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Into thin air
78 PEOPLE LOST in NZ’s backcountry
Guided trails Discover a whole new experience by going guided
OPINION
Why the Milford tunnel and monorail projects MUST BE STOPPED
Peak bagging
In some countries it’s a sport, in New Zealand it’s another reason to get outside
Mountain film festival Best films to see in Wanaka
WIN! Kathmandu Alopex jackets worth $899! JUNE 2012
www.wildernessmag.co.nz NZ $8.95 Aust$8.95 INCL GST
Plus Spectacular Fiordland views from Key Summit » Avalanche awareness and safety » Arthur’s Pass NP’s Polar Range mapped in 3D » Trips in Auckland,
Queenstown, Nelson and the Tararuas 1 www.wildernessmag.co.nz
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contents JUNE 2012
FEATURES 24 Best of the fest
The must-see films at this year’s New Zealand Mountain Film Festival
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32 Kiwi trampers go guided
Hitting the trail with a guide isn’t just for overseas visitors – Kiwis are also enjoying the benefits and experience
37 Into thin air Since the 1970s nearly 80 people have vanished while tramping. Wilderness investigates what could have happened to some and and talks to searchers who have unfinished business in the hills 42 Peak bagging How drawing up a list of peaks to climb motivates people to get outside more often
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WAYPOINTS
14 Places Key Summit, Fiordland National Park 16 Home for the night
Lake Angelus Hut, Nelson Lakes National Park
18 A perfect day
Hit the trails around Lake Hawea
20 See more Three places to walk amongst stunning puriri trees 22 Top 3 glacier hikes Strap on your crampons and hike these three glaciers
42 53 Subscribe to win
Subscribe or resubscribe in the month of June to go in the draw to win one of two Kathmandu Alopex Jackets worth $899.98! www.wildernessmag.co.nz
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contents JUNE 2012
REGULARS
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4 Editorial
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5 Pigeon Post
Your letters to Wilderness
6 The big picture
Dark side of the mountain
8 Last weekend
What did you get up to last weekend? Wilderness readers share their photos
9 Walkshorts News and events
13 Five reasons to get outside this month 13 Wilderness Word
Enter our crossword competition to win great prizes
23 Opinion
Why the Milford tunnel and gondola projects are bad for recreation and the environment
26 Off the Beaten Track A tramp into the Unknown rekindles memories from the past 70 Out There
A virtual backcountry world
80 Hotshot
Aloof on the Torlesse Range
63 Wild Buyer’s Guide 63 Insulated jackets
and fleeces 67 Ice axes and crampons
THE MANUAL Trips, skills, health, gear WILD TRIPS
48 Blue Range Hut, Tararua Forest Park 49 Incline Track, Waitakere Ranges
Regional Park 50 Wye Creek, Remarkables Conservation Area 52 Mt Fell Hut, Mt Richmond Forest Park
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54 WILD RANGE
Polar Range, Arthur’s Pass National Park
58 WILD REVIEW
The North Face’s latest lightweight hiker and MSR’s newest two-man tent
59 Wild skills 59 Top winter tips and advice 60 Avalanche awareness Cover: Guide Rob Franklin shares secret spots on the Wakaremoana Great Walk. Photo: Chris McLennan
2 JUNE 2012
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What did you get up to last weekend?
Terry Crippen and Angela Minto had an enjoyable scramble up the East Ridge of Mt Egmont/Taranaki
Kathy Warburton had a magical day on the Lammerlaw Range with friends. “The views were breathtaking!,” she says
Tim Mora and his mates Stewart Nimmo (left) and Henk Stengs (right) explored Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park’s Tasman Glacier terminal lake and Mueller Hut
Richard Ellis took two friends from Denmark on what looks to be a wet and windy tramp to Rangiwahia Hut in the Ruahines
this Hughes who took nal Park was John tio Na ok er Co elt Mt i Sh Also in Aorak ridge above Ball an Glacier from the photo of the Tasm
Luke van Nierop climbed Avalanche Peak in Arther's Pass National Park. “Truly breathtaking,” says Luke
SEND YOUR PIX
Brian Strid and Jacqueline Ison went for a walk at Whatipu, in Auckland. “Although wet feet had been mentioned as a possibility, Jacqueline was not expecting to be up to her neck in a swamp,” says Brian.
8 JUNE 2012
Brian Strid and Jacqueline Ison went for a walk at Whatipu, in Auckland. “Although wet feet had been mentioned as a possibility, Jacqueline was not expecting to be up to her in tramping a swamp,” Adam and Tina Roys spent fiveneck hours in the says Brian. Waitakere Ranges, including down Wainamu and Waiti streams
Send us photos showing what you did last weekend and you’ll be in with a chance to win neat outdoor prizes. This month, Terry Crippen wins a MapToaster Mobile/NZ plus MapToaster Topo/NZ bundle worth $299 from www. maptoaster.co.nz. Head to www.wildernessmag.co.nz – search ‘last weekend’ – for full submission criteria.
DOC ALIGNS CAMPSITE AND GREAT WALK HUT FEES
T
SAVING
RUAHINE HUTS
The new pricing from July 1 Campsites – per adult, per night Tier 1 (Serviced campsites) $15 Tier 2 (Scenic Campsites) $10 Tier 3 (Standard Campsites) $6 DOC’s current serviced campsite fees range from $4 to $19 dollars depending on location. Great Walks Huts – per adult, per night Tier 1 (includes Milford, Routeburn and Kepler Tracks): $54 – up $2.90. Tier 2 (includes the five mid-range Great Walks: Abel Tasman Coast Track, Heaphy Track, Tongariro Northern Circuit, Whanganui Journey, Lake Waikaremoana Track): $32 – costs currently range from $30.60-$35.70. Tier 3 (includes the Rakiura Track): $22 – up $1.60.
JANET WILSON
he Department of Conservation is set to introduce a new threetiered pricing system for huts on the Great Walks network and paid campsites throughout the country. Current fees for paid campsites and Great Walks huts vary around the country. The new system, which comes into effect on July 1, will set uniform charges to make it simpler for users to plan outdoor trips and book accommodation. DOC Commercial Business Unit (CBU) Director David Wilks said in a statement that the inconsistency of fees under the current system means people pay different prices in different parts of the country for the same service. “DOC faces growing costs to maintain our hut and campground network and, instead of simply putting fees up by a set amount, we’ve taken the opportunity to align our prices nationally in a much simpler system,” Wilks said. “By doing this we aim to give customers consistency and confidence when booking accommodation – making it easier to plan their trips to the great outdoors.” Wilks added the impact on existing Great Walk and campsite charges will vary around the country, with some fees rising by a couple of dollars a night and others falling. “We want a simple and affordable system – for example we think a maximum charge of $15 a night for an adult at a serviced campground is still reasonable.” The changes affect only those fees that DOC already charges at its standard and serviced camp grounds and the high standard Great Walk huts.
A
tramping club has come up with a unique way to help save backcountry huts which could face years of little or no maintenance and eventual removal due to a lack of visitors. The Palmerston North Tramping and Mountaineering Club has started a hut bagging challenge with the aim of getting club members to visit as many of the Ruahine Forest Park huts as possible in the space of one year. Conceived by member Janet Wilson, the challenge has resulted in many club members dusting off their boot and heading to seldom-visited huts. Club member Terry Crippen said: “Some members have visited 20 or more [huts] already this year.” He added: “Many of the huts in the Ruahines and throughout New Zealand are under threat as a result of the Department of Conservation’s policy of no maintenance and eventual removal if hut book entries are low. Most of these huts
A windy day at Toka Biv, a seldom visited ex-NZFS bivvy
are New Zealand Forest Service huts and are part of our backcountry heritage. DOC is only the manager of them on our behalf and needs to adopt a quite different approach – the huts are ours not theirs.” In the battle to save huts from dilapidation and removal, the PNTMC has already taken over the maintenance of Ngamoko and Mid Pohangina huts and will co-manage Rangi Hut with DOC. “I would would encourage all trampers to continue to make good use of the network of huts and always fill in the hut books on each visit,” said Crippen.
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waypoints
Home for the night
LAKE ANGELUS HUT, NELSON LAKES NATIONAL PARK
16 JUNE 2012
It's easy to see why Lake Angelus Hut is one of the most popular tramping destinations in the South Island. The relative proximity to a road end, spectacular approach and amazing setting are all real advantages for a weekend mission. We, however, had the place to ourselves. Nestled in a glacial bowl and surrounded by high peaks, this location represented one
of the main reasons we came to New Zealand and Nelson in particular. Just 90-minutes’ drive and five hours tramping and scrambling delivered us into a comfortable wilderness. The walk along Robert Ridge is a great option for a relatively easy first day – at least after the initial steep Pinchgut climb from the road-end has been completed. After a perfect, frosty day on
the ridge, we descended to the partially frozen lake just in time to watch the sun set behind the walls of the cirque and I dashed around to the far side of the lake to photograph the hut. A quick wood chopping exertion to prepare for the expected hard frost was all it took to make our home for the night complete and our recently purchased hut passes worth every cent.
From the hut, there is a multitude of options to complete a weekend trip. Retrace your steps to enjoy the views in the other direction, drop to the Speargrass Track just to the north and west which takes you gently back to the car park or, as we did, descend steeply down the Cascade Track for a jaunt along the length of Lake Rotoiti. - Dave Chadwick
WILD FILE Access From the Nelson Lakes National Park visitor centre, follow the road west along the northern shore of Lake Rotiti, eventually climbing up to the Mt Robert Car Park. Grade Moderate Map BS24 Time 4-6hr
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Topping out
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times 42 JUNE 2012
MARCUS BAI
PEOPLE COLLECT ALL SORTS OF THINGS, SO WHY NOT PEAKS? AND AS EDITH LEIGH DISCOVERS, PEAK BAGGING IS A GREAT WAY TO GET OUTDOORS AND SEE THE COUNTRY
Black clouds add to the dramatic view from Urchin in the Kaimanawa Ranges, which is a very nice peak to bag, says Jamie Bai www.wildernessmag.co.nz
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R A N G E
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Kathmandu Ultralight $699.98 800 loft goose down fill, Pertex Quantum shell fabric, zipped pockets, internal pocket with cord port and guide, low profile min-baffle construction, elasticated cuffs, adjustable hem. Weight 340g.
Marmot Shadow $599 650 goose down fill power, MemBrain 2L waterproof/breathable fabric, reinforced shoulders and sleeves, zip-off storm hood, PitZips, zip-off powder skirt, chest pocket, waist pass pocket, mesh goggle pocket. Weight 1185g.
Patagonia Ultralight Down Hoody $599 800-fill-power goose down, low-profile hood, Deluge DWR finish, two handwarmer pockets, one chest pocket, drawcord hem, self-fabric stuff sack. Weight 264g (m); 215g (w).
The North Face Women’s Thunder $499.95 800 fill down insulation, alpine fit, two hand stuff sack pockets, elastic-bound cuffs, harness and pack-compatible. Weight 334g
Mountain Equipment Vega $599 750+ fill power 93/7 Hungarian goose down, Drilite Loft II outer fabric, alpine cut with longer body length, stitch-through construction, adjustable helmet compatible hood, two-way water-resistant front zip, two zipped hand warmer pockets, adjustable cuffs and hem. Weight 630g.
Patagonia Ultralight Down Jacket $549 800-fill-power goose down, nylon shell, Deluge DWR, two handwarmer pockets, one chest pocket, drawcord hem, self-fabric stuff sack. Weight 235g (m); 215g (w).
Swazi Wooloft Crofter Jacket $479.99 Aegis 2L rip-stop outer fabric with DWR finish, two inner and two outer pockets, microfleece lined collar and pockets, polarfleece cuff. Weight 900g.
Macpac Nova $449.95, 800 loft goose down, 20D nylon shell with DWR treatment, narrow baffle construction, front zip with syntheticfill draft-tube, zippered pockets double as stuff sack, Lycra-bound cuffs. Weight 380g (m); 320g (w).
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Marmot Ama Dablam $449
The North Face Argento $449.95 700-fill down insulated jacket with nylon ripstop exterior, DWR finish, attached, insulated hood, Napoleon chest pocket, two hand pockets, hem cinch-cord. Weight 770g.
Mountain Equipment Lightline $399 675+ fill power 90/10 down, water resistant outer, stitch through construction, two-way front zip, stud off hood with wired visor, two zipped hand warmer pockets, internal chest pocket, fleece-lined neck collar, Drilite dripstrip, half elasticated cuffs with touch and close adjustment. Weight 770g.
800 fill power goose down, adjustable down-filled hood, zippered sleeve pocket, inside stuff zip sack, zippered handwarmer pockets. Weight 541g (m); 485g (w).
Swazi Wooloft Women’s Dash Jacket $399.99 Wooloft insulation, Aegis 2L rip-stop fabric with DWR finish, one inner pocket, two outer pockets, microfleece lined collar and pockets, female-specific cut. Weight 700g.
Patagonia Down Sweater $399 800-fill-power goose down, 100% recycled polyester shell, Deluge DWR finish, two handwarmer pockets, stretch-mesh interior pocket doubles as stuff sack, carbiner clip-in loop. Weight 343g (m); 320g (w).
Columbia Reach the Peak $349.95 700 fill down insulation, OmniHeat thermal reflective insulation, OmniShield advanced repellency, three-point interchange system, comfort cuffs with thumb holes. Weight N/A.
Vigilante Women’s Transition Puff $349.95 500 fill power down, mini ripstop nylon down proof fabric, insulated adjustable snap off hood, removable faux fur, spandex sleeve cuff, hand warmer pockets, stuff sack included. Weight N/A.
Columbia Frost on Down Jacket $299.95 Female-specific jacket with 700 fill down insulation, OmniHeat thermal reflective insulation, underarm venting, OmniShield advanced repellency, zip-in and three-point interchange system, comfort cuffs with thumb holes, drop tail. Weight N/A.
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Aloof
I saw a great opportunity to try and capture the moment and the mood of a recent training trip for a transalpine journey. We found ourselves climbing high up an unnamed ridge in the Torlesse Range with clouds and doubt swirling all around. Shot on a Canon 7D, ISO 100, 1/640, F13. - Troy Mattingley
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