Kākāpō Peak – with no unicorns or doughnuts left behind

Unicorns on Kākāpō Peak in Kahurangi National Park

Kākāpō Peak – with no unicorns or doughnuts left behind A 4 day hiking trip up the Cobb Valley and climbing Kākāpō Peak in Kahurangi National Park ‘Where are the Kākāpō? Where are the kea?’ Suddenly I am surrounded by a blessing of five unicorns sitting next to me on the summit of Kākāpō Peak. Well … Read more

Lockett Range Loop – Kahurangi National Park

Day 1 Cobb Hut to Fenella Hut (with a side trip from Fenella Hut back to Lake Cobb)Total time: 6 hours, 20 minutesTotal moving time: 4 hours, 45 minutesDistance: 18.9km After packing up at the Motueka Top Ten after four hours of sleep we all jumped in the van and drove the two and a … Read more

Fenella Hut on Anniversary Weekend

Friday night, waiting for the Ferry to load, there was a palpable sense of excitement for the upcoming adventure in the Kahurangi National Park. Would we see the reclusive South Island Kokako? Could Mike survive the trip with only six cans of V? And what exactly was going on in the back of the van … Read more

Chasing the Dragon

Contemplating our wounds during lunch half way through the scrub bash back to the tops of the Douglas Range, someone remarked that this was like childbirth: we’d forget the pain and do it all again. That certainly rang true for three of us. Sharron, who’d laboured here with David and me five years before, had … Read more

Dragon’s Teeth

We began with a beautiful morning on Friday 2nd April, clear blue skies & no wind at all. Heading up Brown Cow Ridge we eventually reached the bush edge & then sidled across to where the track drops to Boulder Lake. Here wonderful views of Boulder Lake, Green Saddle, Dragons Teeth etc opened up in … Read more