North West Nelson (Forest Park)

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North West Nelson This trip, which left Wellington on track again, over Wangapeka Saddle to the 19th December, was the first Club Stone Creek Hut, up Stone Creek to Xmas trip away. The first night was Mt. Luna and along the ridge back spent under the stars at the Dart River to Kiwi Saddle. ford (which the taxi could not cross) Here we collected the balance of in the Wengapeka Valley. Low cloud our food and the following day headed next morning turned to drizzle as we down Taylor Stream on the way to packed, and later became heavy rain. the Crow and Karamea Rivers. An entry As we had decided against an air-drop in the log book showed a time of we were carrying food for eighteen days four hours to the Crow and back. What and felt every pound of it as we stagger- a dreamer! Anyway we expected to ed up_the valley. Lunch was a welcome end up half down the Crow that stop, "sheltering" under a very old fly- night.Early in the day the track petered camp at the Wangapeka/Kiwi Stream out and heavy packs and greasy rocks Forks. After lunch, with the weather made travel in the river slow. By lunch rapidly improving, we followed the mag- time it was evident we would not nificent gold-mining bench track up beyond the Crow/Taylor Yones Kiwi Stream to the Saddle. by nightfall. Came five o'clock and still We had planned to go over Luna no sign of the Forks. The stream had the next day but on waking to uncertain become gorgy and the steepness of the weather we needed no further encour- terrain made sidling difficult and unagement to pit-bash for a few hours. pleasant. To add to our joy we were As the day improved we roused our- confronted by a large slip guarded at selves sufficiently to stroll up Mt. Pat- the top by high bluffs and at the bottom riach to survey the view. by a steep drop into a pool. The bottom The mist the following morning lifted seemed the best bet. Den, in front, in time for us to decide tr go over vocid see a way down a slab to a the tops to the Karamea, instead of ledge above the river from where we back down to the Wangapeka and over could cross to a terrace on the other the saddle as Nick had contemplated. side. He disappeared over the edge onto Lightened packs (food for three days) the slab. Suddenly there was a hoarse and blue skies made a pleasant contrast scream, the sound of falling rocks, and to our first day out. A cunning sidle an enormous splash. Then silence. Up through Stone Creek Basin eliminated people began moving towards the a steep climb over Mt. Luna, bringing topE to see Den rising to the surface us to an easy drop through beech scrub 15 feet below, his 75 lb. pack on sideinto Meteor Stream. This provided ways and his arms and legs paddling travel until we reached a small facd frantically. Amazingly his glasses were formed when a slip dammed the creek still intact. The rest of us lowered our during the Murchison Earthquake. Tak- packs before descending in a more coning the lead Owen plunged in and made trolled manner. his way along a conveniently placed Another hour of sidling was all we submerged log. He stepped off this into could take and as terraces were besix inches of water deceptively covering coming few and far between we decided two feet of mud and thereafter flounder- to camp while there was still a spot ed the rest of the on all fours. available. That night it rained. It was The resulting porridge e'maden the crossing still hosing down as we set off next a feat of art for those that followed, morning with the prospect of another particularly the last man, Dave, who day's wet slippery sidling. But our luck insisted on carrying his pack on his seemed to have changed. After an hour head whilst having the added difficulty we reached a stream which could only of keeping his watch above water. The be Kinzett Stream, meaning that we insults screamed at the photographers were already in the Crow. We had on the far bank only added to their apparently passed the forks during one mirth. of our sidles. The river opened up, After this the creek opened out and and everything seemed fine. the Karamea looked ten minutes away But it was still raining, and the river but two unexpected waterfalls made it was rising. Soon we were sidling nearer again forty-five. Another hour up the only to come to the inevitable river us slip. brought to Luna Hut. Too high to over, and the bottom Next morning we took a short cut could only bet passed by some hairy up Lost Valley behind the hut and rock-climbing or a swim in a flooded over a low saddle to Helicopter Flat pool. Ken couldn't swim so the latter thus cutting off a large loop of the was ruled out, and as nobody wanted Karamea. Then it was on the Wangapeka a repetition of the previous day's rock-

Forest Park climbing performance we decided to The weather began to crud in next retreat up river and camp on the first day so Nick went off to survey the terrace we came to. The rest of the route out while the rest of us read morning was spent shivering and brew- and collected firewood. A couple of ing round a feeble fire while the river kids who had come up, from the farmgradually crept higher. What a way land for the weekend borrowed Nick's to spend Xmas Day. Fortunately there axe to help cut some firewood and was an improvement in the weather unfortunately broke the handle. We exand the afternoon was a salubrious affair plained in great detail how sensitive sunbathing, sleeping (Den), having Nick was about his axe and they became brews, and drying gear. quite subdued. They went inside and The river was back to normal next made us a brew and had another one morning, the weather fantastic, and we ready for Nick when he came in. They set off in high spirits. Crow Hut was also gave us a loaf of fresh bread and reached by mid-afternoon and was so a couple of pounds of bacon. inviting we stayed an extra day. Next morning we wandered over to On the move again, with an early see the mighty Salisbury which we had start down a good track to Karamea heard so much about in all the log Bend. We had just stopped for a rest books in the area. Going on its when there was a loud rumble and larity we were not really prepared Copor a sharp jolt, accompanied by the sound the scungy hovel we found there. We of rocks rolling down the hillside. It left Ken to sit in it's gloom while was the first earthquake any of us had we shot off in different directions to felt in the hills so we thought it must explore the countryside, returning just have been a one and had visions as it started to rain. Although we didn't of Wellington batnon flattened. However, know it at the time this was a prelude we were assured by some folk we met to Cyclone Rosie. By morning the a few days later that the city was still weather was horizontal, the Tableland standing and as far as they knew hadn't was fast turning into a lake, and we even felt a tremor. We felt two more began to have doubts about getting out earthquakes later in the trip. on time. It seemed the wind would At Karamea Bend, which we reached be too strong for us to get over the in time for morning tea, Ken said his tops and the large side creeks down Achilles tendon was misbehaving so we the Flora Track too swollen to cross. decided to stay there the remainder of We decided to give the tops a go the day to rest it. We had intended and were pleased to have a new poled carrying on down river to the Roaring route to follow to the bush-edge above Lion, then it's tributary, the Beautiful, the Cobb. Once in the bush, overtrou and from Iheres along the tops to the came off and it was a quick down Heaphy Track, but it was not to be. a greasy spur to Mytton's Hut for morn- Three days later we were still at the ing tea, then a four mile sprint around Bend, having read all the hut literature, the Lake against a howling southerly. had a go at improving the track to We spent the night in the dam workers' Baton Saddle (without making any im- hostel with an amateur radio enthusiast pression), swimming in a pool with who had been washed down from the couple of inner tubes from the hut, Upper Cobb that morning. ando making some "bread" (Iron-loaf). Up at four and into the taxi by It was obvious by now that the trip six, all of us plus packs somehow squeezwould have to be modified so we de- ing into the one vehicle. Pies and milkcided to go out by our escape route shakes in Takaka, then two buses and over the Mt. Arthur Tableland and down six hours later we were in Picton, having the Cobb Valley. An easy wander up dropped off Dave and Owen en route the Leslie River to the Peel Creek Forks for another three weeks tramping at for an early lunch, then another two Nelson Lakes. and a quarter hours to the bushline So ended a fantastic trip in new up the well-graded Leslie bench track. and interesting country where rivers and We still had two spare days and as hills are different and where wild life Balloon Hut was a more delectable place abounds (we saw at least 12 blue ducks, to spend them in than the much older several hundred paradise ducks, one Salisbury Hut, we ambled over the roll- long-tailed cuckoo, 8 deer, 20 or 30 ing tussock for another hour to sample goats, and several "somethings"). its luxury. After the confined quarters Those on the trip-Nick Jennings. Ken of Karamea Bend it seemed a mansion, Stokes, Dave and Owen Cox, Den with two bunkrooms, a wood-burning Claridge, and Laurie Gallagher. stove, plenty of bench space, stools, and even a table. L.G.