Well after 6 weeks of no tramping, it was time to get out into the hills again. Jeff ('it's not a problem') Brown had organised a trip to the Mt Somers area in South Canterbury which looked very interesting. There were two options ? "Medium", which involved traversing the walkway from Woolshed Creek carpark to the Sharplin Falls carpark, and staying Saturday night at Pinnacles Hut. Or the "Fit" (read as "Silly") trip, which would go up the walkway to Mt Somers Hut, continue up Woolshed Creek onto the Winterslow Range, then drop down to Pinnacles Hut for the night, and out via Mt Somers summit. I was using this trip as a test for lugging my new tripod, and because I value my sanity, decided that the Medium trip was more for me.
And so on Friday night we all met at the clubrooms for another eventful trip into the hills. Travelling north from Dunedin is much faster than heading to Central Otago, so we made very good time to our dinner stop in Oamaru. Robyn recommends the Gourmet Burger shop, whereas us blokes stuck with the good old standby of greezies. From there on the trip was uneventful and we reached the Woolshed Creek carpark at around 10 pm.
Bright and misty the next morning, the Fit team was up and heading off on their mission, while Chris and Greg from our party shuttled a vehicle to the Sharplin Falls carpark. Shortly after 9 am we started up the track, passing the remnants of coal mining activities in the vicinity. Light drizzle had settled in by this stage so the views promised on the DoC sign were a little lacking. The track climbs steadily from the carpark to Trig R, from whence you descend into the Woolshed Creek catchment. About half way down from here the track takes a sharp left at a large rock outcrop, and clambering up onto it showed the reason for the turn! Through the mist a 300 m drop into the Woolshed Creek gorge appears and I can honestly say I was thoroughly gobsmacked. From here it is just a short stroll to the hut for lunch.
The Fit (and Slightly Mad) team appeared over the crest of hill just as we were finishing lunch, with Paul (a. k a. Gazelle) bounding down a tallus slope to enthusiastically inform us of a must?do side trip. This loop via Trifalls and Hydroslide Streams is very much worth the effort ? access is interesting as you clamber up fixed ladders and along smoothly eroded creek beds. As a photographer I was in my element and very glad I had lugged 3.5 kilos of tripod with me!
At this stage we were getting a little pushed for daylight, so at 3.30 pm we made a start for the Saddle and Pinnacles Hut 3 hours from Woolshed Creek. On the way up we met a party who had just been to the saddle and we were informed that there was LOTS of snow there and we would need ice axes, crampons and a rope to cross! I was a little concerned, but as this was a group of new trampers from the Canterbury tramping club, I felt that they might be exaggerating just a little. Ken ("I can dance') provided us with a little excitement soon after as he slipped in a very steep slope, completing a perfect pirouette in mid air, tossing Leki poles to the four winds and landing on his back. We were ready to turn back at this point but Ken assured us that a little fall wasn't going to stop him, and like the trooper he is began plodding uphill to the saddle.
Even with Ken's fall and a lot of grumbling about bloody hills we made the saddle in only an hour from the hut, and were pleased to see that there was only 3?4 inches of snow, not the feet we had envisioned. Supposedly there are very good views to be had, but sadly due to the mist the visibility was only 10 metres and not terribly inspiring. The route to Pinnacles is fairly straight forward, although in the mist and rapidly fading daylight it is very easy to miss some of the markers. Chris and I reached the hut first and while I set about getting the billy on, he dropped his pack and shot back up the track to see if he could help the others. It was fully dark at this stage and I was very pleased to see the rest of the party arrive soon after.
In the traditions of the OTMC the meal that night was superb, with Robyn's caramel slice and custard dessert a wonder to behold. A young couple from Christchurch were sharing the hut with us and joined in with the party atmosphere that prevailed. We, of course, were wondering what had become of the Fit (and just stupid) team, but conceded that, as they were very experienced and well equipped, they would be fine. So after toasting them on their absence we all hit the sack.
The next morning dawned bright, clear and very frosty. With a clear sky it was possible to see the massive cliffs behind the hut, which consist of slowly cooled ryolite that has formed columns similar to Dunedin's Organ Pipes but on a very much larger scale. This area is a mecca for rock climbers as there are numerous multi pitch routes up through these impressive formations.
I wanted to get going and spend a little time photographing the area as I walked down the track, and so as not to hold people up too much I headed off about 30 minutes before the rest on the party. The track from Pinnacles sidles down the gorge above Bowyers Stream, providing the keen photographer with numerous opportunities for firing off a lot of film. Bowyers Stream itself is quite a good size and from the flattened rushes at the sides is capable of rising at least 1.5 metres from it's normal flow. This could prove interesting as the track follows the streambed in several places and crosses it once. The rest of the group caught up with me just prior to where the track leaves Bowyers Stream and heads very steeply up through the bush, again with much cursing of fitness levels and track makers we reached the top of Duke's Knob. Here we also managed to get no views as the mist had come down again. But all was not lost and by a very mutual consent a lunch stop was called.
From Duke's Knob to Sharplin Falls the track plummets seven hundred odd metres to Bowyers Stream, crossing a DoC?strength catwalk above the Goldsmith Rapids and bringing us out to Sharplin Falls. Yet again I have to say I didn't bring enough film! Sharplin Falls crashes down across a fault step strewn with house?sized boulders. The argillite rich rocks are deep red in colour and glisten with water, and contrasting these are the greens of the native bush, all providing a stunning sight for us to enjoy.
The track back has two options, back up the hill and to the car park, or along the river and very steeply back up the hill to the carpark. Once there, clothes were changed, the billy boiled and Chris's mighty banana cake consumed as we waited for the Fit team to arrive.
By 4 pm the vehicles had been picked up from the Woolshed end of the track and stories of bush bashing down gorges exchanged. We then headed off to the Stavley dairy to pay
hut fees and admire this classic country store. Then onwards to Temuka for a great feed and more relating of tales at the Jolly Potter, and back to Dunedin and home for some well earned rest.
All in all a damned good weekend.
Andrew Mac for Robyn Bell, Chris Burton, Greg Powell and Ken Powell (the "Not Quite Mad' group).
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