The Christmas Tramping Trip, 2000
Hopkins -> Temple -> Ahuriri -> Hunter -> Landsborough -> Huxley
A trip with ATC (Auckland Tramping Club), leaving
Auckland on 25th December at 6pm in the club bus and
arriving in the general tramping area (Lake Ohau, South Island) late
on 27th December. There were three parties: an easy party,
with 4 people, a medium party with 12 people, and a
medium/fit party with 7 people (originally). These pages describe
the medium/fit trips. The so-called "Main Trip" below was originally
organised by Jose and Darryl Couchman, who were to be our
leaders.
The easy and medium trips set off on in the rain on 28th December. Since
our medium/fit trip was headed for the high country we needed better
weather. After waiting a couple of days, Jose, Darryl and Brian
gave up and left
in search of better weather elsewhere. The remaining four of us
decided to spend some time in the Hopkins valley, hoping it would
eventually clear. The four of us were:
- Alan Peterson
- Christine Snook (Napier tramping club)
- Mark Lewis
- Richard Lobb
As it turned out, we were lucky. After a six day trip in
the Hopkins River (up to the Richardson Glacier and back)
we were able to head off on the original trip. And, thankfully,
the weather stayed reasonable for the whole eight days.
Trip Routes/Schedules
Curtain-Raiser (Hopkins valley)
This was the trip we did to fill in time while waiting for the weather to clear sufficiently
for the Main Trip (below).
- Day 1 (29th December). Explored up South Temple stream (in flood and uncrossable).
Backed out
and headed up the Hopkins to Monument Hut, with the thought of doing the main
trip in reverse.
- Day 2. Weather not looking good. Three party members left. I went back with them to road end to
collect a different set of maps from bus. Returned to Monument Hut. The four of us then walked
from Monument Hut to Elcho Hut.
- Day 3. Elcho Hut to rock biv near Richardson Glacier. Snowing.
- Day 4. Day spent exploring Newmann Range around the head of the Hopkins. Another
night at rock biv.
- Day 5. Back down Hopkins river to camp near base of track up to the Dasslers.
- Day 6. Half day side trip up to Dassler Biv and beyond to base of Dassler range. Lunch
back at camp. Then back down Hopkins River to road end.
Main Trip (Ahuriri-Hunter-Landsborough)
This was the trip originally planned by Jose and Darryl Couchman. It was a
superb but exhausting 8-day trip, crossing four major passes in the space of
six days. Thanks Jose and Darryl for planning it all -- sorry you couldn't
be with us to enjoy it!
- Day 1. Up South Temple stream to a campsite near the head, where the southern
tributary forks off.
- Day 2. Over pass (1935m) into Ahuriri and down to Top Hut.
- Day 3. Follow Moir's "alpine route that has been used" over into Hunter. Route
sidles up bluffy range opposite hut into an alpine basin and over the lip (1996m) into the
Hunter. Camp at 1550 metres.
- Day 4. Descend through Beech forest into Hunter. Up Hunter past mid-flat hut and Forbes
hut to campsite near shingle fan below Lower Sudholme Pass.
- Day 5. Leave at 7:30am to climb to Lower Sudholme Pass, then over Watkins Dome
(1960m) to Upper Sudholme Pass.
Sidle around Main Divide to a ridge leading down into Landsborough. Long descent
through Beech, and tricky getting
past bluffs -- eventually reach Landsborough (Harpers flats) at 10:30pm!
- Day 6. Up over Harpers Bluff and up Landsborough to Fraser hut on Creswicke Flats.
- Day 7. Long climb up to Brodrick Pass (1730m) and down the other side to Brodrick
Hut in North Huxley.
- Day 8. Down Huxley to Hopkins and out to road end.
Photos