On the Routeburn Track
On the track towards Harris Saddle. We didn't take Dedmans track. It looked deadly:
There's the track in front of me: all uphill. It felt like forever getting to the top of those mountains:
My pack contained: a waterproof jacket, thermals, spare shirt, spare trousers, sox, undies, beanie, gloves, sleeping bag, basic toiletries (enough for 5 days), very small towel, loo paper, tissues, wet ones, 5 plates, 5 cups, cutlery, 1/5 of all our food, a pair of flip-flops, sunscreen, water, contour map, compass, 2 fleecy jumpers, teatowel, writing journal, pen, small first aid kit, rubbish bag (we had to carry all our rubbish out again). Phil and the teens carried the billy cans, torch, spare stuff etc. We didn't take tents. We probably should have in case we got stuck out overnight. We probably should have taken a small emergency burner as well, but didn't because the huts had gas stoves. Next time we will, just in case.
My new pack was great, with most of the weight carried by my hips. It didn't drag my shoulders down at all, though I needed the double hiking sticks to take the pressure off my knees when I climbed uphill, which was good because it gave my arms a workout as well.
The adults were pleased to announce they burned up a total of 8 kilos of fat between them on the Routeburn. The teens kept themselves fuelled up with Mars Bars and trail food.
There's the track in front of me: all uphill. It felt like forever getting to the top of those mountains:
My pack contained: a waterproof jacket, thermals, spare shirt, spare trousers, sox, undies, beanie, gloves, sleeping bag, basic toiletries (enough for 5 days), very small towel, loo paper, tissues, wet ones, 5 plates, 5 cups, cutlery, 1/5 of all our food, a pair of flip-flops, sunscreen, water, contour map, compass, 2 fleecy jumpers, teatowel, writing journal, pen, small first aid kit, rubbish bag (we had to carry all our rubbish out again). Phil and the teens carried the billy cans, torch, spare stuff etc. We didn't take tents. We probably should have in case we got stuck out overnight. We probably should have taken a small emergency burner as well, but didn't because the huts had gas stoves. Next time we will, just in case.
My new pack was great, with most of the weight carried by my hips. It didn't drag my shoulders down at all, though I needed the double hiking sticks to take the pressure off my knees when I climbed uphill, which was good because it gave my arms a workout as well.
The adults were pleased to announce they burned up a total of 8 kilos of fat between them on the Routeburn. The teens kept themselves fuelled up with Mars Bars and trail food.