Day 5: Long Hilly Track

Highlight:

Arriving at Martins Hut (1905)  to find some other Te Araroa walkers was a well received surprise. We expected an empty hut, as next the NOBO group is a full day ahead.

It was great to have some conversation

• General hiker intel
• What was to come tomorrow for Bald Hill.
• Some ideas on food (red lentils are back on the table).

Kirsty's and Eisa's Te Araroa journey started a year ago, like many their adventure was put on pause with Covid alert level 4. They are now are a few days away from Bluff after restarting at Wanaka and Arthur's Pass respectively.

Challenge:

The prevailing southern wind soon made itself known as we left Colac Bay. The rain was quick to follow, arriving like a million neddles on to our bare legs. A quick stop to add our rain pants, despite these only weighing 100g, once on they felt like a cossy blanket stopping the wind in its tracks.

Learning:

Round Hill and Long Hilly hold the remains of gold mining. While walking on Ports Water Race track I appreciated the effort taken to construct the race a century ago.

Summary: