Walk 3 - Waikaremoana Track 'Great Walk' |
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Ominous weather at Lake Waikaremoana |
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Day 1 (the hard climb) If you are staying at the Waikaremoana Motor Camp, the easiest and most pleasant way to get to the start of the walk is to catch a water taxi from there to Onepoto Landing where the walk officially starts. The sight of the Panekiri Ridge, stretching 580m above the water, along the southern edge of the lake was somewhat daunting as we sped across its surface. Our first day would involve a long 5 hour climb up to the top of the ridge. The Waikaremoana track does not beat about the bush. Leaving the boat, there was only a very short flat section before the ascent began in earnest. Soon we were shedding layers of clothing as we steadily climbed into the verdant world of the beech forest, with its mosses, ferns, lichens and various epiphytes. |
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The track climbed steeply following the crest of the ridge. It was lined with ferns and mosses and with the roots of beech trees criss-crossing it like a bad case of varicose veins. These actually proved a blessing on the steeper parts as they held the soil in, creating Dali-esque staircases that made both climbing and (later) descending a much easier proposition. Again we were grateful for the walking poles which take a lot of the effort out of climbing. Finally we emerged from the dark greenery of the forest on to a small sandstone platform overlooking the lake. The view was even more breath-taking than the 350m climb up to it. |
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Four more sets of saddles and knolls finally brought us to a sheer rock face and a promising set of wooden steps. Climbing them, we came out on to a grassy clearing and the welcome sight of Panekiri Hut, our shelter for the night. We had taken 5 hours of hard walking to do the 8.8 km and, while Panekiri is 580m above the lake, we climbed over 800m in total with all of the undulations along the ridge. It was with great relief that we dropped our packs for the last time. Panekiri is a modern, well-equipped hut, but where, oh where was the beer!!! |
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Day 2 (back to the lake)
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It was a chilling 6ºC when we set out, although the forest offered good protection from the wind. Again we followed an undulating route descending down to saddles and climbing over knolls as we gradually lost altitude along the ridge; the eternal greenness of the beech forest and its mossy, fern-covered cloak as impressive as on the previous day. After a few kilometres, the track began a sharp descent under a rocky green-walled overhang before we quickly lost more height via another set of wooden steps fixed to the rockface. |
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Day 3 (a long day around the lake shore) |
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From the Korokoro turn-off, the track crossed another swing-bridge and soon arrived at a mudstone clearing on the lake shore. It was a good place to soak tired feet in the icy lake water. As Nello did so, a 50 cm long trout swam lazily by - Lake Waikaremoana has a very good reputation for fishing. From here the route changed character as it meandered through a landscape of inlets and promontories jutting steeply into the lake. The track headed away from the shore and began a series of short sharp ascents and descents; down damp fern-filled gullies, crossing the small streams and cascades that tumbled down into the lake before climbing up and over drier ridges of beech forest - the soft crackle of dry beech leaves on the path replacing the muddy squish of the gulley track. |
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A 60m steep climb and descent over Whakaneke Spur soon put and end to any day-dreaming, but brought us out to another grassy flat, housing the welcome sight of Marauiti Hut. Here we crossed paths once again with Gary and Linda, who were staying there that night. We had booked in to Whairaruru Hut, 6 km further on and it was not without a little envy that we left them sunning themselves on the verandah of the hut as we loaded up our packs again for one last effort. |
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Day 4 (homeward bound)
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Reaching the long Whanganui Inlet on the other side of the saddle, we turned north and quickly found ourselves at Whanganui Hut, set back from the lake in a sun-drenched grassy clearing. With time up our sleeve before our midday boat pick up, we relaxed in the sun on its verandah for half an hour before setting out on the final 45 minutes of our walk. Soon we could see the white plume of the water taxi as it skimmed up the lake to our pick-up point at Hopuruahine Landing and before long we were skimming back across the lake to Home Bay, feeling a great sense of achievement at completing our first "Great Walk". The weather had finally been kind to us and, as in introduction to the lakes and forests of New Zealand, it had been in every sense a great walk. |