˜ apteryx wa: so-called scenic

apteryx wa

so-called scenic

last week while we were staying in taupo i went out for a day hike to tongariro crossing, locally billed as the best one-day hike in New Zealand. i left at 5 in the morning in order to finish the 7-8 hour hike by early afternoon and hopefully avoid any storms late in the day. the weather was fine as i left taupo but i drove into light showers as i neared the trailhead an hour later. nevertheless, i set off up the trail with a brisk pace. an hour later the drizzle turned into a real rain and i started seeing my first patches of snow, which i misunderstood to be remnants of last winter (it's late spring now). so i kept going, hoping to outlast the rain. as i got higher the rain turned to sleet and then to snow and i realized the snow that now covered the ground was actually new. but the snow wasn't that deep so i kept going higher. then the wind started blowing as the terrain became more exposed. and the snow kept getting deeper.

i stopped to ponder my reasons for going forward. on the one hand, i was supposedly in for some incredible scenery once i got to the summit 600 meters above me. on the other hand, i couldn't see more than 30 meters in front of me. also, for being the most popular day hike in the region i hadn't seen another person all morning, and it was saturday. so, i turned around.

maybe i'll try it again sometime; and get some better shots of the scenery.

posted by tyson on Monday, November 20, 2006

4 Comments:

  • Oh, my goodness. What happened to the buddy rule for things of this nature???

    I'm glad you turned around.

    Have you talked with anyone about the weather on the trail since you returned?

    It really had to be a big disappointment to not be able to accomplish you dream hike.

    The pictures do look like it's cold.

    Mom

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 14:04  

  • well, as for the buddy system, after i turned around i did see about 100 people on the trail farther down...so they would have probably found me if something happened...

    i've talked to a couple people about the weather recently and it doesn't seem like it's gotten any better. but it should get better once summer really gets going.

    tyson

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 05:02  

  • Tyson,

    I am dissapointed in you for not making it to the top of the hill.
    According to your data you were only .37 mi. from the summit and about 15 minutes from the top. The protagonist has failed me. haha. -graham

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 11:39  

  • I'm glad you attempted the rainy hike in the first place. Usually when I wake up at 5 am with some adventurous goal in mind, only to see the rain, I go back to bed. Glad i get to keep up with your travels online. It sounds like you guys are having a blast! -Tiare

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 13:25  

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