There was one other volunteer besides myself and we were to spend two stints of four nights, five days in each of the Travers and Sabine valleys with one day off between valleys. The morning of 22nd December was an induction session where we were given our badges, keys, information on protecting the DOC estate, hut cleaning instructions and training to use VHF radios (which, with the spare battery feel like an extra 2 kgs to carry). The radio schedules were twice daily while on the track with the weather updates given each morning.
After a substantial lunch, we set off – Simon to the Mt Robert Car Park and then tramping to Speargrass Hut and me, a walk around Lake Rotoiti to Lakehead Hut.
Pre Christmas, neither valley had large numbers of trampers although Christmas night at Mt Travers Hut I had a muster of 22. The really wet weather held off until the last day when I arrived at Coldwater Hut wet through from the long grass on the flats.
Our rest day and when I dropped off my radio at the DOC centre for a battery recharge, I was greatly surprised to learn that the only way out of St Arnaud by road was back to Nelson due to the stormy weather. It was difficult to believe as the weather in St Arnaud hadn’t been severe.
The next day I was taken to Mt Robert Car Park in fine weather and Jake, the DOC officer, commented as we drove over the bridge how high the water was in the Buller River. On my way to Speargrass Hut I met trampers who had come down the Sabine Valley in atrocious conditions – reports of the track wash outs and in places no track just a river of water. By the time I was further up the valley conditions had settled down but there were two sections of track which had completely disappeared. It was obvious that the river level had been running between one and two metres higher than normal.
Post Christmas, there were trampers out in numbers – most well equipped but some taking some foolish risks. It was so pleasing to see so many families out on the track. The youngest was a seven year old girl who, with her mother, had walked from Angelus Hut to Sabine Hut.
As for my Hut Warden experience, I thoroughly enjoyed it (despite the toilet cleaning and Hut Ticket collecting duties) - meeting trampers, assisting them in whatever way I could at the same time being mindful of their safety. In some Huts I didn’t have my own bunk room so it was a great opportunity to chat with some very interesting people.