Four of us piled into the car on Friday morning, pleased to be trading in a wet, grey Dunedin day for a sunny weekend in the mountains. After a monotonous five hours of driving we finally arrived at the end of the road and quickly scrambled to get onto the track. Knowing we had some big days ahead of us, we were eager to get going and cover some distance before evening.
Setting off from the carpark at 2pm, the track begins with a climb to get through the gorge before branching off into two tracks - the Greenstone and the Caples. We took the swing bridge over the river and made our way up the Greenstone. We happily wandered along the track for a couple of hours, mostly in the bush but enjoying the short open sections. The weather was superb, not a cloud in the sky and just enough of a light breeze to keep us cool.
We eventually reached Slip Flat and began contemplating where to set up camp for the night. We consulted the map and decided to check out the nearby Slip Flat Hut to see what it was like. There was no marked track up to the hut, so after a bit of bush-bashing and a scramble up the hillside we were delighted to reach a small clearing containing a tidy 3-bunk DOC hut. We quickly set up camp with Dave and myself in our tents whilst Debbie and Antony opted to spend the night inside the hut. We enjoyed a lovely evening around the fire (thanks to Dave and the healthy amount of dry wood nearby) before turning in for the night.
We awoke on Saturday morning to clear skies and dew on the tents. It was quite chilly in the shade of the valley so we got ourselves organised and underway fairly quickly. We made use of the emergency bridge crossing Slip Flat Creek to keep our feet dry and enjoyed walking through the bush for a while.
We soon came to the turnoff for Greenstone Hut so dumped the packs and went to have a look. Whilst crossing the bridge over the Greenstone River we saw a group of packrafters scrambling down the side of the gorge, getting ready to set sail. We watched them with great curiosity as one by one they slipped into the fast flowing water and made their way downstream. It was then back to the packs to carry on for a bit until morning tea time.
The condition of the track after the turnoff to the hut deteriorated as it was littered with windfall. After making our way over and around a couple of large trees, we opted to bush bash our way down the bank to the open river flats. We enjoyed a picturesque morning tea break on the shores of the Greenstone River before carrying on up the valley.
We soon rejoined the track and from here it was a few hours of walking along the open river flats. We spotted the odd cow grazing in the distance as well as Rats Nest Hut across the river. The wind had started to pick up a bit and after meandering along for a couple of hours, we found a sheltered spot to have lunch. We enjoyed lying in the sun for a while before continuing.
The further up the valley we got, the more we noticed the landscape around us beginning to change. As the sky was clear, we could see Mt. Christina looming ahead, as well as catching brief glimpses of Tutoko and Madeline. We enjoyed the ever-changing scenery for the afternoon - from wide open river flats to picking our way across a large rockslide to sections in the bush. There were some boggy bits that required extra care otherwise it was largely an uneventful afternoon.
Around 5pm we began looking for a suitable campsite for the night - it turns out this was easier said than done. We wanted somewhere flat, sheltered out of the wind, a nearby side creek for drinking water and away from the cows. Another hour of walking later and just as we were contemplating heading to McKeller Hut as it was only a few km away, we finally found somewhere that ticked all the boxes. It was now getting close to 7pm so we got ourselves set up and turned in for the night.
After one of the comfiest nights I’ve spent in a tent (thanks to the lovely soft ground) we awoke to find a couple of cows had decided our campsite was going to be their grazing patch for the morning. They didn’t seem bothered by us and before long we were back on the track. We enjoyed a short break at McKeller Hut before winding our way up alongside Lake McKeller. We found a few tracks that enabled us to get down to the lake shore to have a look - absolutely beautiful!
A quick morning tea stop at the turnoff to McKeller Saddle / Lake Howden and before long we were beginning our ascent up to McKeller Saddle. The track was nicely graded and gently made its way up the hill, as opposed to the steep track Antony and Debbie remembered from their youth. We enjoyed plenty of stops to marvel at how high we had climbed from the lake. We made good time and reached the top in just over an hour. We found a sheltered spot to have lunch before enjoying the views from the saddle.
Being a beautiful blue sky day, the view in all directions was stunning. Looming ahead of us was the distinctive Mt. Christina, which Antony remembers as a boy being the first mountain that made him fall in love with tramping. As much as we wanted to spend hours on the saddle, we weren’t able to linger too long as we still had the descent down to Upper Caples Hut ahead of us. We enjoyed crossing the boardwalk, dotted with tarns that reflected the mountains perfectly.
Far too soon we were saying goodbye to the saddle and heading down towards the Caples Valley. The track down seemed to be much longer than going up the other side and we were soon over the relentless pounding on the hard gravel track. We were all tired and had sore feet after walking nearly 20km, so you can imagine how relieved we were to reach the turnoff to Kay Creek as this indicated we were close to the hut.
After catching up with the other OTMC parties at Upper Caples Hut, we set about pitching our tents and getting dinner started. We were soon eaten alive by sandflies, a sharp contrast to the non-existent sandflies of the previous two nights. After cajoling a friendly tramper to take a group photo of the 20 OTMC members at the hut, we turned in for an early night as some light drizzle started to set in.
After spending the night listening to the raindrops on the tent, we were not surprised to awake to a grey, misty and wet day. We quickly packed up and were on the track by 7:30am, with most of the other OTMC parties leaving ahead of us. It was a pretty bleak walk down the Caples Valley as the rain did not let up. We enjoyed the moody landscapes as we powered along the river flats before stopping at Mid Caples Hut for a sugar boost.
From Mid Caples Hut we put our heads down and walked, it was too wet to be stopping. Excitement levels were high when we reached the junction with the Greenstone as we knew we only had another 20 minutes to go. With the car park in sight, we raced down the final stretch, excited to soon be putting dry clothes on and warming up.
Thanks to Antony for organising the trip, it was fantastic to have 27 OTMC members spend the (mostly) sunny long weekend tramping in the Greenstone and Caples Valleys. A great way to start the 100 Trips for 100 Years Centenary Programme.
Written by Jade Pettinger
