Down sleeping bag review: 5 of the best sacks tested! New Zealand's magazine of the outdoors since 1991
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remote campsites
Escape to these hike-in camping spots
Bargain hunters beware
Why the trend to buy online will lead to more blisters and backache
Top 5 field repairs MacGyver-ise your pack by preparing for the most common
gear failures
Six heavenly days in Mt Aspiring Four city-slickers find their tramping feet in this magnificent park April 2013
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» Above the bushline in Hanmer Springs
» Hut fees – one man’s
vow to never pay again
» Quarantine Island
once housed the ill, now it’s a recreation reserve
» Survival skill: catching eels
contents April 2013
40 FEATURES
WAYPOINTS
retailers An eye opener for those who buy gear online
Home Bay, Hauraki Gulf Marine Reserve
40 An island for the sick
Get above the bushline in Hanmer Springs
13 Crunch time for independent
A 14ha island that once housed the sick and dying is now a recreation reserve in Otago Harbour
44 Talking with the forest
A 200km test of endurance in the Urewera bush teaches Mark Jones one vital lesson: the forest is on his side
16 Places
18 A perfect day 20 See more
6
22
13 66
Three places to see spectacular waterfalls
22 10 remote campsites
Escape the madding the crowd by heading to these walk-in campsites
Cover: Green Lake Hut near the magic Borland tops, p52. Photo: Dave Mitchell
22
55
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1
contents April 2013
34
60 56 REGULARS 4 Editorial
6 Last weekend
What did you get up to last weekend?
7 Walkshorts
News, gear and events
10 Gear News
Photographer Chris Thompson swapped an advertising job in Auckland for the good life in Wanaka Is the conservation estate for everyone, or only for an elite few?
33 Comment
Our columnist gets toey about hut fees and swears to never pay again
11 First look review
34 Off the Beaten Track
12 Five reasons to get
outside this month
12 Wilderness Word Enter our crossword competition to win great prizes 2 april 2013
From the concrete jungle of Auckland to the wild and remote corners of Mt Aspiring National Park
70 Out There
The taxonomy of concern
72 Hotshot
Night sky over Turk’s Head
THE MANUAL Trips, skills, health, gear
WILD TRIPS
50 Anawhata to Bethells
32 Comment
The latest in gear tech and innovation
Wilderness gets a first look at the latest gear to hit stores
62
30 People
Gear Review
5 of the best three-season down bags
tested
65
Buyer’s Guides The best baselayers, midlayers and softshells
Beach Tracks, Waitakere Ranges Regional Park
51 Koranga, Kahunui and Kahuiti
Streams, Waioeka Scenic Reserve
52 Mount Burns, Fiordland National Park
53 Burns Saddle Track, Dunedin 56 Wild Range
Big Ben Range, Torlesse-Korowai Tussockland Park
60 Skills
The five most common field repairs How to plan a route Survival skill: catch an eel
61 Cuisine
Snowberry and lemon sorbet
Your trips,
What did you get up to last weekend?
your pix
The wind was so strong on Stewart Island’s Bald Cone that Deb Hughes and Lois Cowan found it difficult to stand
Aidan Carson tramped to Hawdon Hut in Arthur’s Pass National Park
Lis Harris and Christy McKessar prussock raced in Barker Hut The Chapman family went on an overnight tramp to Kawakawa Bay
The Henry family climbed Mt Ngauruhoe
Meg Valentine got wet on a trip to Three Sisters in Taranaki
Casey Heyward and Sylvia Chinn played in the mud on the Clarence River
Stephanie Potter hiked the Hooker Valley for a view of Aoraki/Mt Cook
Andrea Coburn had a rest on the first day of the Rees-Dart Circuit
Send your pix Get your ‘Last weekend’ photo published here and you’ll receive an original Spork courtesy of www.ampro.co.nz. Head to www.wildernessmag.co.nz – search ‘last weekend’ – for full submission criteria.
6 april 2013
Adam Roys found a great spot on the Coromandel’s Karaka Track to view Table Mountain
Wendy Krippner stopped for a mocha and peanut slab on a tramp to Kaweka J
Crunch time for
independent retailers
The economic downturn has hit independent outdoor retailers hard while consumers have more choice than ever. By Alistair Hall
Ben Sinclair from Living Simply says expert advice on things like boot fitting will become rare if people continue to buy online rather than in stores
www.wildernessmag.co.nz
13
Waypoints
Campsites away from
t d m o
the madding crowd Want to avoid the crowds on your next camping trip? Wilderness has researched remote campsites that can be accessed only by foot or boat. Spread across New Zealand, these 10 DOC campsites are as little as a five-minute walk or in some cases a day’s kayak into the wilderness. All offer a free, or near-free, option for those who wish to ditch the car and go camping under their own steam.
22 april 2013
Waitahora Lagoon is a few minute’s walk from Pandora Campsite
Pandora, Te Paki Coastal Track, Northland
Just around the corner from Kapowairua (Spirits Bay) and the outstanding Waitahora Lagoon, Pandora campsite on the Te Paki Coastal Track is a stunning spot for an overnight getaway. The site, which has minimal facilities but is a good spot for fishing and swimming, is about an hour’s walk along a well-formed track. DOC’s Kaitaia recreation manager Phil Karanga says Pandora “is a beautiful spot on the northern coast, nestled in regenerating coastal forest with huge, ancient pohutukawa. It has a sheltered beach and stream, and is a peaceful place to relax”. The Te Paki Coastal Track (previously known as the Cape Reinga Coastal Track) is a 3-4 day tramp along northern and western coastlines. It traverses a variety of landforms including giant sand dunes, wetlands and coastal forest as well as areas of historic interest. Getting there Follow signposts for Cape Reinga. Near the Cape, a car park and signage is on the righthand side of the road Time 1hr from Pandora car park Facilities Rainwater tap, toilets, 30 tent sites Fee Free Map AT24
2
Twilight, Te Paki Coastal Track, Northland
This is a new site about an hour’s walk from the Twilight/Te Werahi car park and is set between Twilight and Te Werahi beaches. It’s a sheltered spot flanked by native trees from where you can explore long sweeping west coast beaches, towering dunes and wetlands. The site is on a ridge and, at dusk, you can watch – from the appropriately named Twilight – as the sun sinks into a seemingly unending ocean. “It’s a good spot for diving and fishing, although, typically for a west coast beach, the sea can be turbulent and unpredictable at times,” say DOC’s Phil Karanga.
Dunnies with a view – Twilight Beach has a new campsite
Getting there Follow signposts for Cape Reinga. Close to the Cape, a car park and signage is on the left-hand side of the road. A marked track crosses farm and scrubland to the campsite Time 1hr from the Twilight/Te Werahi car park Facilities 25 tent sites, rainwater tap, toilets Fee Free Map AT24
Waikahoa Bay campsite
3
Waikahoa Bay, Mimiwhangata Coastal Park, Whangarei
You’ll be at this secluded bay, fringed with pohutukawa, before you realise it. There are views from surrounding hilltops over a diverse coastline and fragments of coastal forest and wetlands support rare species including kiwi, kaka, wood pigeons, brown teal, snails and plants. You can go diving, snorkelling, kayaking, fishing, surfing, walking, or just take it easy and relax. “Northland's warm climate makes Waikahoa Bay an excellent option for a late summer holiday,” says park manager Chris Moretti. “There is a steep five-minute walk over the hill to a small number of tent sites, so it’s never overcrowded.” Getting there The site is about 48km from Whangarei. Turn off SH1 onto Russell Road. At Helena Bay turn south onto Webb Road, continue to the Mimiwhangata Coastal Park turn off. From Teal Bay the road is gravel, narrow and winding and there is no campervan access Time 5min Facilities 35 tent sites, tap water, toilets, cold showers Fee Adults $10; children (5-17 years) $5
Crosbies Hut and campsite
Map AW30B Note Mimiwhangata Coastal Park is a working farm. The campsite is open from November 1 to May 31 and books out quickly over December to the end of January.
Baynes describes the campsite, which offers panoramic views of the Coromandel main range – north towards Maumaupaki and Mercury Bay and from the Firth of Thames in the west to Table Mountain and the upper Kauaeranga Valley in the east. The lights of Whitianga are visible at night.
Crosbies Hut, Coromandel Forest Park
Getting there The site is approximately 12km north-east of Thames. It can be accessed from a number of tracks, with two access points from Thames: Waiotahi and Karaka Time 4-6hr Facilities Five tent sites near the hut (maximum of 15 people) Fee Adults $5; Chrildren (5-17 years) $2.50 Map BB35
4
The remote Crosbies campsite and hut are at an old farming settlement established in 1880 by Thomas Hunter Crosbie. Back then access was by foot, horseback or horsedrawn sledge. Now it’s a 4-6hr tramp along the Memorial Loop Track. “An accessible way to spend time somewhere inaccessible,” is how DOC ranger Bridget
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Ray Salisbury / Lighthouse Creative
A hailstorm brews over Crucible Lake
34 april 2013
Summer
in Siberia
Ray Salisbury takes four friends from Auckland and plunges them deep into the remote reaches of Mt Aspiring National Park
www.wildernessmag.co.nz
35
Kelly Whitney-Spire
An island for the sick in Otago Harbour
40 april 2013
The author walks with Quarantine Island’s keepers through the farmlet
caption
There was a time when before entering Otago Harbour ships had to be checked for disease-carrying passengers. If any were found, the ship was quarantined at this 14ha island. By Sarah Bond www.wildernessmag.co.nz
41
Night Sky over Turk’s Head This shot was taken at 9.53pm on Turk's Head, near Mt Ionia, looking towards Arawhata Saddle and the mountains at the head of the Dart Glacier. Shooting with the aperture wide open and at a high ISO has allowed the camera's sensor to draw a lot of light from the sky, revealing infinite stars and a sense of depth. A relatively short shutter speed of 30 seconds and a very wide focal length has prevented star trails and frozen the stars in place. Settings: Canon EOS 5DMKII, ISO 1000, f/2.8, 30sec. -Mark Watson
Submit your hotshots to editor@lifestylepublishing.co.nz
72 april 2013
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We’ve shaved an entire line of footwear down to 280 g. each, but kept Introducing the protection that made us famous. It’s addition by subtraction. So you can boldly jump, scramble and dive into summer. LIghTWeIghT proTecTIon for brave neW ToeS. 74 april 2013
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