Despite the fact I woke during the night and spent some time pondering
insoluble problems and listening to the crashing of the avalanches in the far
off distance, I am sure I slept better than the two girls sleeping in their
rental car beside us. What a way to travel! But then I am not in my twenties,
so it is hardly comparing apples with apples.
Chris had omitted to set the alarm, so it was well after 7 am that we
woke to start our day, and about 8.30 am by the time we set off well-shod in
our tramping boots and equally well-equipped with raincoats and refreshments.
The cloud was low and soon we were walking through drizzle. Having checked the
online weather forecast and seeing that heavy rain was to set in by 10 am, I
was keen for us to make a beeline to the end of the track at the Hooker Glacier
rather than take all the little detours along the way. There were few ahead of
us although we did pass one woman returning; she must have set off at daybreak!
The Hooker Valley Track is an easy grade three hour return walk and much
easier than it was when we walked it seven years ago. Not that it ever was
challenging, but there were parts where you edged around the cliff above the
torrential Hooker River, places you made your way along narrow paths through
boulders, and the last part where you could, if you so chose, clamber along the
moraine boulders on the west side of the Hooker Lake and across scree slopes.
In short it was a charming trail up a gentle valley with plenty of variation
and much superb scenery, first across the Mueller River which spews its grey
moraine stew down toward the Tasman River, over scrubland, then across the
similarly fierce Hooker River just before it empties itself into the Mueller Lake.
The track continues up the Hooker River, below the eastern side of Mt Sefton
until one reaches the Hooker Lake, over which the high peaks of Mt Cook stand
sentinel. It is one of the most popular walks in the park, encouraging all but
the old and infirm to enjoy this alpine beauty.
However, we were disappointed that the track itself was now so manicured
and almost clinical. We debated about where and what, drawing on our memories
and both agreed that there appeared to be new bridges and rerouting of the more
interesting parts of the track. There are now many many metres of boardwalk and
apart from a few steps at the commencement of the track before the first swing bridge,
one could push one of those heavy duty baby buggies all the way to Lake Hooker
and back if you were built like a rugby prop-forward.
Later we did some research to see what really had been done and while we
were unable to ascertain final costs and dates, we did come upon a media
release by the Department of Conservation dated March 2010 where they detailed
their plans:
The upgrade will
take place over three years:
- Stage one would cost around $1 million dollars, this simply to cover the plans, designs and resource consents for two bridges, a new 400 metre long section of the track and a new viewing area at Hooker Lake.
- The track sees around 60 – 80,000 visitors a year and most make it all the way to Hooker lake.
- The bluff section had a long history of rock fall. Just the previous winter a number of people were trapped behind a rock fall. A new swing bridge would avoid the bluff section.
- The track would now end on the eastern side of the lake; a new swing bridge would divert walkers away from the outlet of the lake. It would also offer a better position from which to view the lake and the terminal of the glacier.
- Planning, detailed design work and all consents would take place in 2010/11. Stage two would involve tendering the work and the construction phase of the project would occur in sections to avoid track closures as much as possible, from 2011 – 13. The completed project was expected to cost $1.6 million.
- The media release concluded by the liaison chap saying: “Our hope is that we will manage the risks of an extreme alpine environment as much as possible, without “cotton-wooling” the experience and it should be a better experience for it”.
Well, we prefer to be less “cotton-wooled” than the upgraded track
offers, however we did enjoy our walk, despite the rain, despite the modified
track and despite the fact we were unable to see Mt Cook apart from a peak of a
side ridge from time to time. Fortunately we had had superb views of this
majestic mountain yesterday and also when we last did the walk.
Again we realised that we were too late for the wild alpine flowers and
left only the sad or tired bent stems of earlier glory; the alpine daisies, the
Golden Spaniard, and a myriad of others who only teased us with their remnants.
The birdlife in the low scrub as we set off was wonderful, but much more
subdued as we returned; the rain and bludgeoning tourist crowds were enough for
any self-respecting bird to take refuge for the rest of the day.
Up at Hooker Lake, we were soon joined by dozens of French tourists and
a smattering of Germans, further back toward the camp, guided groups of very
polite Asians. The English speaking Kiwis and others were still struggling out
of their beds or thought better of setting off into the mountains under low
cloud.
We were back within two and a half hours, the return journey quicker
because of the worsening weather. Our immediate neighbours in the car were
still sitting in the front seats contemplating their day and the grumpy chap in
the large hired Britz motorhome beyond was no happier than yesterday; he has
done serious damage to the satellite dome on the roof, and if travelling with
an infant were not already proving to be too much fun, that would have surely finished
it off for him. Both parties left soon after we finished our lunch, as did many
others. There seems to be little regard for checkout times at this camp.
Our afternoon has been spent relaxing. I am about to assemble a fish
pie, an excellent dish for such a wet day.
No comments:
Post a Comment