A weekend in the Tararuas

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A last minute decision to "go bush" this weekend turned out to be an excellent idea. The Levin side of the Tararuas weather forecast was for full sun both days, something that never occurs in the usually cloudy and overcast, rainy Tararua National Park. It must have been the first time I have ever seen the tops so calm and clear. The pictures say it all.

We hiked for 5 hours up to Waiopehu hut, mostly uphill in typical backcountry terrain. It was tough, to say the least, as we were going up we wondered how we used to tramp for so long. It takes a couple of hikes to get back into it, after a year of being away from NZ it was expected.

The hut is perched just below the bushline, and overlooks the Kapiti coastline and the growing town of Levin. A stunning sunset awaited as we happily took off our muddy boots and heavy pack.

Lily, one of our best tramping mates, the 3 year old staffie, accompanied us on this trip. Needless to say she was in her element with all the sticks and smells of deer / pig floating in the air. We managed to sneak her into the hut at night (dogs are not allowed) and she snuggled next to us at night in her sleeping bag.

On the way back home we stopped off at Te Horo beach, and Lily ran around on the deserted yet beautifull beach one last time before heading back to W Town. Yes its good to be back home!!!

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