Mt Oxford 25th August 2002

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp No. 7

Mt Oxford 25th August 2002

This wasn't the first time I had been up Mt Oxford. I had done it earlier as part of a community walking day someone organised and it certainly wasn't the last trip up my nearest mountain. I did this trip solo and left coopers creek car park at 8:10am on a clear but brisk morning. Oxford is a good climb through regenerating Beech and then up an exposed ridge, with a height gain of about 900m. The recommended time to the summit is 4 hours but I managed it in 2 and 1/2 hours, which is pretty bloody good going considering there was still a fair amount of snow on the upper reaches of the mountain. I followed some animal tracks in the snow for some distance up hill, probably a Hare or Possum. The views of Canterbury from the summit are excellent and I never tire of them. After 20 minutes on the top and a bite to eat, I headed back down to the car and made it in 1 hour 40 minutes. I bet I couldn't do that now.

This was the first in a brace of tramps I did in the following weeks around the local Canterbury foothills.

Lake Christabel Track 18th August 2002

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp No.6

Lake Christabel Track 18th August 2002

As I approached my second anniversary of tramping, I hadn't been out to regular, this being the 6th tramp recorded in my tramping diary. This trip kicked off a more intensive period of tramping, where I got out on more club trips as well as private trips and started to get myself more known with some of the others in the CTC. During this time I also started to go on more overnight and extended trips, culminating in the epic 5 passes expedition on early 2004. This period I learned a great deal about travelling in the mountains and forests and started to accumulate all the necessary equipment for my safe and comfortable enjoyment while out in the wilds of  NZ.

This particular event involved the taking of two young ladies of a vintage of around 7 & 8 years old , being the daughters of a very close friend, for a walk to an old hunters camp that had be set up 25 odd years before and well used since that time. I had discovered this camp a year or so before when a friend and myself had been camping in Hamner and came for a drive up this way and decided to explore Palmers Rd, finding the start of the Christabel track, we went for a short walk up the track. On the way in we encountered a party coming out from Christabel hut, who happened to be CTC members whom I knew vaguely. They mentioned checking out the cool hunters camp another hour or so up track. We decided to make this our destination. Around 2 hour or less from the road end we still hadn't found the camp and were about to abandon the search and head back when my friend had to go relieve himself and left the track and stumbled right into the camp. The Camp was hidden about 10 meters off the main track and you gained entrance via a gate in a picket fence made from native tree branches. The camp was very cool, with two large Moss laden sleeping areas and hand made seats and table from the surrounding woods as well as a stone cooking hearth with plenty of pots and pans and cooking equipment etc.. The sleeping areas and sitting/cooking areas were all covered by tarps tied to the trees. It was very impressive and I knew I wanted to come visit here again and possibly spend the night.

I had told my friend and her daughters about this place and they agreed for me to take them up there some time for a look. I finally found some time available and organised for us to do a day trip up. I can't quite remember the circumstances now but for some reason Sarah had something come up and couldn't go but she agreed for me to take the girls up and Emily and Caitlin were keen. The tramp itself  is pretty straight forward apart from a steep bit with a rope to help negotiate it but the girls handled it well as they had been on this sort of stuff before. They were starting to lose interest after a couple of hours and were going quite slow, but I encouraged them on as we were nearly there. We did indeed find it very soon afterwards and had a quick lunch while checking out the camp. The Girls liked the place and I took some crappy photos on some old film camera I had obtained(can't lay my hands on those photos right now). The weather started to deteriorate and rain started to fall, so I instructed the Girls to get out their raincoats and that we wanted to get out a lot quicker than we got in.Well, that and the rain got them going and I almost couldn't keep up with them on the way out. We got back to the car in 1 &1/2 hours and it was now snowing as we reached the car. On the way back over Lewis Pass there was now a couple of inches of snow on the road and just as we came round the bend at the top of the pass, a car had just slid across the road on front of us into the ditch. It took me about 150 meters to gently come to a stop and I ran back up the road as the people were climbing out of their car. No one was hurt and they declined an offer of a ride as they were going in the opposite direction to me.

An Interesting days adventure.

Mt Williams (Arthurs Pass) Date Unknown

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp No.5

Mt Williams (Arthurs Pass) Date Unknown

Mt Williams is the mountain that rises from the confluence of the Mingha and Edwards rivers before they flow into the Bealey river at the southern end of Arthurs Pass National park. Another one where I don't have the actual date we did this but it was the next weekend  following tramp no.4.

With 10 in the party we forded the Bealey river just below where the Mingha river converges. We then followed a well formed track heading up stream on the true left of the Edwards river through the beech forest untill arriving at the Edwards Hut in time for lunch. The weather was cloudy with moderate winds and light drizzle as we left the hut and forded  the Edwards after which we climbed a very steep hill up to Williams saddle. Visibility on Mt Williams was pretty lousy so we decided to just drop straight back down  from the saddle into  the Mingha River and back to the cars. Of course as soon as we hit the valley floor the clouds clear off Mt Williams. Murphy's law!

Woolshed Hill/Savannah range/Hawarden valley (Date Unknown)

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp no.4

Woolshed Hill/Savannah range/Hawarden valley (Date Unknown)

Most properly my first tramp as a member of the CTC, I don't have a date for this tramp or the one I did next either and as I didn't get out too much back then, Tramp No.6 wasn't untill August 2002, this tramp could have been any time from early 2001 to first quarter 2002.

A clear day with little wind and few clouds was presented us as 15 of us left Hawarden shelter car park at 10AM and preceded to make the steep climb through Beech forest and up onto Woolshed Hill. Had lunch and discussed how far along  the Savannah range we would travel before dropping back down into the Hawarden  valley. It was decided to see if we could get all the way to the point above East Hawarden river and bush bash down the prominent  ridge into the valley and  back out. Two of the party turned back as we kept heading along the tops and several times I thought I had bitten off more than I could chew,but I struggled along and kept up with the leaders and according to my diary had a very enjoyable if exhausting trip.We made the cars around 7PM so it  was defiantly summer. Woolshed Hill and The Hawarden Valley are in the same vicinity as Mt Binser from  Tramp no.2. No photos.

Hinewai Reserve (Banks peninsular) 7th January 2001

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp No.3

Hinewai Reserve (Banks peninsular) 7th January  2001

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My third and qualifying trip with the CTC, which meant I could officially join the club now. This trip had the same leader as the last one and the same car, so would we actually make it to our destination this time? Yes.

The Hinewai Reserve is located on the south east of Banks Peninsular over the hill from Akaroa and feeds down into Otanirito bay. For more on Hinewai Reserve refer to this article on Wikipedia

At  around 9:45AM on a warm and fine summers day we set off down the South track heading to Otanarito bay.

back then the track was quite overgrown and we encountered plenty of gorse and stinging nettle. We took a  short detour to a place called "The Stones" where we lunched before continuing on down to the beach. The day was pretty hot, so some of us had a pleasant little swim in the Pacific before heading off on the long climb back up a much more used track which passed through a magnificent stand of Beech and kahikatia trees. We were all grateful that we did the loop this way and didn't have to bush bash our way back up the other track. The leaders car did indeed have some problems on the way home, but it did get us there. Again no photos for this trip.

Mt Binser 24th September 2000

Uncle Roddus Tramping diary: Tramp no.2

Mt Binser 24/9/2000 

This was my second trip with the CTC , heading for Mt Binser, off the Mt White Rd, looking over the Waimakariri  River. Things got off to a bad start when the leaders car broke down just near the limeworks outside of Springfield. Lots of time was lost getting his car back to Springfield and then heading back to Sheffield to get my car which we left there when they picked me up.Don't quite remember how we achieved all this, but we must have had 2 cars as there were 6 of us minus the leader who stayed behind to sort his car.

  The rest of us didn't get started on the Binser Saddle Track until about 10:45am on this fair day with a light nor'wester.The track starts off with a steep but short assent before flattening out to pleasant travel through Beech forest.After a while we got to a long open tussock area just below Binser saddle, where we stopped for lunch before an easy bushbash off to the right taking us up the ridge onto the first point of Binser. There was still some snow on the tops but not enough to need crampons or ice axe, which was good as I didn't have any nor did I know how to use them back then. As it was now around 3PM and starting to snow lightly, any thought of actually getting along to the highest point of Binser was abandoned and back to the cars we went to reach them by about 5PM. This Mountain became the first to be added to my list of trips still to complete.

No photos available for this trip.

Bobs Biv (Mt Thomas) 3rd September 2000

Uncle Roddus tramping diary: Tramp No 1

Bobs Biv (Mt Thomas)3/9/2000.

This report concerns  the very first tramp that I participated in as far as my serious tramping career is concerned. Before this time I just use to do short bush walks or hill climbs with friends or by myself. usually not more than 2-4 hours walking and always on well formed tracks etc...(apart from doing the Milford track back in 1991).I had always wanted to get more serious about tramping and so finally decided to find a club to go out with and get some more experience. This trip, with The Christchurch tramping Club was the first of many with that club of which I have been a member for almost 10 years now.

This particular trip to Bobs Biv was a last minute change of plan as the weather forecast wasn't too good for the planned trip and the trip leader picked this one as an alternative. I meet the group at the Mt Thomas picnic area, as I live not far from this place, on an overcast and drizzly morning. Leaving at 9:15am we headed up the Wooded valley track, which is a pleasant winding and undulating track up through Beech Forrest. According to my diary, it took us about 2 & 1/2 hours to reach the junction track to Bobs Biv. From the junction we travelled in a westerly direction away from Mt Thomas, traversing an open spur of rock and tussock before re-entering the bush of lovely moss covered stunted beech. During this time it started to rain. Further along the ridge we encountered a swampy open area of tussock and I seem to remember having a standing lunch somewhere along here, hiding  under trees with steady rain falling. We re-entered the Forest and arrived at the Biv after another 100 or so meters. Bobs biv is a lovely spot with a fire place out side and a basic old two person forest service Biv. It took us 5 hours to get to the biv. 

After a rest to enjoy the tranquility of the spot, we headed back the way we came heading for No.2 track to take us back down to the cars.I was in the front of the group chatting with a fellow Sparky who was a club regular and experienced tramper. We had gotten ahead of the rest of the group and suddenly we  found ourselves at a fence and style. I was sure we had not encountered this on the way in but my companion wasn't so sure, so we stayed putt until we heard the leaders whistle behind us and discovered we had  been so engrossed in conversation that we had missed the junction and started to head off down to Pinchgut Hut.We re connected with the rest of the group and headed off down track No.2 through more Beech, then a  cleared patch with great views of the Canterbury plains, before entering the last leg of our descent through the commercial pine forest.Arrived back at the cars about 5:45PM. Quite a long day for my first serious tramp, but I wasn't in too much pain afterwards.unfortunately I have no photos from this trip.