Our day started from Arthurs Pass grey, overcast and chilly. We started from Scott's track which was about 500m from Arthurs Pass Village. Without further ado, the climbing started immediately. We had around 1000m to ascend. It was a nicely graded well marked climb on a well formed rocky track. After 30min or so, we had completely warmed up. The views of the mountain ranges along the way were stunning.
I saw a couple of wild orchids which always makes my day on a tramp. Before long we were at the treeline. I was thrilled the track was quite open, there were no tree roots, slippery sections nor stream crossing up until this point! Stopping to put on warmer items of clothing we noticed some other trampers who had approached Avalanche peak from Avalanche track. By now, the weather had cleared and blue skies were peering through clouds. We continued on upwards along a rocky track. As we neared the 1833 meter high summit, we discovered a horde of others who were already there. It was quite a squeeze and we had to wait our turn to have our obligatory photos taken. To get to the ridge leading to Crow Valley, we had to make a small detour southwards in order to avoid sheer craggy rocks. The instructions resembled a cryptic crossword clue but the clues became apparent as we walked on. There was a fun section of slow motion downhill scree descent, past some huge patches of snow. Gigantic arrows on the ground made out of small rocks guided the way. We had the best lunch stop at the top. With the sun out, a gentle breeze about and surrounded by panoramic views of mountain ranges and Mt Rolleston, we could not have hoped for a better day. By now, all the hats, gloves and warm items of clothing were off. After lunch, we continued a little way along the ridge and eventually saw the promised markers and a full view of the Punchbowl Falls in the distance. This marked the position of our long 750m descent to Crow Valley. The fun experienced earlier on during our descent on scree soon gave way to serious concentration. It was steep and slow going due to the ever-changing sizes and movement of the stones and rocks. After what seemed like eternity, I finally reached the base of the 750m scree slope. Roger and Ralph had long since reached the bottom and were having a well deserved long cooling rest next to the Crow River. By this time, the sun was scorchingly hot.
We followed cairns dotted along the river bank which eventually led us into a lovely lush green mossy beech forest. After a short walk through the forest we came upon Crow Hut (Built 2002, Alt 1050m). We set up camp, relaxed on the grass in the sun and chatted with the then sole occupant of crow hut. We were tucked up in our respective tents by 8pm.
The next morning was cool and overcast. We set off after a leisurely breakfast. Two seconds into the start was a cold stream crossing from a fast flowing side stream flowing into Crow River. The rest of the tramp was a gentle descent on a rocky dry river bed which occasionally led to tracks through beech forest. Eventually we cleared the bushy part and picked our way on dry rocks for a good way. Then came a series of crossings (5 in total) on the Waimakariri River, fast flowing from the recent rains. The three of us had to link up for the crossings. We had to abort one halfway as the river was too deep and dangerous to cross. We walked further down and were able to pick a more suitable spot to cross. After walking on the river stones for an hour or so, we caught a glimpse of traffic in the distance and then the bridge. We finished the rest of our tramp on a flat gravel road that led to Klondytes Corner. There was a sign at the end that showed Crow Hut as being in moderate risk of an avalanche. Nice one!
We had 2 hours to wait for our transport, during which time, we lunched and dried out our tents. Ralph attempted to stone a mouse and Roger regaled us with his stories. It was a pleasant way to end an excellent tramp.