• John Tait hut - wild river

    6–7 Jan, New Zealand ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    I dag gik det en del op ad og atter op ad, hvilket var en smule udfordrende grundet solen og den begrænsede skygge på vejen op til toppen af Traverse Saddle (1787 hm), men heldigvis var der en del vandløb, man kunne køle sig ned i.

    Udsigten på toppen blev nydt, inden det begyndte at blæse en del. Nedstigningen var beskrevet som til tider stejl, hvilket har stået så mange gange før, men denne gang var den virkelig træls! Da jeg kom ned til trægrænsen, bestod de næste to timer af en masse trærødder, væltede træer og stejle passager.

    Svea og jeg havde på forhånd aftalt, at vi ikke ville gå hele vejen til næste hytte, men slå vores telte op, når vi kom ned til floden, hvor vi fandt et sted, der netop passede. Her sad vi i solen og var begge ret trætte efter den meget lange og krævende nedstigning. Da solen gik ned bag bjerget, og vi kom i skygge, blev vi spist af sandfluer, som var ret så flittige med at stikke løs.

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    Today involved a lot of uphill, again and again, which was a bit challenging due to the sun and the limited shade on the way up to the top of Traverse Saddle (1,787 m), but fortunately there were plenty of streams where we could cool off.

    We enjoyed the view at the top before it started to get quite windy. The descent was described as steep at times, which we have read many times before, but this time it truly lived up to the description - in the worst way! Once I reached the tree line, the next two hours consisted of countless tree roots, fallen trees, and very steep sections.

    Svea and I had agreed in advance that we wouldn’t walk all the way to the next hut, but instead pitch our tents once we reached the river, where we found a spot that was just right. We sat there in the sun, both quite exhausted after the very long and demanding descent. When the sun disappeared behind the mountain and we were left in the shade, we were quickly eaten alive by sandflies, which were extremely busy biting away.
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