Please suggest to me a 5 day hike

[nate]

I am looking for a 5 day hike on the south island. Around late march. I will be travelling solo. I do not have alpine skills or crampons/ice axe, but can take in emergency if needed, although I have never used them, so would prefer not to.
I have done tracks like Mt anne Cicruit in Tasmania. As I am going solo, I quite like navigation to be semi easy. But I do like camping and defiantly not huts. This is where my searching hits a dead end. I like long days of walking.

Any suggestions?

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Pity the Rees-Dart is closed... Otherwise it would tick all the boxes (assuming you do a day trip out to Cascade Saddle and use the campgrounds). You could make it a return walk to Cascade via Rees Saddle (5 days), or continue on the Cascade Saddle route down to the West Matukutuki (or opposite direction... only 3 and half days though).

Maybe link the Caples and Routeburn (eg. camping at Routeburn Flats, Lk Mackenzie, Greenstone Saddle (side trip to Key summit on the way) and Mid Caples)? Not sure about other options... are there campgrounds on the Hollyford?

If you've done the Anne Circuit none of this should pose any major difficulties (*I haven't been beyond Cascade Saddle but apparently it's very steep down into the Matukutuki Valley).

My 2c worth as someone who's visited a few times... local knowledge will be better though.

[andrewa]

Nelson Lakes National Park - walk along lake from St Arnaud to head of lake (day1). Wander up valley and camp and fish somewhere along the beautiful valley (night 2), or walk to Upper Travers Hut (2), next day either to Upper Travers Hut (3), or Sabine Hut, if starting at UTH , and then following day down to hut where D'Urville enters lake ?Rotoroa, either catching a water taxi back, or walking, and then getting back to St Arnaud. To extend parts of the trip, you can visit ? Lake Angelique ( or similar), or Blue Lake. Search Travers/Sabine circuit if interested. The valleys are beautiful, and its a lovely crossing over Travers Saddle, with an amazing scree slope on the west down into the Sabine Valley.

Other suggestions are the Hollyford Track, Kepler Track, and probably a zillion others, but I have done the Travers/Sabine circuit, and it was a great walk.

A

[Walk_fat boy_walk]

Yes would like to do the Travers-Sabine (or variations in the area). Heaphy might be another option for a 4/5 day tented walk (has camping), but depending on what you're after that one might be a bit of a doddle. Not sure about the Kepler as an option... from memory you can't camp at Luxmore which makes for a big day between Brod Bay and Iris Burn, and realistically that is only 2 and a half (if exiting at Rainbow Reach) or 3 (doing the full circuit to/from the floodgates) days. Could also research Wilkins/Young area out of Makaroa (north of Wanaka) - numerous options but haven't been there myself. Next time maybe

[nate]

I like quite challenging walks physically, but not over technically. I like to get wet, muddy, cold, crawl into my tent, make a tea, and carry on early the next morning. I not really one for being able to sit still for long. I was hoping for something either near queenstown or Christchurch to help with the logistics of a short trip.

When I by myself, I don't mind a semi trace back route to make logistics of getting back easier. There and back or a loop would be good.

I probably asking too much !

[nate]

I done the old frenchmans cap route across the soddens in July when it was raining non stop for 3 days. And loved it !

[andrewa]

Nate, I'm not sure that the Taswegians would like their state referred to as "the South Island" ( see initial thread)!!

[nate]

Hahahaha. No didn't mean that. I just know a lot of people on here have hiked Tassie + NZ south island so I was just using the very few references I know in Tas as some guidance as to what I have enjoyed/tried before. Sorry to Offend.

[wayno]

re the Kepler, time wise it takes me seven hours from brod bay to Iris Burn... if you go from Iris burn, you're 300m higher than Brod Bay.... the rangers won't stop you from having a cook up on the hut deck at Luxmore on the way through to brod bay.
you can camp anywhere as long as its at least 500m from the track, theres plenty of places around Luxmore hut area you could camp. who knows how doc determine 500m in real life, basically as long as it doesnt look like its well within 500m of the track and you'll be right.... you dont need to be 500m from the track in the bush to be invisible from the track....

[wayno]

Nelson lakes is heavily infested with wasps in summer

[wayno]

the dart river track should be open early feb

[andrewa]

Yuk. Wasps are a real downer......(or actually an upper in my case..... I have never scrambled so quickly up a bluff in the Kahurangi NP as when I was being chased and bitten by a small group of wasps! Absolute *&%$#! aren't they?)

[wayno]

they've infested a lot of the valley beech forest in the northern south island...

[Strider]

Yuk. Wasps are a real downer......(or actually an upper in my case..... I have never scrambled so quickly up a bluff in the Kahurangi NP as when I was being chased and bitten by a small group of wasps! Absolute *&%$#! aren't they?)

Bitten????

[andrewa]

Bitten. Yep. They're like bulldogs. Great big teeth. Salivating wildly, as they chase you through the forest. Bitten , definitely!

[forest]

Hi nate

Have you experienced NZ huts before ? They can be pretty darn good. Especially when it's feral weather. I know there's always the exception but I find ear plugs solves all hut issues over there. NZ, especially down south of Queenstown can be pretty savage for sand flies if your camped up in beech forest.

It might be worth an email to DOC NZ regarding the Rees Dart track. It's an amazing walk and would fit your bill nicely. If you camped you could do the Cascade saddle route from the matukituki valley (Wanaka side) to Dart Hut then come out via the Rees Track / Valley. (Probably don't camp on Cascade saddle though as the resident Kea's are real tent rippers).
Spend a night in Glenorchy then straight over to the Routeburn. Then transfer back to Queenstown.

Routeburn is pretty hard to go past, easily looped with the Caples Track. I'm a big pusher of the Routeburn as bang for buck/distance it's a real jem. Kepler would be good too. Logistics in NZ is great for getting around. The companies that run you around on the tracks are great.
You could transfer from Queenstown to Te Anau, Kepler. Walk that then transfer to the Routeburn ?? Would mean a 3hr trip to Te Anau at the start but you would finish on the right side of the range only a 45min trip back to Queenstown.

So many options over there, like I said the logistics of walks is just so much easier with the transfer companies. In the scheme of a big trip the cost is well worth it IMO.

Great options on cheaper flights straight to Queenstown in late March. I have a trip booked myself to be over there for a stint.
I wrote up about my last trip here.
viewtopic.php?f=43&t=9464

[wayno]

OI FOREST! shut up about the Routeburn, thats supposed to be a closely (albeit badly) guarded secret....