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Published: December 19th 2009
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We headed to Nelson Lakes with the intention of some laid back day hikes but what we found was by far our toughest challenge yet. The 80km Travers-Sabine hiking track climbs up to altitudes of 1787metres leading you through snow covered peaks and across raging rivers.
On finding out some information at the visitors centre we decided to treat ourselves on this hike by staying at the backcountry cabins rather than in our tents. This would mean that rain would not be so much of a problem for us as we would always have a dry hut to stay in with a fire to warm us up and dry us off.
Our first day involved a very relaxed and steady 2 hour walk to the Coldwater Hut which is where the main hike began. After a quick stop off to look at ‘Whisky Falls’ ,a spectacular 50 metre waterfall, we arrived at out accommodation for the night. The hut was located on the edge of lake Rotoroa surrounded by mountains, needless to say it was absolutely stunning. Not long after our arrival at the hut the skies opened and the rain came down. The rain continued with us for
all but the last day of our trip, however, due to the fact we were staying in huts, this time it did not stop us.
The surroundings at the beginning of thie hike were not unlike walking in a wooded area in England (even more so when coupled with the rain). The track was not very well laid out, and the hike felt like we were just trekking through bush, climbing over trees in the path, and navigating around bogs or slippery roots that littered the pathway. The only symbol to show we were heading in the right direction were occasional orange arrows attached to trees pointing the way. A large proportion of the ’path’ followed a huge river that was rising higher and higher by the minute as the rain continued to come down. The real challenges on this route were the increasing number or tributaries connecting to the main river that we had to cross, most of which were only there due to the heavy rainfall and consequently were not bridged. Each river crossing was a new puzzle to solve, we all had to put our heads together to establish how we could cross without falling in.
In some cases this meant hopping across rocks, others might have meant tramping through the thicker bush off the trail and up the river further to find a safer spot, and in one instance we literally grabbed a big log and used it as a makeshift bridge. After 3 days of rain some of these rivers were huge and extremely fast moving, and one particular river provided us with our biggest challenge. It was approximately 15metres across and very fast moving, it joined onto the main river only about 30 metres further down, so slipping in here would have meant being swept into the main river and some serious trouble. The river was running too high to leave any rocks protruding to hop across and it was far too wide to simply jump across. After some trekking up and down the river through thick bush we came across a small branch that bridged the river. We were unsure if it would hold our weight but as it was our only option we had to take a deep breath and go for it. Fortunately the log and our balance held strong and we made it across.
The hardest day of
this trek was day 3 which took us 400 metres up in a very short distance to the saddle of Mount Traverse (1787m). We put off leaving the hut we had stayed in that night due to the rain coming down, and more importantly the wind that had been howling through the valley. However, after much deliberation we decided to once again just go for it. The initial climb was very tough, with the rain still coming down we were hiking up small rivers most of the way, until we hit rocks. We literally had to use our hands to pull us up and over the large boulders up the mountain side, before crossing the partially snow covered saddle between the mountain peaks, It was once we made it over the saddle and began the descent that the wind really began to pick up. This was probably the nastiest and most uncomfortable section of the hike. The descent was very steep, very wet and very cold, we were all slipping all over the place and morale was low. On getting over the worst part of the descent we were met by another of many avalanche paths covered with loose rocks
which we had to climb down. The poles that were guiding us along our route seemed to have disappeared so we just headed down the loose rocks hoping we were headed in the right direction. It was a huge relief when we made it back to the tree line and found the familiar sight of a fluorescent orange arrow. We were finally out of the wind and began to start warming up.
Unfortunately after the difficult crossing of the Travers Saddle we were not quite out of the hardest of it yet. On day 4 we came across a part of the trail beside the river that was flooded due to the river having broken its banks. There was no way around this 15 metre wide and waist deep lake so all that was left to do was wade through, which left us nicely soaked through for the rest of that day. It was on this same day that we came across another avalanche path that provided us with the most dangerous part of our trek. The path ran along the bottom but due to the high levels of rain the river had risen over it and therefore our
only option was to climb up the steep bank over the loose rocks. The rocks kept falling away from our feet and into the raging river below. We managed to get a sturdy footing about halfway across but the next good spot was a couple of meters away by a large log. We were about 10 metres above the water and the only option was to jump for it, so with my heart in my throat I did, and managed to just slide in behind the log. It was terrifying but to have made it across was a fantastic feeling.
This hike was less about the spectacular views (although the mountains and lakes were stunning) and more about the incredible adventure that the trail provided us with. Challenges came a plenty and we managed to overcome them all, so on completing this trail we were all filled with a fantastic sense of achievement.
We are now relaxing and resting up in Westport but will be heading to the Heaphy Track for 3 days of hiking tomorrow.
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