A few weeks ago, I co-lead a trip to McKellar Hut, on the Greenstone Track for the Otago University Tramping Club. My co-leader was FABULOUS and we had a great time.
So lush!
Good weather! Unusual for Fiordland
Punter sandwich: co-leaders on the end and punters (newbies) in the middle
The walk to McKellar Hut takes just a couple hours, so we extended the trip to include a hike up to McKellar Saddle.
Boardwalk leading to the track up to the saddle
Most hikers/trampers will tell that it's super important to pack light. But, our hike was pretty puny and so we loaded up with food for two breakfasts, two lunches and a dinner for 10 trampers: three loaves of bread, two packets of crackers, 1 kg of cheese, an oversized container of hummus, canned tomatoes, canned beans, fresh veggies (broccoli, onion, carrot, corn), beer, a few packets of TimTams, oats, dried fruit, nuts, Milo, tea...oh and chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate.
Lunch on the saddle
After lunch we just roamed about for a bit and then made tracks down to the valley. We wanted to get to the hut and ditch our packs to lighten our load and explore the area a bit more.
Lake McKellar and McKellar Hut in this direction
Once at the hut, I found a spot in the river to chill my beer. I filled a pot with water, put the bottles in, and placed a few rocks on top of the lid so it wouldn't wash away. Ella and I took our group to the lake while I waited for my beer to reach a drinkable temperature. We spent ages trying to figure out how to spell "YONZO" (You're Only in New Zealand Once) with our bodies.
Y.O.N.Z.O.
By the way, my Tuatara A.P.A. (Aotearoa Pale Ale) tasted AMAZING! I didn't bring any to share, so I drank it sneakily.
Photo credit: Ella Borrie
That night, Ella and I taught our punters how to perform a proper TimTam slam (because it would be unacceptable for an exchange student to go home without this know-how). Another OUTC group was staying in the hut and their trip leader hiked in with a CARROT CAKE in her pack. OMG! YUM! Before we indulged, we took turns sharing our worst birthday (mine was lame in comparison to the other stories; I shared my experience of walking around Arlington Cemetery with the Girl Scout troop for my 10th birthday). Ella had the bright idea of taking it one step further... all of a sudden we were nominating the top worst birthdays to be voted on as New Zealand's Shittiest Birthday. Ella was the game show host and had the audience vote for the worst birthday. The other trip leader lit some candles on the cake, as we all sang happy birthday, and revealed the winner of NZSB by handing the cake to them to blow out the candles. Weird, but fun times.
On Sunday, we took a detour to Key Summit. The views were great!
On Sunday, we took a detour to Key Summit. The views were great!
Actually, it was a quite nice place to rest. :)
Photo credit: Sarah Baker
No current plans for tramping as my thesis has taken over my life. Hoping to be back out in the hills soon, though!
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