Table of contents for June 2020 in Wilderness

Get your photo published here to receive a SOL survival blanket worth $20. It weighs only 100g, but will reflect 90% of radiated body heat. Learn more about SOL at e.ampro.co.nz. Last Weekend submission criteria can be found at wildernessmag.co.nz…

WHETHER you intend to climb to Mt Taranaki’s 2518m summit or just settle for Fanthams Peak (1966m), spending a night at Syme Hut, perched high above the Taranaki lowlands, is just reward for your efforts. I have overnighted at Syme five times and each trip has been blessed with exclusive occupancy. The hut is a 10-bunker and, for me, is one of the brightest gems of New Zealand’s extensive backcountry hut system. Perched at 1950m, near the northern edge of Fanthams Peak, it commands the best view of the top 600m of Mt Taranaki. This is particularly so at dawn on clear mornings when the rising sun paints everything purple, then mauve and then a deep red, a fiery orange and finally golden yellow as it breaches the distant horizon,…

TUCKED INTO a corner of Korowai-Torlesse Conservation Park, directly south of Porters Heights ski field, near Coleridge Saddle, is the seldom-climbed Red Hill, 1641m. It sits a few kilometres south-west of Lake Lyndon on SH73, but is not so easily climbed from the lake-shore as it entails a moderately long ridge traverse to reach the summit. The ski field road allows for a much closer and, in many ways, more interesting approach to the mountain and a startlingly beautiful high country valley and landscape – the upper Porter River. It was my choice for a trip with a difference when looking for a not too faraway summit to tackle in the winter months. Being close to Christchurch, and with a shortened approach walk, it seemed a fine way to spend…

The Coppermine Trail is a purpose-built mountain bike trail that traverses Nelson’s mineral belt. It’s one of New Zealand’s Great Rides, so is not always thought of by locals and visitors as a prime walking destination. That’s also because Nelson is spoilt for choice; typically, if you want alpine scenery, you drive 90 minutes to Nelson Lakes National Park; if you want bush, you head to Kahurangi National Park; and if you want beaches, it’s an hour to the Abel Tasman. THE THING I LOVE ABOUT IT IS THAT YOU FEEL LIKE IT’S SO REMOTE, BUT IT’S REALLY NOT.Andrew Macdonald But the Bryant Range, out the back of Nelson, and the Richmond Range that separates Nelson and Marlborough, are so accessible and spectacular that they shouldn’t be overlooked, and the…

BANANAS GIVE you a good potassium boost and the almond butter in this recipe provides healthy fats and protein. These banana bites work best when in cooler temperatures so it can set properly. Due to their moisture content, these bites won’t last long, but then, they’re so delicious, they won’t last long anyway. PROFILE Prep time 5min Cook time 5min Makes 8 bites Cost $3-4 RECIPE 1 ripe banana 4 tsp almond butter 2 tbsp desiccated coconut 120g dark chocolate Small piece of baking paper (recommended) METHOD Slice the banana into four pieces and then cut each piece in half lengthways. On the long cut side, spread half a teaspoon of almond butter. Gently melt chocolate over a low heat or, if possible, use the double boiler method to stop…

ZOOM OR PRIME? Your first decision when choosing a new lens should be considering whether you want a zoom or prime lens. Primes have a fixed focal length – e.g. 50mm – meaning they cannot zoom. Because of this, they are lighter and usually have a lower aperture than zooms. This makes them faster and they may function better in low light and provide greater subject isolation. Zoom lenses offer greater versatility, but because they contain more glass elements, they tend to be heavier. Unless you’re willing to spend thousands, zooms will typically be slower than primes. WIDE-ANGLE LENS For capturing the scale of the outdoors, you can’t look past a wide-angle lens. When framed correctly, wide-angle photographs invoke a 3D feel – as though you can step right through…

STRAPS Straps should be soft, comfortable, washable and wide enough to support the weight of the headlamp. Most straps use a sliding adjustment that can be tightened or loosened easily on the go. ON/OFF The torch should be simple to operate with either a button or twist-action to activate the light. Glove-friendly operation is essential for use in winter. OUTPUT AND RANGE Measured in lumens, light output can be adjusted for the conditions from a low 10 or 25 lumens for reading, up to 900 lumens for finding your way on the trail. Output also dictates range. Low-output models are useful work lights around the campsite or hut, while high-output headlamps are better for night tramping or spotlighting. FUNCTION AND MODE One on/off button that can be toggled through the…

Your correspondent David Holroyd (‘Inconsistent track times’, Pigeon Post, April 2020) revives the hoary issue of track walking times. When I worked as a park ranger, track users would frequently complain that the stated walking times were incorrect – either too long or too short. When we added track distances to the times, and stated on the map that times are for ‘an average family group, stopping occasionally to take photos or to have a snack break’, the complaints ceased. Track times are intended as a rough guide only. We are all different, so you should factor in your age, fitness at the time, pack weight and health. Holroyd expressed a wish for consistency of track walking times across the country, but that would be impossible to achieve. Staff measuring…

COVID BUDGET BIG ON CONSERVATION CONSERVATION HAS BEEN a big winner of the government’s Covidrecovery budget – the largest spending package in New Zealand history. The $50 billion relief budget has allocated almost $1.1b to environmental projects, and it’s claimed it will result in 11,000 new environmental jobs. The spending includes $433m injected into a new regional environmental projects programme, $200m to DOC for more jobs, $154m to create regional biodiversity roles, and $315m for pest eradication, including wilding pine, weed and wallaby management. Forest & Bird chief executive Kevin Hague is pleased to see the large investment in the environment but hopes it is backed up by green infrastructure. “The unspent COVID recovery funding needs to deliver nature-friendly infrastructure that cuts New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions and delivers a…

WHEN THE clouds lift and the lighting is right, Julia Sternkopf has to act quickly. Putting brush to canvas, the 23-year-old painter hurries to capture as much as she can of the landscape before it changes. “It requires quick decision making – the sun will be in a different position towards the end of the painting compared to where it was at the first brushstroke,” she says. The Lake Hāwea resident works from a wooden pochade box, handbuilt by her partner’s father. My goal is to capture the feeling I get when I reach the top of the mountain “It’s a portable art studio that holds six paint tubes and my brushes, has a built-in glass palette and can store and transport four wet paintings,” she says. “Fully packed, it…

HUTS in cold, wet weather are like a magnet for trampers. The warmth, comfort and shelter they offer is unequalled after a bitter day in the hills. Spurs Hut in the Upper Orari River is no exception. Returning cold and damp from a hike onto the tops of nearby Walkers Spur on the Ben McLeod Range, my companion and I were pleased to get inside, sit near the fire with a mug of tea and, with our warm socks and shoes on, enjoy the ambience as cold rain fell outside. The hut, though remote, is easily accessed and provides an opportunity to climb the nearby summits or perhaps visit Butler Saddle, 1727m, at the head of Butlers Creek. Travel beyond this point, however, is not possible without permission from Ben…

THE BARREN, tundra-like high country of Kopuwai Conservation Area in Central Otago offers views from The Remarkables to Aoraki/Mt Cook and an alpine experience like no other. Encompassing a rolling plateau rising to 1869m, the 20,000ha park protects the stark landscape of the Old Woman and Old Man ranges, punctuated by snowdrifts and large schist tors. The Old Woman Hut offers an accessible overnighter to explore these conjoined ranges. Just over an hour’s walk from Duffers Saddle on Nevis Road, the highest public road in the country, it sits at a lofty 1420m with the tops of its namesake range literally on its doorstep. The track to the hut starts at a DOC sign just below Duffers Saddle and descends via a 4WD track before climbing steeply for 20 minutes.…

WINDING AROUND the forested-flanks of an extinct volcano to a formidable pā site, the highlight of the Kakepuku Track is the views that extend all the way to Mt Ruapehu. Kakepuku forms a 449m symmetrical lump (the name translates as ‘swollen stomach’) in the Waikato just south-east of Pirongia and is part of a volcanic field that includes Pirongia and Mt Karioi near Raglan. The Kakepuku Track takes about two hours, climbing to the summit of the volcano where a large lookout tower has been built atop the remains of a pā. The walk is also part of Te Ara Wai (The Path of Memories), a free self-guided tour through culturally significant sites in the Waipa District. A four-part audio tour is available for the track which explains the mountain’s…

My mother gave me a dehydrator nearly 30 years ago. At the time, I played around with it sporadically, mainly dehydrating fruit and vegetables, but didn’t really get into dehydrating a wider variety of meals and food until we had kids and I wanted to reduce our pack weights. The first evening meal I attempted was a beef mince dinner, which we all agreed looked and tasted like dog food. We buried it under a tussock bush and the kids ate crackers, cheese and chocolate for dinner. Clearly I’d done something wrong, but over the years I perfected a few easy recipes, experimented with different foods and now I dehydrate a lot of the food I take tramping. Dehydrating for me is not an exact science. I’m pretty slap-happy. My…

1. HUTS Nothing will make you feel more like declaring "I'm back!" than when you reach your first hut. Those blue mattresses; the slight echo as your voice reverberates off the walls; those old copies of Wilderness from an age when people ventured into the hills wearing mullets; that moment when you put the pack down, feel the breeze blowing over your sodden back and listen to the gorgeous sound of absolutely nothing; and conversely, the often alarming creaks when you drift off to sleep, as the building's wooden frame cools in the chill of night. Our huts are the backcountry's way of saying 'welcome home'. 2. THE SMELL OF A SLEEPING BAG If your beloved sleeping bag is more than several outings old, it will have developed its own…

THE WORD ‘forks’ suggests a choice of routes – a convergence, a place of meeting. In the backcountry, we use the prosaic but descriptive name for the junction of rivers, and often enough the topography at these junctures is suitable for locating a hut. By my count, there are at least 18 public huts with the name ‘Forks’ in their title, ranging from Koranga Forks in the Bay of Plenty to Aparima Forks in Southland. At least three parks have multiple Forks huts: Ruahine Forest Park boasts four (Ikawatea Forks, Maropea Forks, Waipawa Forks and Forks Hut), Kahurangi National Park has three (Waingaro Forks, Anatoki Forks and Mokihinui Forks), while there are two each for Tararua Forest Park (Neill Forks and Arete Forks) and Mt Aspiring National Park (Kerin Forks…

CONE HUT was originally constructed in 1946 by the Tararua Tramping Club. It is a totara slab hut, ageless in architecture and sublime in setting. This tramp is an amalgamation of the Cone Hut Track and Cone Saddle Track, with a return via the Lower Waiohine Track. And of course, Cone Hut is a nostalgic overnighter for a return to the good old days, wood smoke, lichen-encrusted totara slabs and all. I crossed the swingbridge high above the Waiohine River and ascended the steep spur. The knobbly but well-formed track was relentless on its 500m climb until it flattened out near the ridge. A noticeable change in the forest character accompanied a change in track conditions. The undulations of the ridge hold water and the track was frequently boggy. Armies…

Mt Petra. That had been the name that allured me, even though it doesn’t appear on any maps. An island-like peak on the Herbert Range in the heart of New Zealand’s second-largest national park and protected by layers of limestone cliffs, Mt Petra is accessible only by a cunning route through a crack in its formidable defences. I’d seen mesmerising photos of it taken by veteran trampers Arnold and Jan Heine. We planned to approach Petra using the Wangapeka Track, Kakapo Saddle, and a route onto the Herbert Range. Then we’d exit via the Karamea and Baton Valleys. In the end, our party of four got nowhere near Mt Petra. Not even close. Our ambitious route might have suited younger men and better weather. Regardless, the resulting tramp proved stimulating…

Most trampers know the feeling of limping into the office on a Monday morning, sleep-deprived and sore after a weekend well-enjoyed in the backcountry. “And you did that for fun? During your weekend?” asks a sceptical colleague as you gingerly lower into an office chair. We get it – tramping is no picnic. It takes planning, route-finding, organisation, and a great deal of grunt work under an often heavy pack. But what if it didn’t have to be that way? There’s a real comfort in being guided through the backcountry – almost like being the passenger in a car. You’re free to relax, get lost in the scenery and forget about directions. Your pack is light, and the promise of a gourmet meal – one that hasn’t been rehydrated –…

1. BEEF MINCE SAUCE This is a very basic rich tomato and herb flavoured meat sauce to add to pasta, rice or dried spuds. There are no veggies in this recipe but spinach, corn kernels, peas, chopped beans or capsicum could all be added, or take separate veg to add to the meal. Ingredients 1 large onion finely chopped 2 cloves garlic crushed (or 2 tsp from a jar) 1 tbsp oil 700g beef mince (any grade of mince will do, but the less fat the better when dehydrating – I use prime or premium grade) 1 cup tomato paste 1 tsp salt 3 tbsp mixed herbs 1 cup water Method Cook onion and garlic in oil until translucent, add mince and brown. Add everything else and cook until as…

I KNEW I shouldn’t have been wearing my crampons. I was no longer walking on hard ice, but post-holing down a spur with each step sinking to past my knees in soft snow. But to stop would take up time and I really didn’t want to stop, even though I told myself this could end with a spill. And so it came to pass. A few seconds later, I stumbled as my crampon caught on a soft bit of fabric and down I went, eating snow. When I checked my leg there was a gaping hole in my expensive waterproof/ breathable overtrou. The good news is, though it won’t look as good as new, it is possible to patch your technical outerwear – raincoats and pants – so it works…

The companies displayed on this page all represent products and services that have appeared in Wilderness over the past year or so. They represent a fraction of the companies that have been involved with Wilderness over the past 28 years (some have been with the magazine for that time). They help make Wilderness possible and what they advertise helps make your enjoyment of the outdoors better. Their products and services are world-class, they have offices, manufacturing, research and training premises and street-front shops in your town. They employ people who live here and who know and love New Zealand’s outdoors. Together, they can supply all you’ll ever need to get outside – gear, skills, adventure, transport. It has never been more important than now to get in behind these companies…

Ieva Laucina first came to New Zealand in 2018 to visit friends she had made while running dog sledding tours in Norway. She fell in love with the mountains here and decided to hike the Te Araroa Trail with only a running pack. “I wanted to experience the freedom of the mountains, moving fast and light,” she says. But after other trampers began asking her, ´Is that all you carry?´, Laucina laid open her pack to show the essentials she walked the South Island with. PACK I use an Ultimate Direction 35l Fastpack which weighs 710g. It´s a vest design with front pockets handy for snacks, phone and water. It has a roll-top closure which means I can roll it down tight or expand it a bit when I have…