Date: 30 October 2015
Party: Anna, Elizabeth, Lesley
Map:
Distance: ?
Elevation: Well something was lifted, if that's what you mean...
Time: ? can't remember now - 3 hours 20?
Notes: This was an in-and-out in our quest to walk all of the tracks in the Waitakeres, and was the other end of a track we have done before. Again we were astonished by how different the route looked on the return trip, and flummoxed as to how we had missed the ABUNDANT orchids growing on the side of the track! And the fabulous fungi. We concluded that on the inbound trip we tend to look at the big picture, and off into the distance, and on the outbound leg we focus more on what's beneath our feet.
Date: July 3 2015
Party: Anna, Elizabeth, Lesley
Map: http://photos2.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/1/8/9/4/highres_282126292.jpeg
Distance: 11.5 km
Elevation: ? Not huge
Time: 3 hours 55 mins
Notes: With Anna's Waitakere books and maps tucked into a box of unknown whereabouts in her new apartment, we took a punt on this in-and-out trip to the Nihotupu Reservoir. An easy walk to the dam, there is a dramatic drop and view across the valley on one side and a calm body of water on the other (yes, quite dam-like). We kept off the dam face, as requested, but were puzzled by the medieval instrument of torture (seen in picture 3 below). Seems a bit primitive to discipline your aberrant DOC workers by dangling them from that cage over the water (although the Kepler's dead-stoat-in-pocket, tardy, yoga guy might just need a dangle). Taking a sharp right at the end of the dam, we slid and slithered our way to the end of Christie's Track, where we crossed a small stream and ended up at Huia Dam Road. Concentrating on our foot placement in all that mud, we had been oblivious to our surroundings, and only on the return journey appreciated the fungi, beautiful natives, lovely streams and waterfalls. We had lunch in the shelter by the dam, where a couple of dodgy looking chaps strolled past, and then met a party of four who were even dodgier. We were not surprised, then, to see some old not-so-fluffy dice swinging from a tree a little further on. The sights you see out West. We experienced some wet stuff too that seemed to fall from the ceiling of the world, which we later discovered is called 'rain'. Who knew? Home without refreshments with the promise of drinks in the new apartment...another Perfect Friday.
