Fear and Loathing in the Gardens, Feb 1982

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Fear and Loathing in the Gardens Feb 1982 Bruce Wilson I think we'd all been planning to thought that the Bruces should go visit the "Gardens' # for quite a few and recce the matter while the rest years and finally we got our generally looked busy. It was about act together earlier this year. this time that we discovered that Bruce Wilson was keen to use not our food packer was a bit of a just your common everyday route tight-ass, as he had placed two to the Gardens, and so Brian nights dried veges in one bag. produced a photo looking up Little Abuse was traded loudly and the Man River, which gives access to packer lost. the Adams Range and the Barlow, there to the Gardens and he said: Following the route that the two "A piece of ease, you can look Bruces had marked we tripped up the straight up it - no gorge or anycreek and sidled onto Escape Col. thing", which just goes to show Excellent views all round looking you can't believe every idiot you east to the Gardens; to the south meet. the National Parks and to the north loomed Mt. Adams. Nobody was We consulted Brian Hunt about sidling interested in the west at this the evil Barlow. Brian showed us stage. Lunch, then delicately pick slides taken from the other side our way down a gut and onto the onto our route and we sat there and Escape Glacier. Bowl down it to said: "Yeah, that looks like a the gravel then onto bedrock. piece of cake", "You'll piss across Wandered down it to a potential there in a day boys". So as you campsite - another early finish. can see it was looking like a cruisey trip. We were gone early down to the river then climbed sidling, climbed up and Anyway early in February, two Bruces, over one little prominence after Simon and Brian were on a bus cruising another, head high pampas grass into Hari Hari and there we picked down into a gully, sidle into up Mike. another gut and out again, along a bit, oh! shit, a big !? this We hopped off the bus at Little Man must be from the Siege Glacier. We River, much to the astonishment of climbed up until we were well up the the other cabbages on board. This valley - no way across so back down is always a source of amusement to into the gut searching for a crossing me - people never understand why you found it and lurched in amongst the get off a bus in the middle of nocrashing waters in the sun, spray all where and when you get back on after around. Climb out, sidle another 12 days in the hills, they seem to stream, sapping heat, find a way. down wish you'd go back there, but I "hello, swimming hole", "well it's digress. too good to miss", Off with packs, boots, singlets, shorts, you name it, We packed, unpacked gear and fought out with the soap into the cool over it, and redistributed it, then refreshing water. After a while Bru staggered off up the farmland to Bruce cracks the whip (ooh ducky!) the bush edge. Bruce W. nearly and its off to the beckoning campsite. castrating himself on a barbed wire Down the stream, up an old stream bed fence on the way. on to collapsed blocks of rock then lift packs up the last two met tres to In the morning we started off up this the tarn. Talk about nice, Elie de creek which seemed easy enough to Beaumont in the sunset! That night start with but after the first fork after dinner sit around, watch the "hello, what's this, a !? gorge". moon drift around and fantastic clouds But after some pretty starry rock swirl, this is good. work all the grade 25's were surmounted. We were climbing very rapidly but travel up the creek was quite Up early and more sidling. Brian, physical. Stopped for lunch next Simon and Mike try and roll a huge to some native brooms - nice for a boulder down a stream - it must change from those brazen yellow be getting to them. Climbed out, interlopers. hello, a little saddle in the side of the spur. "We'll head for Onward, until we were diverted by that" says Bruce, "lets take the a waterfall, left the main stream high road" as the rest of us take and headed up towards Escape Col. the low route, off we go, fight the Soon after, agreement was reached dracophyllum, climb and sidle to the about our state of exhaustion and saddle and abuse Wilson for beating the need for a camp and it was us. It was about now that the weather started to crap out. Sidle Exit Creek, then Mike and I sit in across to a deep creek, we are only the sun while the Bruces and Simon a few 100 feet above the Barlow and a race up the North Poerua. After as we drop into the creek it starts an abortive pog a late start was to rain. We hop across the river and voted for and we headed up into grovel up above it, a bit further up Exit Creek. Good travel and only a stumble across a gigantic rock bivvy little hassle with the waterfall. on the true right. After a short Once into the head basin we just discussion with ice axes we spent the stroll on up to the top, friendly afternoon here and then as it cleared rock wrens but I'm too lazy to get up we went up to the bushline and the camera out - a bad move. Climbed camped just above Hunts biv Bruce out on to the high point and sit has a bent for eight-year-old honey. there above the Wanganui, which is totally covered in cloud with the Fine morning off up the Barlow onto Bracken Snowfield, Mts. Evens and old moraine rocks. After 1% hours Whitcombe - magic carpet stuff. Mike decides he's had enough and falls over and cuts his thigh open - After a long lunch cruise off into measured panic - Mike's got a big the cloud along the Wilberg Range, scar now - poor workmanship. Bruce nice and unreal wandering along these and Brian make a campsite out of a tussock tops in the murk and heat and streambed - Sherpa style - and we the traffic on SH6 blasting away. have lunch. Bruce, Bruce, Simon and Brian head off to the Gardens We camped by a large tarn just before if for nothing else than a look. the range drops off to the Wanganui. Climbed up to near Vertebrae Col, That night bulk food as this is our worst rock I've ever had, steep and last night - good talk getting shitty - pop up on to the Gardens. utterly wasted. A nice snow landscape heading into the distance, Guardian Peaks on the Up for sunrise, epic view, sun left, cloud over the Perth. It's calm behind a hill, sun rays poking and warm, we sit there lapping it around the corner. Off down to the up - then the keen shits want to trig, obligatory group pic's, onto climb a hill; the Little Unknown is a great track through the scrub. closest so we stroll up it. Look We arrived at the road in plenty of down 1000 metres into the Perth, time for the bus. Sit down, nice blue lake there, oh well, so redistribute gear and Mike heads much for the object of the trip. off down the road to Hari Hari Back in camp that night we lay back, while we all go to Hoki to sort burnt gear and bayed at the moon out technical problems like white on blue. Great decisions are Air New Zealand and beer. taken and we retire unsteadily. Bruce Wilson (sometime leader and We arise late and Brian goes for domestic) a walk up to the Adams Range. The Mike Sheridan (resident cripple) rest of us slowly head back down Brian Dobbie (saved our souls) the valley, Mike' S all right but isn't really keen to force the Simon Davis (likes his nylon) pace. At our previous campsite Bruce McKinlay (gear freak) sunbathing is the order of the day, that and turning the trip leader into a domestic by hanging out our washing. Sunburnt posteriors and naughty bits abound. We climb up easily onto the Adams