Day 1
The Copland track was recommended to us by a Warm-shower user Spencer and I met a few days ago. Bob said that this 2 day trek was one of his favorites he has done in all of New Zealand and in no way has it been a disappointment for either of us with the exception of the constant downpour of rain for the day.
So, this morning we had a choice, we could have cycled to the start of the track which was on our route anyway but with the risk of birds ripping apart out belongings (a real issue in these parts) or leave the things we didn't need at the hostel at Fox Glacier and hitch down to the beginning of the track 26 kilometers away. We opted for the latter as luggage storage at the hostel was free and I had met two german girls who were keen to drive us to where we needed to start.
Spencer and I set off around 9:30am and broke up the trip in 3 stages. First having a short break at the Architect Creek hut, a prolonged rest period at the Welcome hut and ending up at the Douglas rock at the end of the day. The whole trip took us (2 relatively fit guys) about 11 hours of solid trekking through some beautiful scenery and although most of our views were hindered behind the rain clouds above what we saw were backdrops of purely incredible, enormous, stunning mountains.
Arriving at the Welcome Hut at 18km into the trek we went to see the natural hot pools of which there are three, one warm, one hot, and one for those who like to poach themselves. As we approached we could hear people chit chatting away and we found a group of people stark naked in the extremely hot pool. It's an unbelievable surreal place to be, I'm not talking about the naked people but the hot pools with an amazing backdrop is like nothing else on the planet; well, from my 10 year stint of traveling the world.
Most people travel up to the Welcome hut and spend the night to return the next day but we still had to make it to the Douglas rock hut 7 more kilometers away, and as we lost track of time because we were enjoying the relaxation properties of the hot pools we had to pick up the pace otherwise we could be stuck in the dark on some technically challenging terrain.
It continued to rain and every so often we would be offered a glimpse of the high mountains from the valley floor we were hiking on but soon the terrain became tougher and tougher to a point where we had to ford many rivers - this was incredibly difficult at one point as the river water was moving very fast at depths up to my thigh. After a series of attempts and now soaking wet shoes to cross this one tributary we were close to giving up but found eventually found an alternative route through shallower and less rapid water across it.
I suppose one wish I have is that tomorrow when we have to return over this treacherous terrain I want it to have not rained any more and it is possible for us to cross it again.
So unable to stop due to the lack of daylight we had we kept on trucking, my shoes now falling apart to the hut, the path took us along the mountain edge and around recent landslide areas, though grassy wet lands, over wire (and frightening) bridges, across dry river beds, all of which surrounded by high peaks; it really was a wonderful trek but a very demanding one, especially when you attempt the whole 25km but it is a hike that doesn't gain much elevation so you are always surrounded by mountains with no real vantage point above to get a panoramic of the area.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to take many photos as I didn't want to risk breaking my camera to rain and moisture. Hopefully tomorrow it will be better weather for not only photos but also crossing that one river. I am a little worried about that.
Relieved but exhausted we finally arrived at the Douglas rock hut rock not long before dark where we immediately started the wood stove to dry out our things and cook dinner.
Day 2
Although we were informed at the Welcome Hut that today's weather was going to be much the same as yesterday, if not worse, we were happy to see some blue sky trying to make residence above us. This made the technical first few kilometers much more enjoyable but later the rain did set in and like yesterday there was nothing we could do to avoid it.
The hiking today taking the path of which we hiked yesterday with the only difference, and also a huge surprise was that tributary we struggled across being almost dry; we had been told that some areas were prone to flash flooding but we had no idea the extent of which it could change so dramatically. Yesterday it was a raging torrent and today a simple stream meaning the crossing was quick and without peril.
The rest of the hike was progressively more arduous as we were both getting more and more tired but we eventually made it.. Only to be left hitch hiking on the road surrounded by sand flies.
It took roughly 45 minutes to get a ride back to fix were we immediately freshened up and ate a quick pasta dish I knocked up.
I do not recommend wearing sneakers as I did because my feet for the last 10km of hiking felt like the skin on the bottom of each foot was about to slide off, it was excruciating. Advice - Get some good shoes for these hikes.
Totaling 54km of hiking the Copland trail was rough but an unforgettable experience, highly recommended and worthwhile if you continue on to The Douglas Rock hut and watch for flash floods - don't ford the river as we did, things could have ended much worse if the flooding had increased.
The Douglas Rock hut, Copland Valley Trail
The Hot Springs, Incredible no?
