May 2013 preview

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walks Top 5

winter tramping destinations

Snowshoeing the Kepler Track Great Walk Alpine pack review 4 of the best put through their paces

may 2013

www.wildernessmag.co.nz NZ $8.95 Aust $8.95 incl GST

“An incredible insult ” Axed DOC workers speak out

» How to take a compass bearing » Tiritiri Matangi Island

Sanctuary under threat

» Snow camping basics » A hike over Fiordland’s Dore Pass

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contents

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May 2013 FEATURES 28 Voices from the cold

Axed DOC staff speak out against cuts and the damage they will do

32 Wild Snow

The Wilderness guide to getting above the bushline this winter

34 Top five winter tramping destinations 40 Snow camping basics for a more comfortable night’s sleep

41 Snowshoeing how to 42 The Kepler in winter – snowshoeing

this Great Walk

46 Gear to help you make the most of

42

the snow

WAYPOINTS 16 Places

Chancellor Hut, Westland National Park

18 See more

Three places to see New Zealand fur seals

20 Top 3

Three summits to watch the sunrise from

20 www.wildernessmag.co.nz

1

Your trips, your pix

What did you get up to last weekend?

Jo Macgregor enjoyed the sunset from Brewster Hut

Franco Sessa summited Mount Aylmer (2700m) with ‘T’ and Tinny (Alpine Guide)

Kintilla du Boucher Ryan walked Scotts Saddle Track in Canterbury

Bryana Perreaux and Stephanie Potter ‘found’ Canadian Moose on Key Summit, Fiordland

Tim and Robert walked the Inland Pack Track

Liam and Angus Stevens visited Blue Lake in Nelson Lakes National Park

Amy Rossiter-Stead crossed the Waiorongomai River on her way to the hut in the Rimutakas

Alex Logan spent four days in Tongariro National Park with his mum Clare

Rozana Lee headed to the Pinnacles on Coromandel Peninsula after a night at the nearby hut

Send your

pix

Get your ‘Las t weekend’ photo publishe d here and you’ll rece ive an original Spork courtesy of www.ampr o.co.nz.

Head to www.wilderne ssmag.co.nz – se ‘last weekend ’ – for full subm arch ission criteria .

Dan Dollimore and kids Stella and Max camped at Trounson Kauri Park near Dargaville

8 may 2013

12-week-old Isabella was introduced to the outdoors by her dad Tim Porter

Davian Marchant hiked the Tongariro Crossing

waypoints

Changes at Chancellor Chancellor Hut, Westland Tai Poutini National Park moderate

16 may 2013

O

n a tussock shelf high above the Fox Glacier, Chancellor Hut shares its perch with keas and chamois.

Out front there is a comfortable view across a sloping tussock bench, a few meters from the back wall there is a vertical 300m drop into the chaos of the upper icefall.

That the hut has survived 80-plus years of the worst weather and has avoided the hazards of avalanches and rock slides to become New Zealand’s oldest alpine hut still on its original site, is thanks to the experience and judgement the legendary Peter Graham showed when he selected the site in 1930.

There is nowhere else like it in the world.

Above the hut you can see the highest peaks in the Southern Alps while below the grumbles and crashes of the Fox Glacier seracs can be

heard. Far below, the glacier melt feeds the thin silver streams of the Fox River flowing through green rainforest and when the sun sets you can make out the lines of breakers on Gillespies Beach.

Travel up the Fox Glacier has often been tricky, involving a scramble around ice pinnacles, avoiding the most dangerous of the unstable moraines, and crossing between the icefalls at Victoria Flat to reach a steep but pleasant track through a belt of subalpine scrub that leads to the hut. For climbers

heading for the snowfields and peaks at the head of the tussock shelf, the grass and scree soon give way to hard white ice, deep crevasses and a long upwards slog to the névé.

Many people use helicopter services to get a quick lift to Victoria Flat or to the tiny landing pad at the hut itself.

While Chancellor has traditionally been a staging post for parties heading for alpine summits and a refuge for those escaping storms, these days it is as likely to be visited by people who wish to

pause a while to appreciate the historical ambience and enjoy the stunning location.

- Hugh van Noorden

Wild file Access Via helicopter from Fox Glacier or with appropriate glacier travel experience south of the township at the end of the road heading up Fox River Grade Moderate-hard Time Car park to hut, 5hr (Helicopter: 5min) Map BX15

www.wildernessmag.co.nz

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T o p 5

winter

tramping destinations

Mark Watson

Descending French Ridge in fresh snow

32 may 2013

Winter’s a special time to be in the mountains; there's fewer people around, frost tickles the plants, the landscape becomes a pillowy white and the light takes on a special quality. Shorter days guarantee more sleeping time and if you’re really lucky you’ll cop a nice long fine spell.

Some of my more memorable trips into the ranges and volcanoes have been in winter. Although they’re not always memorable for the best reasons; I’ve been buried in my tent in the Remarkables and spent six hours wading out in thigh-deep snow – incredibly hard work even with snow shoes. Then there’s the frozen boots, the icy fingers and the added weight of winter survival kit. But these experiences are tempered by the countless stunning sunrises and sunsets and the solitude that comes with having a whole range to yourself in the dead of winter.

Following are some favourite winter tramping destinations, with some trip suggestions ranging from one to seven days.

- Mark Watson

www.wildernessmag.co.nz

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Snowshoeing the Kepler Shaun Barnett tackles this Fiordland Great Walk in winter

42 may 2013

Tramping the Kepler in winter is a unique way to experience this Great Walk

T

here’s mist in the forest, but the winter sun makes a valiant effort to pierce the gloom. During the cold months, cloud often covers Lake Te Anau like a blanket, with only the tops above in the naked sunshine.

We’re hoping this is the case today, as six of us trudge up the well-formed Kepler Track towards Luxmore Hut. Southerners David Barnes and Barry Flamanck are hosting four northerners: John Rhodes, Jason Roxburgh, Darryn Pegram and me.

Last time I was on the track, back in February 1989, it was only a year or so old, and still bore the raw marks of recent construction.

Almost a quarter of a century on, fern and moss soften the edges of the track, which is now well bedded into the landscape.

David, a stalwart of the Otago Tramping and Mountaineering Club, is a veteran of several winter Kepler tramps and has tempted us south with the idea of snowshoeing the Great Walk. Although the tops can pose an avalanche risk, we’re reasonably confident that conditions have settled after the most recent snowfall. There’s no evidence of sliding in the surrounding mountains. www.wildernessmag.co.nz

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All the dirt that’s fit to print

to run an From never run a trail to 75km in six months

Winter shoes and lightweight jackets

Don’t be sad

Energy gels Do we really need

Fact: running cures the winter blues

these stomachchurning pick-me-ups?

+ Auckland, Queenstown, Waikato and the West Coast in Autumn/winter / 2013