Into the Park

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- INTO THE PARK. - Editors Note: In January "Spud" honoured? us with his presence at Club and gave a short talk on their Park adventures - one club member suggested a write up for the Journal for future reference. At the time "Spud" showed reluctance to produce this but since we have prevailed on the goodness of his sparring partner as new trips are always worthy of note.. a On December 31st. "Spud" Hurphy and I ( Phil Rundle H.V.T.0.) were sitting near the top of Pukematawai looking down upon the Park Valley and eating tomatoes, bread and butter and biscuits, after an exceedingly hot climb from the Ohau. "rom this resting place a descent to the Park, first through one line of bluffs about halfway down and then through another line just above the stream took about an hour. These bluffs are not difficult but time would probably be wasted in misty weather. D The Park is very much like a Westland Valley in that the strean flows through snowgrass flats before descending in cataracts through sub-alpine scrub. It is about an hour before the forest is of the usual river. valley type. The sub-alpine scrub and cataracts are not a great hinderance. There was one little canyon about 3 yards wide with about 6 feet of water in it which had 10 foot vertical walls, in fact it was almost a tunnel which we walked through on narrow ledges. The Main Range is very low from the Park, There are many deer with good heads in the Valley and it is plain to see from the relative unconcern with which they treated us that they lead a peaceful life and they are probably still leading a peaceful life as "Spud" did not have his rifle! Prom the. previously mentioned point where all high altitude characteristics of the forest have disappeered it is now 32 hours to Park Forks. There are no problems in the river but there are 3 large unmarked creeks descending from the Carkeek Ridge. In this section there isa vertical 300 foot cliff jutting out from the Valley sides and trees that can be seen growing on the top give it an air of the "Lost World" of Conan Doyle. We car mped on a grassy patch about five minutes above the Park Forks. On Sunday we travelled to Powell down the Waiohine to Francis Creek and up over Isabelle. Park Forks to Francis Creek took 32 hours and is quite reasonable going if the river is low. At Francis Créek "Spud' started leaving a trail of notes for the Halls, who were somewhere in the Tararuas. Similar notes vore left at Powell, Mountain House and with folk on the track! At Totara Flats on the Monday there was a big reunion with the Halls - during which we managed to get a cup of tea from them - and - surprisingly enough we were able to supply them with things in return. - That night we slept out on a flyooth sand and blow ridden flat, below Cone and we finished the trip on Tuesday,

The weather in the main, for the whole trip was warm. cloudy and calm. The culmination and motive for the event was complete when "Spud" drew in yet another red line on the map. P.Rundle.