Coromandel Tramping for Auckland WT&MC's

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COROMANDEL TRAMPING FOR AUCKLAND WT&MC's Jacqui Whiteside With good weather forecast for the weekend we all At this point two of the guys ran out to get help and we gathered together in the Kauaeranga Valley. This was to trekked back up to the ridge to find Judy well settled be a training trip to get ready for the Copeland Pass under a fly. And what had been used to splint her leg Christmas trip (1991) which 16 of us were going to do. none other than an ice-axe! Consequently we all carried heavier packs than were needed for a "simple" overnight trip. Some of us had By now it was 3.00pm and we were still about four hours even taken our ice-axes! This may seem funny, but we from the road end. It was decided that we needed to move were very thankful for them later in the weekend. Judy further up the hill, to a place that a helicopter could get to. With eight of us we managed to carry her up, and We left at about 1pm Saturday heading for Moss Creek get her comfortable for a long wait. We sorted out the hut (700m high) some 3 or 4 hours away. The first half last of the food and water and left enough for Judy, Kelly of this was lovely easy-going bush-walking and travelled and Norm in case help didn't arrive before night-fall. up the Kauaeranga River. Unfortunately the track was very poorly sign-posted and sO we missed the turn off At 4.00pm the rest of us gathered and prepared to head that led to the top of the range. Some hour or so later, out. The track was in very poor condition and was after we reached an impassable gorge, we decided to treacherous enough without the added disadvantage of retrace our tracks and look for the turning. Thankfully low morale. We tramped on in silence with an odd word this was found fairly easily, but this was where all the of encouragement to the young children we had with us. easy stuff finished. For the next two hours we climbed up We had only been going about an hour when our hearts the most rutted ground you could come across. lifted and to our amazement a helicopter was heard Sometimes we had to crawl from root to root without heading straight for Judy. We just couldn't believe it. It touching the ground. This wasn't very enjoyable to those was only about two hours since the guys had left to get of us who were not used to carrying heavy packs. help. Knowing that Judy was now safe lifted our spirits. About two hours later we had our question answered as The hut was a most welcome sight, when we finally made to whether Norm and Kelly had been airlifted out with it. But as the hut was in disgusting repair we decided to Judy. Obviously not, as they came charging up our tails. camp out for the night. This also proved a bit of a Some minutes later the two guys that had gone for help problem as there wasn' 't room for four tents, so the ice- also arrived back to meet us. axes came in handy to clear a site. I might add that dinner was really fantastic, when we finally got it. By 8.00pm we were all back at our cars and had totally had it. It turned out that we had been "lucky" as there Next morning we rose, thankfully to another nice day and was a German tramper lost in the same area, and SO the enjoyed a great breakfast while discussing our easy trip helicopter had already been on standby. Judy was taken home - all downhill, ya ho! We were to head across the directly to Thames Hospital. By the time we got there top of the range to the "junction" of the Pinnacles track, Judy was X-rayed and already strapped up for the return which should take 3 hours, and then it was all downhill trip home. The staff congratulated us on such a back to the cars, another 3 hours away. wonderful splint, but did remark that it was one of the most unusual ones they had seen. It didn't take us long to realize that crossing the tops wasn't going to be easy as it was all swamp land. Some Unfortunately for Judy her broken leg was like this trip, wet-footed three hours later we found the "junction" as not very straight forward. She had broken her leg in three described on the sign posts. Unfortunately this "junction" places and landed in hospital for a few days while they sign didn't refer to the "junction" we wanted. Oh no! the inserted a rod from the knee to the ankle. A year later Pinnacles Junction was in fact another 3 hours away. It this is still in place. was at this point the spirits dropped a little when we realized that our six hour tramp was now going to be nine Obviously Judy's accident put an end to the Copeland hours, and we were carrying extra heavy packs. Pass trip for the Yips, and at this stage several others also decided to pull out. Four of us did continue on, and Having refreshed ourselves we headed off again. Four of successfully completed the Copeland Pass trip last us had got ahead of the others and had dropped down Christmas, but that's another story. very quickly to the Kauaeranga River and were setting up for a brew. Before we had time to light the primus one of the party caught us up and announced "Judy's broken her leg". What else could go wrong?