Blog missed from March!!

Aspiring and beyond!!

Sitting in Wanaka with Mount Aspiring National Park in the distance beckoning, I suggested to Greg that we do an overnight walk to Aspiring hut and stay overnight and then, for Alistair and I to go on the following day to another hut and stay, to return 2 days later.
We checked out at the Dept. of Conservation office where we could go and were given two options. From Aspiring hut you can walk further up the valley and then choose whether to go up one vertical side of the mountain to Liverpool hut or the other vertical side to French Ridge. Both were about 2 kms up but the climb to French Ridge would take 3-4 hours as it was 1000m above, the other to Liverpool hut (a tin shed) would only take 2 hours.
On balance French Ridge sounded the best as the hut was much better and there was a warden there and a radio.
We got packed and away we went. The walk to Aspiring was along a wide valley floor which climbed steadily all the way, not steep but constant. The Matukituki River ribbons down the valley, with lots of pebbles along the bank and in the middle and the river constantly splits. Grassy meadows on either side of the river.
After about 2 hours we arrived at Aspiring hut and sorted out ourselves a bunk, there was
huge kitchen and seating area with gas stoves and running water. After dinner we went to
bed after speaking to some of the other people about the best place to go.
Early next morning we got ready to move on, there were 2 other women also going to
French Ridge so we all set out at the same sort of time.
Greg & Rowena went the other way.. with the arrangement that we would either see them
at the road end the next evening or, if for any reason we couldn’t get to the hut then we
would see them at about lunchtime.
The walk followed the valley along the river crossing at some quite hairy swing bridges,
the river is a lovely blue colour because of the very fine particles that have washed out
from the glacier.
We followed the path through beech forest and across wide flat meadows with Ragwort
in it and waterfalls falling down the side of the mountains, the further up the valley we
went the more glaciers we could see hanging from the mountain tops.
At the place we had to decide whether to carry on up or not we stopped and looked at the
weather.The mist was rolling in over the mountain tops, the wind was really high and to
top it all it started to rain! We, the other 2 women as well , decided to stop and wait for a
while because when we got out of the bush line wewould be really exposed and if it was
very windy I didn’t really want to be up there with Alistair with a heavy pack.
Although it stopped raining the wind was still high so we regrettably decided not to go
up. Alistair was devastated and so upset! Instead of going straight back to Aspiring hut
we decided to walk on to Scott’s Bivvy which was a further 2.5 km further up he valley.
It was a really hard walk, we left one pack at the path junction and I just took mine with
our lunch and wet weather gear.
The path climbed up out of the tree line and on to scree along by the river. Fantastic
views with mountains all around us didn’t seem that far to Mt Aspiring with all the snow
on it.
We had to cross a particularly high swing bridge with just a floorboard plank to walk on!
We eventually turned back as we had a long walk back to Aspiring Hut. Picked up the
other pack, very relieved to find that someone hadn’t ‘borrowed’ it, and headed back the
way we had come. Typically the weather had changed and it was now crystal clear up
towards French Ridge with blue sky and little wind.. Oh well we will have to do it
another day…
I was so pleased to see the hut, as we had been walking from 8.30 and it was now 6.30!
Alistair ran the last bit back so as to be the first there, I didn’t have the energy to assure
him that there was no way that I was going to get there fast!
Stayed the night at Aspiring and then walked down to the car park the next morning to
meet Greg and Rowena, who were just setting off to go up to Rob Roy Glacier. Never
one to say “No” we went with them.
Rob Roy Glacier was up in a steep valley it took 2 hours of continually up to get there but
was lovely. It hung, all around us, and water poured off the edge as lovely waterfalls. By
the time we got back to the car I was exhausted, Alistair on the other hand had heaps of
bounce left!

All in all it was a good trip, Alistair is now desperate to do another long walk for 3 days
and 2 nights, then one for 4 days and 3 nights then one for 5 days and 4 nights …..