For the Benefit of Mr Kite

It's taken me so long to get around to posting about Te Anau and The Kepler mainly because I've been so tired. More on that later.

Te Anau is a quiant little town. Not much there execpt for things for tourists and of course a big lake. Not a lot of food options for me surprisingly. One good thing about New Zealand is that most supermarkets, even in little town's like Te Anau, stock a good range of gluten free stuff. The hostel in Te Anau is quite nice - it has a good atmosphere. The walls a little thin though (on our second night the people in the room next door had an argument that involved a lot of door slamming) and our double room was tiny. The showers aren't much to brag about either. I should mention that my high opinion of the hostel may be affected by the presence of two cats.

So, the Kepler. Let me say this, I think it was the hardest thing I've ever done but also one of the most rewarding. It was like three days of constant boot camp - the kind of bootcamp where you carry tyres and other heavy stuff. The first day was hard - we walked most of the way up a mountain - not a hill, a mountain. We started at around 200m above sea level and finished at 1085m. The climb took us about 3 1/2 hours. I was quite surprised by the hut though. The kitchen was big and there were enough cookers for all - around about 40 of us. The bunkrooms were basic but had mattresses and fantastic views. We were on top of a mountain looking out over other mountains and down into valleys. Some of the other mountains had snow on them - ours didn't thank godness.

Day two was at least 10 times harder than the first day. To start off with we climbed the rest of the mountain which was about another 400metres. Tom and I went up to the summit (1490m). That was good - made me feel like a mountaineer. After the summit it got really hard. We were walking in the Alpine section of the track and the one saving grace was that a) it wasn't raining (or snowing) and b) it wasn't windy. This meant that we got some amazing views. We were walking along the ridges of the mountains and there was a lot of walking down and then back up again. The last back up again section was very steep (or at least it seemed so after all of the other up and downs) and it was after this section that we though it would be easy.

After a brief water stop at one of the shelters (brief because there were millions of sandflies) we started walking down the mountain. All was going good until we reached the steps. The steps were very steep, had no handrails and a drop on either side of them. I'm not good with walking down steps especially not without handrails and with a pack on my back. So we went slowly. By the bottom, Tom was complaining that his back was sore. If you know Tom, then you know that his back must have been very sore for him to complain. Things got worse after the steps. We had to walk down to about 200m in a very small about of track. Walk downhill is really hard with a pack on and it was murder on our knees, thighs and calves. After about a quarter of the way, my legs were shaking involuntarily. I let Tom go on ahead as he can walk faster downhill than I can. We met up somewhere near the bottom. I was getting a bit worried about Tom as he was showing signs of dehydration. Made him drink more water and then we headed off again.

Finally, just we were both about to drop, we turned a corner and saw the hut. The DOC has a habit of hiding their huts around corners so that you don't know how close you are to them. Tom laid down straight away. I got him some water and let proceeded to boil some water for myself (despite the assurances from the rangers, I didn't trust the water). Had dinner (yummy dehydrated meals) played cards and talked to the other trampers and went to bed. We managed to get a private berth which was good because Tom was up all night.

Tom walked himself to the point of exhaustion and his body retailated - Tom picked up a tummy bug complete with stomach cramps and a fever. Not what you want when you have another 5-6 hour walk to the next hut. I made sure we had plenty of boiled water in the morning and set off relatively early when Tom was feeling a bit better. Made sure Tom had lots of water along the way and we walked fairly quickly to get there but once we were there - Tom went straight to bed and slept. There is a lake at the third hut and when Tom woke up we attempting swimming but it was far too cold. Instead we stood in the cold water which was a great relief for our extremely sore muscles and feet. Had dinner (this time pasta in pumpkin soup) and sent Tom to bed. I stayed up to watch the sunset over the mountains across the lake which was quite beautiful then went to bed myself. More stomach cramps, fever and discomfort through the night for Tom.

The last day was thankfully a short one. More boiled water and an early start so we could get the 10am bus off the track. Our original plans had been to walk back to Te Anau, another 5-6 hour walk but Tom was sick and I was tired. One the last day, I carried a lot of the weight in my pack so on the last day it was supposed to be easy with light packs, I had a heavy one. Crossed a wetland (the first of the track which had all been beech forrests and alpine scenery) and then a swing bridge (another first) and made it to the bus stop. A 30 minute wait and a 20 minute bus ride and we were back in civilisation.

After five days without a shower (I didn't shower the day before we left) you would think that the first priority would be a shower followed by clean clothes but at 10:30 it wasn't check-in time at the hostel so we did the next best thing - a cooked breakfast. After that, Tom wasn't feeling very well at all, so we stopped in at the chemist for some Immodium and electrolyte juice and went back to the hostel to hang around until we could check in. Finally, we checked in and Tom went straight to bed - the best thing for him. I did the washing, cleaned our boots and had a shower (washed my hair for the first time in literally weeks - you don't know how good that feels), and kept waking Tom up to take his medicine and drink his electrolyte juice. Finally, I collapsed into bed. Sleeping in a real bed was one of the best things even if Tom wasn't feel.

Luckily, the medicine made Tom feel better and apart from a brief relapse after eating some very rich food in Queenstown he's doing okay. There's nothing like being stuck in the middle of nowhere with a sick person - all I could think about was: what are we going to do if he can't walk out of here.

In the next installment, Milford Sound, a brief stopover in Queenstown, and Franz Josef.

Funny New Zealand-ism: hot chips come in pottles and everyone says wee to indicate something small.