Tongue 'n' Meats Cross Pearson Saddle

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Tongue'N'Meats Cross Pearson Saddle A bearded fellow from Devon who lee of a large rock beneath Mt. Awful. tossed proverbial spanners into the con- We made a mistake here in crossing to versation, a youthful pomme from Ber- the apparently easier west bank for the mondsey who never ceased talking, of last steep climb out of the bush. It is his imminent retirement from tramping, actually rather easier to negotiate the a schoolboy from Onslow with one scrub on the east bank. of PhiRoset capacious custombuilt packs In the morning, cloud had descended and a propensity to toss it downhill. a again but fortunately the pass remained backroom chap from the Defence De- clear. Climbing steadily on steep snowpartment with his famous Bacardi nosc, grass and finally sidling back down valley and yours truly, the dwarf of the party under bluffs we reached the top, looked at 5ft 101 in. down into the Young Basin and beyond Originally the plan was simply to his glimpsed a little of Sibera's grassy wander up and down the Wilkin and flats. It commenced to rain gently as we tributaries (in fine weather, of course) descended to the bushline and did not without indulging in any of that fanatic ease off until the sandfly country of alpinism that infects many Christmas Siberia Stream was gained late in the trips. The writer, however, was keen to afternoon. An easy stroll across flats that visit the Waiatoto. He had seen some stretched for miles, both upstream and most impressive colour slides of that down, along tractor tracks and with hares valley taken on a Tongue & Meat trip in (though no cattle or deer) off - darting 1969. Thus Pearson Saddle the only into the bush on our feasible approach, brought route between the two valleys us to a Mt. Albert Station hut. This was was cunningly worked into the itinerary, too inviting to pass, so we stayed that its difficulties minimised and all refer- night and the following one as well, for ence to "N.Z. Alpine Journal" or the rain came again and remained heavy "Tararua" accounts of earlier crossings and we had plenty of time. carefully ignored. Then to pad things out to better fill the 16-day gap between With the "Playboy" magazines well rides on Jack Masson's W.T. & M.C. pawed and the weather apparently clear- Special, a visit to the Young and a cross- ing, we set off for Kerin Forks. On leaving of Gillespie Pass were included. ing the flats a cattle track climbs high to Tramping began on Boxing Day fol- cross a spur and then descends steeply to lowing a comfortable night spent free of the Wilkin. We arrived at Dave Osmers' charge at Dave Osmers' place at Maka- "dogbox", a tiny place containing a bed, rora in one of his motel units. It was a stove and our five tins of provisions. raining and the Makarora was running The Wilkin being in flood we thumbed two feet high when we endeavoured to a ride across in a passing jetboat. Lunch cross. An hour or so later attempts were inside us and heavy loads on our backs, abandoned and Alan and I returned to we set off on a long stagger to Jumbofetch Chris and his jetboat. He had us land. Arriving before dark, fairly well all across in no time and we set off into space according to load-carrying ability, the steaming bush (despite the rain 1 we squeezed in with two other parties and it rained most of the time we were (Tararua and Christchurch T.C.) and in Otago I it was always very warm east settled down for what, thankfully, turned of the main divide). Spirits were high out to be another very wet day and a for we had light packs on this first part chance to rest and eat some of that of the trip, which would take us to Kerin weight. Forks. High cloud and a fine day saw us on The cattle track to the Young River our way to the famous waterfall in the flats was behind us in two hours or so South Branch. We paused for lunch in and we emerged from the bush into beautiful parkland at the forks then set sunshine glinting off rocky outcrops off up the Park Board track to the bushamidst foaming waterfalls." A quick line. From a little past this point the plunge into the North Branch, which had majority of us elected to climb up a the short one's feet off the bottom = creek through the scrub a route which pole and pack providing support - afforded excellent views of Lake Diana brought us to our first campsite, in open and the North Branch, but we took twice beech just across from a tiny N.Z.F.S. as long as did Murray Taylor who scramhut. bled over and around the boulders in Next day was fine but not too warm the river bed. Unfortunately, Mts. Poland we enjoyed a pleasant tramp up the lux, Perseus and the rest remained with South Branch to a camp pitched in the their summits obscured by cloud.

Intermittent rain and occasional vioslopes of the mountain and most lent wind gusts during the nght threat- upine the Haast Range had been obscured cned to flatten our camp beside the since early morning. It began to rain bivouac rock (an excellent cave for again just as we finished lunch, so we cooking in) about 30 minutes below the we selected ta spur leading down to near waterfall. The weather cleared by mid- the Pearson River confluence. thus takmorning so, despite apprehension that it ing us as near as possible to the inviting might break again and trepidation at the Stormwater Flats we had seen carlier. At waterfall's reputation, we set off. The the bushline we disturbed two deer, the steepness of the initial slopes soon ab- first sighted since the Young, but now sorbed all our concentration, however, as then they were too distant for a shot. and after two hours of clawing at hand- Our choice of route turned out to be a holds caten out by chamois (or red poor onc. The going was extremely deer?) we hauled ourselves over the lip rough; not so much through the scrub, of the barren basin cradling the South which was substantially catent out, as Branch headwaters. Actually the slope of through the bush which clung to a jumthe route eased considerably toward the bled mass of huge boulders. It took us top and we were able to walk casily four hours to ncgotiate that lot. A campalong much of that part. Gusts of wind site was found on a grassy riverbank sent clouds scudding not so high above sandwiched between great mossy bouland splattered us with water from an- ders. Yet another wet day on the morrow other ncarby waterfall, adding to the provided vet another not unwelcome drama of the occasion. An easy walk excuse for a day in the pit. took us to Pearson Saddle and a view of The Waiatoto gave us the only unthe boulder-strewn basin on the far side. broken spell of fine weather on the trip. Then the weather broke and we hurriedly Threc days were spent wandering down sought shelter among those boulders. to Cascy's Hut in lovely warm weather. After a. while we discovered one which The second of thesc was cloudless and a had split open leaving a gap almost big short walk back upstream gave three of enough for one of our 8ft by 6ft tents. us a view of Mt. Aspiring. Later that A fly ovcr the top, a rock wall across day we glimpsed the impresseive iceonc end and one tent inside the gap fields and peaks at the head of the Drake looked after three of us. The other two River. On this day also we encountered pitched their tent just outside, exposed to somc meathunters still active in the area. the fury of the wind but nevertheless One, Dave Burton, relied on his legs and with considerably more room inside. lis hores. Rich ones from Luggate flew That afternoon, and the following one, over a helicopter and made obscene lightning flashed and thunder crashed, noises at us with thcir siren. The airand we stayed put. Our route out of the borne ones slaughtered 42 deer that basin was the least known and most morning, flying the 39 they recovered to hazardous part of the trip. It involved Mussel Point in a Cessna STOL. Their climbing high above Pearson Saddle to shooter was worth a photograph as he the grassline on Pickelhaube Peak (c. stood at Drake River airstrip, his jeans 7.900ft) in order to avoid the Pearson and bare arms smothered in clotted River gorge. For the first time on the blood, flics buzzing about in frenzied trip it grew cold as snow fell to within profusion. a few hunderd feet of our camp. Airstrips, meatsafes and huts from On our third morning in the basin it Stormwater Flats to Casey's attest to condawned beautifully fine and wet set off siderable meathunting activity in the on the last climb. Up among the tongues valley. One of the resulting side-effects is of old snow (the new was melting as fast that grass and thistles are now growing as we approached), chamois were graz- again on the flats. In turn this has ing. Murray eventually shot one after a tempted the Eggelings of Okuru, who fair amount of chasing around in the hot hold grazing rights, to réstock the area. sun. Then came the descent over tussock They are recutting the old cattle track slopes that continually sloped out of with a bulldozer as far as Casey's with sight as they progressively steepened. hopes of having the job finished before Cloud was becoming thick now and blot- winter. ting out much of the Waiatoto with its Cary Eggeling was engaged on this seemingly never-ending flats. The beau- work when he met us at Palmer Creek on tiful melt lake with its icebergs nestling 10 January. That afternoon it started to beneath the enormous north face of Mt. rain steadily again and the temperature Aspiring was clearly visible, but the fell. It was with a sense of relief that we journeyed the seven miles to the road M.C. Special at Haast satisfied though bridge by jetboat and thence to the sad at having to bid farewell to those Okuru Motor Camp. southern mountains. The clation of the lad from Bermond- Those on the trip: Alan Parish (leader), sey at having crossed Pearson Saddle Dennis Hole, Tony Hughes, Murray despite all his own predictions was quite Taylor and Hugh Middleton (author). infectious and we rejoined the W.T. & AUDA