear and the stars start to appear.

The following morning we awoke to rain drops hitting our tent and decided to stay “indoors” until it passed. By the time we crawled out of our tent, everyone else in camp had packed up and left except for Brad, Gretchen, the two of us, and one other camper (who packed up his tent and backpack while we were cooking breakfast and before starting off on the track, popped open an umbrella!). Our destination for day two was the Routeburn Flats campsite, a five hour stroll up and over Harris Pass and down the Routeburn River valley. Although we knew the views into Fiordland National Park from the trail were spectacular, our powers to part the clouds were squashed by the wind, fog, and rain. The skies finally lifted in the afternoon as we made our way down to the Routeburn Falls and Flats. Brad and Gretchen, with a wet tent and sleeping bag in tow, continued on down the track to their van that was waiting at the trailhead. BJ and I enjoyed the evening at the Flats campsite staring up at the enormous surrounding mountains, cooking another delicious dinner-in-a-bag, and getting to know our new friends from the Netherlands.

We met Brad and Gretchen at the trailhead the following morning and before heading back to Wanaka, they drove us about 30km down the road to the beginning of the Caples Track, which meets up with the Routeburn Track about an hour from the trailhead, where our car was parked. We had decided to save $100 bucks on a 225km bus ride back to our car and walk the 30km over the mountains instead. The Caples River meanders through a wide open green valley until the mountains tighten and the green pasture land turns to thick rainforest. A side note for any anglers that may be visiting us (ahem…Steve!): Every time we just looked at the river we saw another huge fish just below the surface; I don’t fish but seeing the size of these things sure made me wish I knew how. The day was beautiful and warm, some of the best weather we had experienced on the trail yet, and after about 4 hours on the trail we camped at the end of the wide green valley in sandfly heaven. We actually retreated to the tent very early just to keep the “flying teeth” away . . . so early that after we realized we forgot our deck of cards we played a game of “Can you name all the 50 states and capitals?”

Today we woke to experience a similar system that is hitting Jackson Hole, although while it falls in feet of snow there, it falls in feet of rain here. It was a soggy long day on the trail, through the “rainforest flats,” up the “don’t-get-your-foot-stuck-under-a-root” ascent, over the “damn-I-bet-there’s-a-really-pretty-view-over-there” saddle, down the “slip-n-slide” ravine, and across the “I-know-it’s-just-around-the-corner” valley. During the final hour on the track, BJ asked “So, what Great Walk should we do next?” Tired and wet, I replied “I suppose we should get on the waiting list for the Milford Track . . . what do you think?” BJ giggled and said “My next Great Walk is from the dry car to a bar for a beer and some good food.”