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pining for Fiordland
First off: I hope all of my Aussie friends out there and their families are OK! I live in a fire-prone part of the US, that had severe wildfires in 2002, so my sympathies and hopes are with you all. *hugs you*
Getting to the Caples track involved taking a bus from Queenstown to Glenorchy (over a gorgeous road, along the lake, with views to glaciated Mt. Earnslaw which, the bus driver informed us, was used for the scene in That Movie in which Boromir attempts to take the Ring the first time; basically, That Movie was filmed everywhere here and every single scenic tour company touts their visits to filming sites and tries to make the most of the connection), then a transfer to a second bus which took us to the wharf, where we took a water taxi (named Isis! Hee!) to Greenstone Wharf, whereupon we boarded a third bus for the short drive to the actual trailhead. The hike itself was along a valley which would have been quite lovely were it not for the grazing sheep and cattle, and stinky evidence of their passage. Then our camp - again, in a scenic place - was pretty much ruined by the seventy billion sandflies. Seriously, the netting of our tent was black with them.
And then we had clouds and drizzle for the difficult climb up to McKellar Saddle (named for the NZ explorer, not the Canadian actor :-) which was difficult mostly because it was so steep and wet that all the dirt had washed away from the trail, and it was hand-over-hand up tree roots much of the way. Ook. Then of course because of the weather we could see nothing from the saddle, and down to the lake on the other side was a repeat of the way up but harder on the knees, and then because of the forecast deluge we opted to go to McKellar hut to camp rather than setting up the tent. (Also, because we feared the sandflies.)
Day three was not too wet but again, the low clouds obscured the view as we hiked the first stretch of the Routeburn, to the campground at Lake McKenzie, where we got just enough sun to go for a cleansing swim before camping on one of the the astroturf'ed pads set out for campers. (Actually, it was the nicest Official Tramping Campsites we have been in.) Day four was what should have been the most spectacular day of the tramp, but again, stupid low cloud. Every so often a tiny hole would clear and we would see glimpses of high peaks and glaciers, but only glimpses. Honestly, if this is the best scenery in NZ, I'd put Colorado's peaks up against it any day. I mean, at least you can see the Colorado scenery. Plus, you don't have to book in advance, so you can actually time your trip for good weather. /grumpy
We stayed at the Routeburn Falls hut the last night, which cost as much as a pricy hostel. (Other than a terrific view of the valley, misty with rain.) Then we hiked out in the drizzle.
Now we are in Te Anu, where it is not rainy but it's rather chilly. We have a cruise across Lake Te Anu to the glow-worm caves booked for this afternoon, and tomorrow across Lake Manapouri to see the underground power station. Then we start the Kepler hike, and we are crossing our fingers for good weather, particularly on day 2 which is the above-treeline portion where the views (and the climb of Mt. Luxmore) are. When we return, we have our next splurge booked - since we saved the money by not heli-hiking, we are doing an overnight Milford Sound cruise. I expect it will rain for the entire week. :-(
ETA: Pictures from Queenstown and Te Anau areas at Flickr
ETA2: 18 photos from the Caples and Routeburn hike
Getting to the Caples track involved taking a bus from Queenstown to Glenorchy (over a gorgeous road, along the lake, with views to glaciated Mt. Earnslaw which, the bus driver informed us, was used for the scene in That Movie in which Boromir attempts to take the Ring the first time; basically, That Movie was filmed everywhere here and every single scenic tour company touts their visits to filming sites and tries to make the most of the connection), then a transfer to a second bus which took us to the wharf, where we took a water taxi (named Isis! Hee!) to Greenstone Wharf, whereupon we boarded a third bus for the short drive to the actual trailhead. The hike itself was along a valley which would have been quite lovely were it not for the grazing sheep and cattle, and stinky evidence of their passage. Then our camp - again, in a scenic place - was pretty much ruined by the seventy billion sandflies. Seriously, the netting of our tent was black with them.
And then we had clouds and drizzle for the difficult climb up to McKellar Saddle (named for the NZ explorer, not the Canadian actor :-) which was difficult mostly because it was so steep and wet that all the dirt had washed away from the trail, and it was hand-over-hand up tree roots much of the way. Ook. Then of course because of the weather we could see nothing from the saddle, and down to the lake on the other side was a repeat of the way up but harder on the knees, and then because of the forecast deluge we opted to go to McKellar hut to camp rather than setting up the tent. (Also, because we feared the sandflies.)
Day three was not too wet but again, the low clouds obscured the view as we hiked the first stretch of the Routeburn, to the campground at Lake McKenzie, where we got just enough sun to go for a cleansing swim before camping on one of the the astroturf'ed pads set out for campers. (Actually, it was the nicest Official Tramping Campsites we have been in.) Day four was what should have been the most spectacular day of the tramp, but again, stupid low cloud. Every so often a tiny hole would clear and we would see glimpses of high peaks and glaciers, but only glimpses. Honestly, if this is the best scenery in NZ, I'd put Colorado's peaks up against it any day. I mean, at least you can see the Colorado scenery. Plus, you don't have to book in advance, so you can actually time your trip for good weather. /grumpy
We stayed at the Routeburn Falls hut the last night, which cost as much as a pricy hostel. (Other than a terrific view of the valley, misty with rain.) Then we hiked out in the drizzle.
Now we are in Te Anu, where it is not rainy but it's rather chilly. We have a cruise across Lake Te Anu to the glow-worm caves booked for this afternoon, and tomorrow across Lake Manapouri to see the underground power station. Then we start the Kepler hike, and we are crossing our fingers for good weather, particularly on day 2 which is the above-treeline portion where the views (and the climb of Mt. Luxmore) are. When we return, we have our next splurge booked - since we saved the money by not heli-hiking, we are doing an overnight Milford Sound cruise. I expect it will rain for the entire week. :-(
ETA: Pictures from Queenstown and Te Anau areas at Flickr
ETA2: 18 photos from the Caples and Routeburn hike
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I'd like to see it without the clouds for comparison.
Good Luck!
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Too early to tell yet if we'll have nice weather for ours, but we are cautiously optimistic for our Kepler Track hike.
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We're getting quite a drenching here in California right now.
I had to pull out the rain coat I bought for my NZ trip.
Rain and black flies ... ah the memories! :-)