Strictly for the Fishes

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STRICTLY FOR THE FISHES Date: Friday 21st May. General decision of the party is to Place: S.S. of R.S. sleep out because, in the words of one, Time: 7.30 p.m. "You wouldn't get much sleep if you Weather: Wet. bedded down in there tonight!" Damn! I've made it on time. They're The shearing shed's empty-pits out, still here. There must be better things brew up and, "See you in the morning." to do on a night like this. Original Saturday morning dawns fine but overleader knows it. He's already pulled cast. A chastened crew regret their Frioff the trip. There's hope yet-Kombi's day night tardiness in not making Field now half an hour late. No, here he Hut. The grind uphill begins, relieved comes - too reliable this bloke. only by the discovery that the view Packs in the trailer, pile on board appears to be new-none of us seems and the trip's on. My reputation's pre- to have been up this part in daylight served a little longer on discovering for years. I needn't persuade my intrepid fellow Field Hut is reached and I prevail trampers of the folly of attempting haz- upon Sol to Red Line a route down ardous Field Hut track at night. They've to Penn Creek Hut with me. The Red already decided to pike at the Forks. Line is as convenient an excuse as Did someone mention an F.E. trip? for a general state of unfitness The new leader's attempting an early and the preservation of a feeling of termination of his tramping weekend. non-exhausted good health. Sol agrees. Falls flat on his face blazing new route The others climb West Peakwards. into the hut entrance at Otaki Forks. Sol and I climb Table Topwards. All Was the wire to warn of the ap- 3,460 feet of it. Downhill at last! A proach of TTP marauding male tramper final look across the valley at the schedto the schoolgirl-occupied hut? uled route down Pakihore Ridge. A

Nick Jennings Photo by Laurie Gallagher. last laugh at others who would try They arrive within half an hour, via for it, and we're off into the scrub. Vosseler Peak however. Moral-it's a Experience has taught us to lose the long long way if you pike on Friday route as quickly as possible and we night. achieve this within the half hour. The Sunday morning sees small breakfast creek well enough however, in appetites after a large and satisfying fact onlydr dropping gradually. The rain's Saturday night's tea. Light drizzle and another matter, though it's only showers. as southerly change form various opinions Someone else has been here too. We on the merits or otherwise of a trip can't see any reason for the cairn except cut via the river. Murray, Jon and Dave to announce someone's former presence. demerit it entirely, and find the right The creek drags on. Another cairn. route up to Fields and out to the Forks. Ignore it. Sidle on the right. Leap down Paul and Sol for a swim down into a shallow pool. Rock climb down the gorge-an Adea quickly cooled in some falls. Ease up when confronted the second deep of a swollen Otaki by a twenty foot vertical drop. Ignore River. A long onmol to, and hairy trathat last cairn? All's not lost. A grass verse along, the wet weather track out grabbing, root pulling, leaping sidle on convinces them of the "inadequacies" the left above the drop gets us past of this track. Andy and I head out the water fall. via Gorge Creek and Waitatapia Peak Shortly after, we at last hit Penn (divetissima route). This settled an argu- Creek and, the huts' either up or down ment over whether the naming of Gorge river. (We've got a choice) It's not Creek was because it dropped into the marked on the regular map; but fading Otaki Gorge, or was a gorge itself. memories from way back hint that it Both right. might be upstream. (The Hunting Guide The ridge of Waitatapia, besides pro- I always carry shows it correctly but viding an abundance of bush lawyer I sometimes forget I always carry the and scrub for the purpose of divesting map.) Andy of half his bush singlet, and effi- We reach the hut about 4.00 ciently ventilating mine, also succeeds to warm up, lunch and smugly slont in depositing us prematurely back into over others who would trip down Paki- the Otaki Gorge. Some reluctant sheep hore Ridge in the middle of the night. refuse to divest the whereabouts of a sidle track and a long swim is called for. Too long. Andy beaches first. Looks A fast back. warming-up pace back to the van soon finds Paul Milson, Jon Spink, "Are you O.K.?" Andy Leslie, Dave Minard, Murray Tay- "No" (sinkingly). lor, Brian Solomon, and Warren Thorburn completing another Tararua trip. "Hang on". Drops his pack and is about to make W.T. like a liferaft, when sinking one touches bottom.