My second tramp with the WTMC lead us into the beautiful Tararua Range. I wasn’t really sure about my experience nor my fitness level, but it sounded like a nice achievement to climb a mountain, so I gave it a try. Looking back I am a bit embarrassed about my naivity, and will tell you later why. The leader of this tramp was Marie Henderson, who did a really great job and made the best vegetarian dinner you can hope for, after an attempt to climb Mount Mitre.
A happy group of a dog and eight people, after meeting at the Wellington railway station on Friday evening, were driven into the Tararuas. We arrived at Holdsworth roadend when the sunlight was almost gone. We had good luck with the weather as it was calm and dry. So we started into the night with a good pace. Soon we had to slow down because it became obvious that one group member couldn’t hold that speed. Marie decided that we should split up so that the people who wanted to go a bit faster didn’t get too bored. The second group was lead by Helen, who is also an experienced tramper. The two groups remained almost the whole weekend; good on Marie for handling this so well.
The track to Mitre Hut was astonishingly demanding. The missing sun light didn’t made it any better. A couple of times we nearly lost the track. It was so much easier on our way back on a sunny day. The first group arrived at the hut shortly before midnight and went straight into their sleeping bags. The other group arrived about an hour later. The hut was quite empty so there was plenty of room for everybody to sleep in the hut.
Saturday was supposed to be a rather busy day. Early in the morning the group was woken up by Helen. We had to start early to be successful. After a quick breakfast we started off .. a bit later, because myself and another guy were a little unorganized. So the others had to wait for us another 20 minutes before we headed towards Mitre peak! Sorry for that!
The weather was still dry but the sky was cloudy, so we didn’t expect to have a good view at the top. Shortly before we left the bush zone we took a break in the middle of some magic trees, which rarely seemed to see the sun. After leaving the bush zone a beautiful rainbow, which occasionally transformed into a double rainbow (all across the sky), appeared to our left. Once the obligatory rainbow photos were taken we finally prepared to climb the peak.
It turned out that the other people on the trip were much better equipped than me; I thought it wouldn’t be too bad and left my rain trousers at home. I regretted this foolish decision a lot when we entered the clouds. I was lucky because the wind wasn’t too strong and the rain was ok, but my legs were completely wet after a short time. As we passed the first little patches of snow the rain turned into snow as well. The higher we climbed the more the already bad weather turned into a snow storm.
Eventually we reached the top! But not really, because the others told me that this was only Peggy Peak. Mitre Peak would be another 30 minutes or so away. Nobody was really keen to do that and so we decided to turn around. The way down was much faster. It turned out that it had rained in the lower regions as well. Shortly before us the easy group had reached the hut and so the place was a bit more crowded. Luckily, there was still enough space for us; I must confess I was really happy about that. I was so looking forward to crawl into my warm and cozy sleeping bag. Before that Helen cooked us a great and filling indian dish. Yum! With a stuffed stomach I soon fell asleep, lulled to sleep by the mumbling sounds of some people who were obviously not half as tired as me.
The sun was shining bright and beautiful on our last day of the tramp. From time to time we saw the peaks of the mountains in the clear sky. Well, next time – we had our chance! The way back to the road end was much easier than our night walk to the hut. Back in the van and in the civilization we took a short break at a nice cafe in Carterton to have some coffee and food. There we met the hut warden again, who told us that he just did an amazing flight with a small plane through the Tararuas from Masterton.
To be back in Wellington felt a bit strange. We arrived shortly before the rugby match between Australia and South Africa and the streets were crammed with people. I passed the hotel of the Australian team and it was obvious that the team would come out soon. I waited a minute or two and then I thought: ‘Nah, I have already seen better things this weekend!’ and went home.
Response to this article from the trip leader, Marie Henderson
Over trousers are essential safety gear to have whenever you go above the bush line (and below the bush line in the Tararuas). You never know when someone may hurt themselves and you’ll be sitting around for hours. They won’t keep you dry, but they keep the wind out thereby keeping you warmer and therefore more comfortable. It is the combination of wind, wet and cold that brings on hypothermia (a too low body temperature that can kill). I have had pre-hypothermia a couple of times now – I recommend you avoid it! I was really lucky one time to be with someone who knew what was happening and what to do with me!
One of our team, Graham, had Norseware woollen mitts, a Swanndri bush shirt, an Orangi jacket, quality over trousers and balaclava/beanie; really good quality gear of a seasoned Tararua tramper. He was going to be cosy in whatever weather the Tararuas could throw at him.