Trip Report: 3 Passes, Arthurs Pass, NZ

[andrewbish]

Earlier this month I spent a week doing the 3 Passes Route at Arthurs Pass in NZ. It was quite the adventure, including losing items of equipment - including my Spot (see post elsewhere on the forum) - getting (sort of) lost, crapping myself (figuratively) on some of the pass crossings and generally being thoroughly immersed in the amazing wilderness that is the West Coast of the South Island.

I have done a blog post which you can find here.

Carrington Peak

[forest]

Thanks for the report and blog link. Really enjoyed it.
Sounds pretty epic and typical of a difficult solo NZ tramp.
Can't wait to get back in a little over a months time.

[wayno]

good on you for completing it...

the rivers go up and down like yo yo's according to when its rained... patience can be rewarded by having a river drop enough to make the crossing a lot easier... an hour can be enough to make a difference...
if you've got a good forecast, then put in the long days,, then if the weather craps out you've got time up your sleeve to relax if you have to wait out swollen rivers...
the water in nz rivers is among the clearest in the world , contributes to making it deceptive as to how deep the water is when you're crossing a river...
i think water around nelson has been literally rated as the clearest in the world...

[andrewbish]

Thanks for the report and blog link. Really enjoyed it.
Sounds pretty epic and typical of a difficult solo NZ tramp.
Can't wait to get back in a little over a months time.

Glad you enjoyed it. Where will you be going to?

[andrewbish]

good on you for completing it...

the rivers go up and down like yo yo's according to when its rained... patience can be rewarded by having a river drop enough to make the crossing a lot easier... an hour can be enough to make a difference...
if you've got a good forecast, then put in the long days,, then if the weather craps out you've got time up your sleeve to relax if you have to wait out swollen rivers...
the water in nz rivers is among the clearest in the world , contributes to making it deceptive as to how deep the water is when you're crossing a river...
i think water around nelson has been literally rated as the clearest in the world...

Thanks, Wayno. With the benefit of hindsight I can see that this is good advice.

[wayno]

problem also was hiking alone wth a hard river crossing,
hunters would cross high rivers facing downstream as they crossed and go with the current rather than trying to stand their ground facing into it...
i've never seen that method actually taught anywhere.. i've never tried it either. it may take a bit of skill and or luck to work...
i use a drybag pack liner to stop water getting into the pack...
otherwise use a normal pack liner...

[andrewbish]

...
i use a drybag pack liner to stop water getting into the pack...
otherwise use a normal pack liner...

I have the gear in my pack inside a large bin liner always. As it was raining during the river crossings I also had on a packa (half jacket, half poncho) that covered the pack. The items that go wet were being worn or were in pockets in my shirt/jacket/pants.

[wayno]

all my electronics go in dry bags.. except the plb which is waterproof...
you can be wet for so long on an nz trip. pays to be sure about keeping things waterproof. i never use pastic bags anymore , nowhere near as reliable as drybags... i use the sea to summit ultrasil bags, to keep the weight down.
i use an aquapac drybag for my phone, it's transparent on one side so i dont have to take the phone out of the bag to use it

[andrewbish]

all my electronics go in dry bags.. except the plb which is waterproof...
you can be wet for so long on an nz trip. pays to be sure about keeping things waterproof. i never use pastic bags anymore , nowhere near as reliable as drybags... i use the sea to summit ultrasil bags, to keep the weight down.
i use an aquapac drybag for my phone, it's transparent on one side so i dont have to take the phone out of the bag to use it

I like the look of the S2S bags, though I am planning on getting a LiteProof case for my (new) iPhone before the next outing into the wild.

[wayno]

stoats
dont they have them in aus? anyone introducing them anywhere should be hung drawn and quartered, .... twice...
they are one the most rabidly aggressive predators alive,
all they do is kill , eat, (not everything they kill) and sleep... annd breed like rabbits

[wayno]

after reading your trip blog, i would like to bestow on you the title of "honorary bonifide kiwi tramper"
like most kiwi trampers you have now completed time walking lost in a complete circle, a life of tramping in nz just isnt complete without going in a circle.
you are now one of us....

[Hallu]

Yeah we don't have stoats yet... and I hope we never do. It would be a disaster for small marsupials, you "only" have to worry about the flightless birds in NZ. Here it would hunt birds, bandicoots, wallabies, native rats, snakes, frogs, other joeys of all sorts (wombats, possums etc...). We've had enough already with the cats, foxes and dogs... They only survive in temperate areas, so they wouldn't go in the Outback or the tropical North, but in Victoria, NSW and Tasmania it would be catastrophic.

Do you have stoat fur ? I think if big companies such as Icebreaker ever found a way to make cheap possum and/or stoat fur, it would be a great help. There's already possum fur, but it's way too expensive to make a serious dent in their population. They also export it and sell it as meat in Asia, I don't understand why not in NZ directly. I'd be glad to eat some possum, even fox, cat, dog, stoat or myna, and it may be good if prepared correctly, you never know.

[wayno]

never heard of anyone harvesting stoat fur, i'm not sure there are the no's like possums. stoats move so fast a small no can do massive damage, i'm not sure there are the large no's getting trapped to justify an industry.

[andrewbish]

after reading your trip blog, i would like to bestow on you the title of "honorary bonifide kiwi tramper"
like most kiwi trampers you have now completed time walking lost in a complete circle, a life of tramping in nz just isnt complete without going in a circle.
you are now one of us....

Hee hee - I was born in Gore in the Sth Island.

[Mark F]

The winter coats of stoats - when they turn white - is called ermine, a rather expensive fur.

[wayno]

isnt that what they used in the clothing of royalty?

[Lindsay]

Great report Andrew. Definitely a trip to remember.

[andrewbish]

Great report Andrew. Definitely a trip to remember.

Thanks!

FWIW - An iPhone rescue guy in Box Hill North has managed to resurrect my phone to the point where I could get the photos off it. I have now added a few more pics to the blog, relating to the first section, up to the fateful river crossings...

[wayno]

looks like it was still raining in the headwaters of the waimak when you were travelling up it...

[Mark F]

Andrew, your thoughts on the safety of the Packa on river crossings. It seems like that if it was done up or got caught around you, it would be really hard to jettison the pack if things went wrong.

[wayno]

in my experience its rare for experienced Nz bushwalkers to wear anything other than a raincoat for wet weather....
as mark mentions theres the safety issue river crossing, but also when you're up high the wind can blow up at you on a steep sided ridge, rendering poncho type arrangements of limited use in strong wind or rain... plus you want to keep the wind out in the cold.

[andrewbish]

Andrew, your thoughts on the safety of the Packa on river crossings. It seems like that if it was done up or got caught around you, it would be really hard to jettison the pack if things went wrong.

Hi Mark

As you know the Packa is designed to fit over pack and body snugly, with sleeves. It can be worn off the body (attached only to the pack), or fully on.

I found myself swimming in the river twice while wearing the Packa.
- The first time was in a deep, slow-moving section. I sort of floated on top, swimming my way to the other side.
- The second time I slipped over in a fast moving, thigh-deep current and had to swim/scramble the final 3-4 metres. Again, I found I sort of half-floated.

I would not have been able to jettison the pack easily in either situation, but neither did I feel it was a major problem. I realise that some recommend making the pack as easy to remove as possible when river crossing, including undoing the waist belt, but based on the above experience I wouldn't see any reason to do this. I should also mention that I am a strong swimmer. Perhaps it might be more applicable when crossing a river with other hazards, like large boulders, trees etc, on which you could get snagged.

My river crossing experience is limited, so am happy to receive advice from those who have been there, done that.

Andrew

[andrewbish]

in my experience its rare for experienced Nz bushwalkers to wear anything other than a raincoat for wet weather....
as mark mentions theres the safety issue river crossing, but also when you're up high the wind can blow up at you on a steep sided ridge, rendering poncho type arrangements of limited use in strong wind or rain... plus you want to keep the wind out in the cold.

Hi Wayno

I only got to use the Packa on the first day of my Arthur's Pass trip - the weather was fine & sunny for the other 6 days (lucky me!)

That said, the Packa is more like a jacket that a poncho - the cuffs, hood and bottom hem can all be tightened to keep out wind & rain.

I will comment here once I have had the chance to use it in wind + rain conditions.

Andrew

[forest]

How was the silnylon packa for breathability in NZs weather. I know they have awesome pit zips.
IMO id probably ditch the packa during a river crossing for sure. If you got flipped over pack down the pack cover section would fill up like a big water balloon.
FYI I owned a wonderful eVent packa for 12 months. Most breathable item of rainwear I've had. It just didn't suit me in camp and setting up etc. The length and cut are fantastic.
You must not look at them as a poncho. They don't get flapped about like one in the wind at all. Really they are just a long zippered rain jacket with a pack cover sewn in.

[wayno]

pack liners are more reliable than pack covers for keeping water out of your gear...

[andrewbish]

pack liners are more reliable than pack covers for keeping water out of your gear...

For rain only the integrated pack cover/jacket of the Packa will be superior to a pack cover and pack liner (with the latter the pack itself still gets wet.)

If you might get dumped in water a liner will be far better for keeping your stuff dry.

I used both on this trip.

[wayno]

i use a dry bag pack liner. pretty full proof