Travel: From Pancake Rocks to Arthur’s Pass
Wow, $10 for a pizza and … BAM! Head to toe smashes into a pole, right next to Maggie, and right in front of two people.
It was painful, but apparently it serves me right for not listening and being distracted by a pizza deal. Anyway, welcome to Greymouth.
Dylan du Ross, who recently left Hawke’s Bay, is sharing his travel experiences around New Zealand.
It's not always beaches we get to stay at.
A few hours earlier, en route to Greymouth, we stopped at oddly one of the most famous tourist attractions in New Zealand.
The Pancake or Punakaiki Rocks. What makes these rocks so special you ask? Well I'm not sure, and neither are geologists, which is why they are so special. No one knows why they eroded into the shapes that they did. This and some spectacular advertising.
The place was packed. A mini town was even built around it. I thought It'd be dryly funny if I bought pancakes there, $18.50 told me otherwise.
After the Pancake Rocks, Greymouth, and a flat tyre, a sign told us we were in Arthur's Pass. The drop in temperature gave us the warning. I thought summer was just ending. Evidently not. For the four nights we stayed there I found myself inside a sleeping bag, with a puffy jacket on, over two jerseys and a t-shirt. Something that I was not used to.
The rain kept coming down, it just didn't stop.
We had big plans for Arthur's Pass, but every hour the rain fell, the higher the rivers were and the likelihood of us being able to cross them decreased. Barker Hut was a notable absentee. But you can only play with the cards in front of you, so we got on with it.
And if we were playing cards, Avalanche Peak was the king of diamonds. A 3km ascent that takes an estimated four hours to get up. That's going less than 1 km an hour. The climb pace speaks volumes about the track's steepness.
Tree roots were proving to be our saviour as we scrambled up the dirt track. Every step, a mindful one. Personally, the climbing element to the track made it more enjoyable, it was a nice change from walking all the time. What wasn't a nice change was the indecisive temperature, going from cold to hot to freezing. The constant change of clothes grew tiring, so I sucked it up and wore a t-shirt the whole way. A podcast I listened to not long ago described the benefits of being cold. A mantra of “cold is good” repeated itself for the rest of the hike.
Avalanche Peak was also my first experience of the famous Kea bird. It's the only alpine parrot in the world, and is nicknamed “the clown” due to its willingness to entertain. I've heard others call it by different names, but that's only after it's ripped a hole in their tent. In this moment, a photographer was sitting down with three around him, two being cautious, and the other going right in, biting his shoe. A couple flew away displaying their vibrant colours which are normally hidden in the inside of their wings. They truly are a miraculous bird.
Eventually the track hits snow.
I was joyous as I hadn't been able to pick up snow in a very long time. Childish dreams of a snowball fight or building a snowman came and quickly passed. No one else was that bothered.
The track, as usual, started to get tough. A scramble to the top occurred as the loose rocks kept us on our toes, and hands at this point. We were close to the summit.
And there we were, standing at 1833m above sea level, eating peanut butter & jam sandwiches, admiring everything below, and everything that still towered above us. This was insane. It reminded me of the saying “there is always going to be someone better than you”. And although this is true, I'm not sure if I'd want to be on the tallest mountain, rather than admiring its brilliance from below. I guess when I learn how to rock climb, I'll find out.
Now that's an adventure that I really do look forward to.
