The Winter’s Tale – a snowy wander in Nelson Lakes National Park
An 8 day hiking loop trip through spectacular mountain scenery in Nelson Lakes National Park visiting Cupola Hut, and Angelus Hut via the Cascade Route up Hukere Stream.
Once upon a time two WTMC trampers, Sarah and Batt, set out on an adventure through a magical land called Nelson Lakes National Park. This is a place of snowy summits and enchanted forests where mythical creatures…
This delightful little book pretends to be a child’s fairytale but is really written for adults who have yet to grow up—which of course includes many trampers. The story tells of the far-fetched quest of two hikers, Sarah Saurus and Batt Mann, to scale Mts Travers, Cupola and Angelus in mid-winter. Needless to say, they fail, but they do have some great adventures on the way as they pass through a wonderland of forests, rivers, and snowy mountain ranges.
Sarah Saurus, whose name changes to Sarah Sawrus after she cut and split a pile of firewood at the first hut on their trip, has an overly imaginative and enquiring mind. Unusual tracks in the snow become the prints of dinosaurs, any strange noises are wild animals close behind. Wekas calling are a warning that they and their mates have ganged up and are about to attack. Other unexplained events are simply the result of yet another negative reality inversion—or if your sox go missing then evil aliens.
But there is a lot to be learned in the story from the questions she asks—how do the remarkable ice crystals of hoar frost occur? What causes wind crust on the snow surface? Why should you build a campfire to maximize re-radiation? How does pyrolysis work? What are the three bright red stars visible in the night sky (answer: Mars—actually a planet, Antares—the ‘anti Mars,’ and Betelgeuse—that became ‘Beetle Juice’ to Sarah)?
Early in their trip they meet three trappers who are rebaiting some of the hundreds of rodent traps set over the length of the Travers Valley. Sarah and Batt are interested because they both have traplines of their own in Wellington—one of them on Poll Hill, the other the Whakanui Track and Kaukau. So later, when Sarah notices a long tail poking out the end of a trap, she easily removes the deceased occupant—a large rat—and resets the trap.
Cupola Hut (pan to view)
In a subtle way underlying the narrative is words and their meaning—for Sarah carries a game called Bananagrams—a version of Scrabble eminently suitable for simple-minded trampers—which the story’s characters enjoy playing every night. This provides entertainment and education and some good-natured argument. Sarah even manages to produce the word ‘paediatrics’ in two successive games, while Batt misspells ‘donkey’.
After tenting with a warming campfire their hiking route takes them up Hukere Stream. Near the head of the valley it is steep and melt-water has frozen to boiler-plate ice on the rocks and needs ice axe and crampons to pass. They climb this without incident and discuss the art of route finding and that there are often occasions where an initially obvious or marked path may not always be the best choice. They pick an alternative that deviates away from a marker pole and climbs a steeper start but once past the ice-covered rocks leads to much easier and safer ground.
After a journey of eight calm, fine and frosty days they arrive back at their starting point in St Arnaud where they meet the evil stepmother. She tells them that they can come into the hotel dining room for a meal—but only after they first go away and wash and clean themselves of the smells and grime from their time in the hills.
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The Winter’s Tale: by Sarah Fisher
Reviewed by TonyG.
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