The day dawned clear and sunny with the mountains we were about to venture into surrounding our cabin in the Glenorchy camp ground. The first to depart were the intrepid Five-Passes group at 8.30 am followed by the Greenstone group at 9.00am - except Katy who detoured for an hour to the Rees-Dart track in a different shuttle bus....(don't ask). The group finally began their tramp at about 11.00am along the banks of a clear green river beneath beech trees. We stopped for lunch at about 12.30 in the shade overlooking grassy river flats dotted with grazing cattle. Following this our path led us in and out of the forest until we reached a deep rocky cleft crossed by a small bridge. We peered over at the Caples River rushing through the gorge below us. The track then led out of the trees to a river terrace with the Mid Caples hut under renovation and closed to the public. Near here we stopped for afternoon tea and to consult the map. The weather was warm and sunny as we set off across the grasslands but frequent a side streams provided cold clear water to wash our faces. Another two hours and the welcome sight of the Upper Caples Hut where the not-so-welcome sand-flies joined us as we washed in the river. The hut is on a river flat surrounded by craggy peaks with slender ribbons of water cascading down the rocky faces. There were rare yellowheads or Mohua in the forest behind the hut and our warden, Linda, explained that numbers of these endangered birds had increased since predator control had started two years ago.
Day Two: Sunday 29th December
Another clear day. After a radio sched at 8.00am Linda put up the weather forecast which predicted rain. We set off at 9.00am climbing steadily from the hut in beech forest with a thick carpet of moss covering the ground and tree stumps. A little further on we found beech strawberries on the ground. These are an edible yellow golf ball sized honeycomb fungus that only grow on silver beech trees. We also saw the red flowers of mistletoe on the track but couldn't see up into the high trees to spot this rare parasitic plant.
We slogged up the hill with frequent snack stops. At one point we heard the characteristic screech of a Kea flying overhead. Suddenly the track popped out of the bush and onto an alpine saddle with mountain daisies and tarns. We lunched in the sunshine with two party members stripping off to the waist to sunbathe and dry their sweaty shirts. The track crossed the alpine vegetation on a boardwalk from which we spotted orchids and the occasional spiky Spaniard plant. At the descent point was a rock cairn which we added to for good luck. There was a fabulous view of Mt Christina so we all paused for photos. The path from here was steep and rocky with Lake McKellar visible below us through the twisted moss cloaked trees. On the flat we reached a track junction with Vivienne, John, Les and Bernhard going right to camp at the Greenstone Saddle and Katy, Peter and Pat going left to McKellar Hut. It turned out to be a new hut with flush toilets on the banks of the Greenstone river.
Day Three: Monday 30th December
The day dawned wet and the rain became heavier. The hut group decided to stay put until the rain cleared. We spent the time discussing sleep apnea (one bunk room had a snorer!) and the Fjordland monorail project. We lit the fire to prepare a warm hut for the out party. After lunch there was a break in the rain and they returned having been to Howden hut for morning tea. Their tents were laid out to dry under the generous verandahs. Viv and Les had been to Key Summit the previous afternoon and enjoyed clear views of the surrounding mountains. We spent the wet afternoon drinking cups of tea and looking at maps. Nightfall came at about 10.00pm and it was still raining.
Day Four: Tuesday 31st December
The clouds rolled back to reveal a fresh dusting of snow on the mountain tops. Our path initially led along a mountainside with lots of stream crossings but after about half an hour we came out of the trees into sunshine and took off our raincoats. We were in a massive U-shaped valley surrounded by mountains. Across the valley floor the Greenstone river wound it's way amongst red tussock and pasture. We saw and photographed a long tailed cuckoo in the beech trees and crossed several rock falls. At lunch we were visited by a curious robin who bravely hopped about on the logs next to us looking for insects. After lunch we negotiated the Steele Creek wire bridge and emerged from the forest again into a strong wind which was thankfully behind us. After another 2 hours along the braided river and through beech saplings we crossed a deep gorge to arrive at Greenstone hut. The usual sandfly greeting party were there to welcome us. We were lucky to get the last few bunks with this being the hut closest to the road end and thus more popular. New Year's Eve was spent playing cards and we retired to bed early. Another prodigious snorer left us mumbling amongst ourselves the following morning.
Day Five: Wednesday 1st January
Light drizzle accompanied us as we set off on the last section of the track. For the first hour the track wound through beech trees above the river then crossed Slip Flat creek and dropped down to cross the Greenstone on a large suspension bridge. Here we detoured to Lake Rere following Roger's recommendation. It turned out to be a lovely tranquil green lake fringed with beech trees. We stopped for lunch in a clearing and watched fish jumping out to catch flies in the rain. The track was wide from here and meandered through huge red beech trees. We saw an unusual saprophytic orchid which caused much excitement and photograph-taking by the team's two botanists. We soon reached Lake Wakatipu and completed the final leg of the walk over farmland to the car park and our waiting shuttle. Onward to Glenorchy and a hot shower!