Waiohine Gorge

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MIOHINE GORGE. Johnny Robinson once said he would like to do the Waiohine Gorge and one day in an idle moment I was reading my Trip Schedule and noticed a Bannister -Walls Trip. It occured to me that a Waiohine Gorge via Isabelle might get transport in this way - and so the trip was on. The Chief Guide was most enthusiastic since he was not going on the trip and so with Johnny as Leader, Athol Roberts, Dave Lowe Graem Hall, Phil Gardner, Bruce Owen (H.V.T.C.) and I left the others at Bennister and hea.ded off into the moonlit night up Gentle Annie on our way to Powell Hut. I almost didn't go since Athol had kindly left my tyre tube - essential gear - at rame, but Bruce, who also had a one men Rubber Boat, lent me his 'and did he regret it!' Much to my surprise Johnny, Phil and I got to Powell at 2 a.m. a 22 hour journey, although the others, who were discussing the history of tramping on the way, made it in 2hours 55 minutes. We found Phil Boswell and some other Masterton types there. Phil very nicely gave us his fried scones and made us a cuppa, but you should ask Terry what Bos said about people who arrive at huts at 2a,mo Actually they had just put out the light as we arrived. Graom sot his alarm clock for some horrible hour in the morning 1 6.30 = and with the prospect of 32 hours sleep we hit the sack. Saturday was misty and cold and most unpromising. The view from Powell in fact was, as usual, a lot of nothing. Thirty five minutes saw us up to Holdsworth and then tho fun started. Between Holdsworth and Isabelle we took a most unnecessary detour by dint of sidling the head of Frances Creck we managed to climb up to tha summit which is suitably marked by a beer bottle! We dropped off into the murk and bush-pushod towards the junction of Frances and the Waiohine - or so WO thought. Phil and I delayed the party by debating the advisability of returning to Powell whon it rained and various other factors such as the wrapping of Bruce's boat coming off and another "detour" lengthenod the time but finelly five hours after leaving Holdsworth we lunched in the Frances. Another hour approximately saw us down to the Waiohine. Actually we passed through a lovely piece of gorge in the Frances 1 steep, dark, slimy walls rising into the bush which met overhead, with swift drops of water spattering down into the dark pool beneath. The first sight of the Waiohine was disappointing - in fact I thought we had merely dropped into the Frances and that previously we had been following a tributary of that creek. The sky was now cleer and we had hopes of Hector Forks for that night. We spent some time blowing up our tubes and Bruce's boat and then off hopefully down the river. Between Frances and Isabelle Creeks there is very little gorge work, and we with the tyres made a good pace although Bruce found the boat too sumbersome for quick travel - even dangerous at the deeper fords. The sun soon dropped

-17 a bohind the Main Range and the cold repidly soaked through to our bonos. With very little swirming behind us we finelly pulled into Isabelle Creek and Bamped there for the night. The stew was wondorfully wa.rming and soon, comfortably in the sack, we were drifting off to sleep. I lay there almost asleep when suddenly to my surprise I heard a steady drone of an aeroplane! I woke Athol who finnily diagnosed it a.s Johnny snoringi Once more, neally asleep, something whirred into my hair and I jumped about five feet, more or less. I gathered from Athol that he would appreciate my sleeping so I curled up once moreo Incidentally there were some nasty remarks going around about my rofusal to do breakfast duty Sunday - but I said I'd do it at Totara Flats - not Isabelle. The first plunge into the river at 8.20 on Sunday was icy and although the sky was blue none of the sun's warmth came near us. According to the current story we had 34hours from Isabelle to Totara Flats - says who? The best part of the Waihine Gorge is bewteen Isabelle and Hector Forks. There was very little breeze but the cold becane firmly entrenched in all of us. Apart from the shivering males, hakas to get warm, also "Two Ducks on a Pond"(the difficulty was to etop wibblo-wobbling), Phil trying to roll a cigarette, my memory retains scattered impressions of stretches of closely w. llcd poolss long and green, suddenly emptying over rapids gashed by huge boulders; of rock shelves running alongside a chain of still, deep water and racing white foam. Once we found ourselves walled in and facing a tortuous race of water too deep to cross in safety. We climbed a rock and took a running jump over the worst part of the currento Later we shot a rapid. One minute you were bracing yourself against a thigh deep rush of water and nest you were far down the next pool, still caught in the currento Bythe time we passed Meungahuka Stream and entored the wide shingle flats before the last bit of Gorge before Hector Stream we were ready for lunch and found a warm sunshiny spot to lie and leze. We were away again about an hour later at 12.30 and by two were et Totara Flats - there is little real Gorge between Hector Forks and the Flets. Since we had reckoned on being at the Flats at 4 pom. the previous day we were quite pleased to be welcomed by Rod's party who had remeined behind in case of accident =though I must say their welcome of us wasa bit mixed! Some time after 3 we set off again to the lower Gorge. Here the pools flowed sufficiently for us to lie back on our tubes and be washed to the end of them. We even became so fond of this method of travel that we would not get up and walk until our boots caught on the rocks and stones of the river bed. Travel de luxe although it we.s cold when we stopped. Rod's party had left between half and three quarter's of an hour before us and we caught up with them at Makaka Stream and the rearguard again at the Cradle. We arrived at the road about half an hour ahead of all except Rod and Tom - thus proving that the Gorge is quicker than the treck.

Having emptied the Waiohine out of our boots we set off for dalls and tho truck. Phil and Bruce got mislaid between the river and the truck but shouts and torches finally brought them to heel - and so back to town a four hours late. Those of us on the trip will be able to renew acquaintance with the gorge as with "great expense and enormous effort" (??72) we dragged a movie camera-man through the gorge 1 A.Roberts Bsq. And did we put some acting into those action shots! You should see us "smile" as we slip into the pools: Those among Rod's party who say they are never going to be in the vicinity of any future gorge trips may now get undeniable evidence on which to issue certificates of bush insanity! Marie Marshall.