I recently visited the south end of the South Island of New Zealand for a holiday with Wendy. On our three week visit we mainly did bushwalks but also some sight seeing. Our first walk was near Wanaka and it was out and back along a section of the Motatapu Track.
The Motatapu Track leaves from near Glendhu Bay on Lake Wanaka and goes across the mountains to Arrowtown (near Queenstown). A lot of the track passes through private land. When the land was sold a number of years back to some North American music multi-millionaires part of the condition of sale was that a track and huts be constructed to provide for a public tramping track. The track also provides part of the route of the Te Araroa Trail that goes right down the entire length of New Zealand.
We arrived at the start of the track around midday, and walked up a pleasant valley through farmland for the first kilometre before climbing through beautiful remnant beach forest. Higher up, the forest gave way to tussock country and the track wound its way up a narrow valley to bring us out at Fern Burn Hut. We spent the first night at the 12 bunk hut together with 2 local trampers.
Next morning, the local trampers set off earlier than we did and they missed a helicopter call at the hut. Someone had set off a PLB and the pilot wanted to check out the hut logbook as the rescue beacons GPS signal seemed to be confused. We found later that the chopper did indeed rescue a tramper at the next hut with a broken ankle.
The second day, was more climbing up through tussock country, continuing up the valley to Jack Hall Saddle and then very steeply down the other side and across a creek and more sidling to arrive in the early afternoon at Highland Creek Hut. This is another comfortable 12 bunk hut, with great views of the surrounding mountains.
After a short break, we both walked to the next high point for a view ahead of the Motatapu Valley.
Then a pleasant and comfortable evening at the hut before setting out the next morning to walk back to Glendhu Bay. The walk back seemed faster than the walk in and was quite pleasant.
This was a good start to our New Zealand holiday.
More photos are online on my website here.