Bike, Hike and Fly L’Ar By Dan Clearwater
First published in the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ’s www.wilderlife.nz blog
O
nly one hour from French Ridge Hut to Raspberry Creek?... It wasn’t on foot, but didn’t involve any engines or motors...
There’s quite a logistical delight in combining multiple backcountry disciplines into one trip. Staring at a gorgeous weather forecast, whilst staring at French Ridge on the map had me thinking about a trip I’d wanted to do for a while; to paraglide down from the hut. My buddy Richard was also staring at the forecast, but he was focusing instead on the expanse between Raspberry Creek and Aspiring Hut. “Lets ride our bikes from the car park to the park boundary” he says. I raise my eyebrows and ponder the wisdom of such a move: “With a 25kg overnight paragliding pack?” There are a number of well known ‘slogs’ in tramping lore; sections of walking which aren’t especially enticing, but are mandatory in order to get to a place where there are more route options.
The Waimakariri from the SH73 bridge to Carrington Hut is well known to Cantabrians, and the West Matukituki from Raspberry Creek to Aspiring is perhaps an equivalent in Otago. The difference in the ‘Matuki though, is that it’s possible (and permissible) to cycle to the park boundary, along the 4WD tracks of Aspiring Station. But with no meaningful method of distributing that 25kgs between our backs and our bikes, it was going to be a slog none the less. I really love it when tourists gawp and stare at you. Straddling our steeds at the Raspberry Creek car park with ridiculously large packs and skiing helmets, we definitely got a few looks. Where 99% of the people were off to snap selfies in front of the Rob Roy Glacier, we
Below; Selfies before starting
10 A i r b o r n
Photo; Richard Sidey
Dan launching
Below; Cycling West Matukituki were obviously off to do something a little less ordinary. The smug look on my face disappeared very quickly, and I was glad those same tourists weren’t around to see me suffer. Despite dual
Time to stash the bikes.
Photo; Richard Sidey
Photo; Richard Sidey
suspension, the rough track was inflicting a sadistic toll on my barely padded nether-regions. Mostly in granny gear, we ground our way slowly up-valley and up until this moment, I had conveniently forgot
Photo; Richard Sidey
