Lindsay and the Tramp, v. 3.0: The "S" Word

This weekend was a tramp planned to cover the East Side of the Around the Mountain Circuit, from Dawson Falls Visitor Centre to Holly Hut (see below, doing the counterclockwise trip Saturday, then back clockwise Sunday).

We decided to spend the night before at Dawson Falls Lodge, a cozy Swiss themed historic lodge, so we'd be well rested and could get an early start on Saturday.

The lodge...

The inside--- how cozy!

I looked quite funny by the midget-sized doors.  I thought the Swiss were tall?

It rained cats and dogs Friday night, but Saturday morning it cleared!  But still a few clouds on the mountain.  There were some forecasted showers and snow(!) for Saturday, but we started our tramp and played it by ear.

 Of course I had to stop for a waterfall photo :)

Another waterfall in the distance...

What a GORGEOUS clear day!

I was able to grab a quick photo of a wood pigeon, hanging out high in the trees.   Beautiful color!

Our first stop was this parking lot, which was the car access for the Ski Field.  Yes, not only can you tramp on a dormant volcano, you can also ski here, too!

Welcome to Backcountry!   Watch out for Avalanches!  (eep!)

The ski lodge is on the left. The cable on the right carries a basket called the "Flying Fox", which is how they can transport supplies across the Manganui Gorge to the lodge.

Unfortunately the flying fox wasn't available for our use, so we had to tramp down then up the other side of the gorge.   Steep!

 
When we reached the other side, to where the ski lift and slopes actually are, it started to... yes... the "S" word--- snow!

Let it snow!    And sleet!  The sleet looked more like chunks of rock salt!   It hurt when it pelted you in the face!  

 But we were still smiling, regardless.  

It was about here when we stopped at another hut and talked to another tramper that warned us of the ice ahead.  ICE?  jeeps.   We did NOT have ice gear with us.   Luckily, Lincoln knows the mountain well and devised a safer alternate tramp for us.

Plan B!

It's Accumulating!

In the middle of the picture there's a small bump.  That's Maketawa Hut, our new destination.

And finally----  Hello, Maketawa Hut!

So, Lincoln headed inside the hut to start up the fire, and I got busy with arts and crafts outside.

My first NZ snowman!

 And then a snowbow! 

The snow and such settled down overnight, and Sunday was quite a clear day.   The tramping was quite a workout, with several climbs up and down gorges 200 meters high!   A challenge for the quads, for sure!

 Sometimes ladders and stairs were available to make things easier....

 Here's a suspension bridge that made things easier and scarier at the same time!

So, after almost 5 hrs of tramping each day, never reaching our planned destination due to the temperamental weather on Mt Egmont (but still having quite the scenic workout!), we arrived back at Dawson Falls Lodge.  Only one boo-boo this time--- yours truly slipped on a rock and rolled down a hill a few feet--- no broken bones--- just a bruised knuckle and a broken walking pole!

(Sorry about your pole, Lincoln...)  :(

 Happy Trampers-- all done!

And after a little (rain) shower, the Sunday afternoon rainbow tradition returned!   I swear it's a sign....

Another weekend adventure in the books!  (or shall I say "blogs"....) :)

Cheers!



Kiwi Cusine part 2: Farmer's Markets.... and Farmer Linz

Last weekend I was able to explore not one but TWO farmers markets--- one right here Saturday morning in Hawera (advertised NOWHERE, just happened to come up in conversation with one of the nurses earlier in the week), and another one in New Plymouth on Sunday.

Here are some of my purchases!

Front row-  Cow's milk Feta!
Back row Left to right:   Pickled beets, Honey Roasted Macadamia Nut Butter, Kiwi Raspberry Jam

With the exception of the jam, all products have been Linz taste-tested, and absolutely delcious.

In other culinary adventures, I cooked lamb for the first time!   I'm not ready for complicated racks or roasts yet, so I decided to start it simple with ground lamb burgers.   Used the feta on it---- SCRUMPTIOUS!

Lastly, while New Zealand has been a great adventure thus far, I have to admit- I do have my days of feeling quite lonely.   A good friend gave me a suggestion that growing some plants from seed may help.

Beetroot, Cucumber, and Watermelon--- my new houseguests!

And, as a bonus, my favorite tramping buddy showed up at my doorstep with a tomato plant this afternoon!    Doctor Linz by day, Farmer Linz by night :)

I'll keep you updated of their progress!  Fresh veggies by Christmas hopefully! 

Running on the Wrong Side of the Road

Have I been in this country two months already?   Must be, because I signed up for the New Plymouth Half Marathon pretty much right after I arrived, knowing I had two months to train, and look, here it was this weekend!

I decided to make the race a reason to visit NP for the entire weekend.  The weather was PERFECT.  Skies were blue and not a cloud was to be found on Mount Egmont!

This is the same mountain I've been tramping on, but the skies haven't been this clear in 2 months!

I drove up to NP early Saturday morning to catch a used book sale (more on that in a future blog), and to check out the course.   The start and finish was at Pukekura Raceway, a thoroughbred racing track.

Other than driving the route to see where all the hills were, I took it easy for most of the day--- strolling again along the coastal walkway and watching some Kitesurfers and Windsurfers do their thing. 

They make it look so gosh darn easy!

Call me a dork, but I got a NZ jersey shirt on sale, and just HAD to wear it for my first NZ race.

After some pasta and a surprsingly restful, quiet night at the hostel, it was raceday!    1200 runners and walkers participated.   The course was described by the organizers as "undulating but scenic".  I made it my goal to use my quads of steel and power up all the hills ---- I was able to do just that, and didn't let a single person pass me on any hill!

Action shot!

(graciously reproduced from photo man's website--- thank you Deane Riddick!)

So, after 2 hrs 2 minutes and 21km of scenic farmland rural running (on the wrong side of the road, mind you), and tons more farm animal spectators than human being spectators, I finished! 

This. is. the. fakest. smile. of. my. life.   More of a grimace at the fact I'm ready to collpase.

In addition to a medal and a powerade, every finisher got a chocolate fish, or "choccy fish" as the locals call them.

It's a NZ treat of a fish-shaped, strawberry flavored marshmallow dipped in chocolate.  Not the first thing I had in mind to eat after running 13.1 miles, but of course Linz the chocoholic downed it, STAT. :)

I relaxed the rest of the day in New Plymouth, hitting up a farmers market (will blog more about this next time), and surprise calling my mom from a pay phone to her cell to wish her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY from New Zealand!!!

In summary, a weekend of sunshine, scenic running, and chocolate.... three things that ALWAYS make me happy!

Cheers from your favorite international runner!

Spring has Sprung!

Officially, September 1st was the first day of Spring here in NZ.  With all the cold and rainy days, it sure didn't feel like it.
Last weekend was Daylight Savings Time.  We sprung forward, which the later sunset helps it feel a tad more like spring.  We had two GORGEOUS sunny days this week, on which my colleague Steve discovered a true blue sign of spring----

Asparagus!   YAAAAY!
Steve found a farm one town away that was selling fresh asparagus.  He cooked me up some and had me instantly hooked.  Within five minutes of finishing my bowl, we were in the car to go get some more!

For a few facts, there are 200 growers of asparagus in NZ, producing 500 tons of the tasty stuff every year.  There are about 24 million asparagus plants in the country (that's nearly as many as the number of sheep here!). 

The farm had a sign along the highway with directions, and a little serve yourself roadside shed.  Here's Steve in the shed checking the fridge to find me a fresh bunch!

Gotta love the honor system. :)

Here's my purchase!  Freshly picked and BEAUTIFUL.

Did you know that asparagus ranks #2 (behind OJ) for best sources of folic acid?

Three minutes in boiling water, and voila!

Yes, I ate it all.   And it was delicious!


Hopefully this is the start of a spring full of produce adventures!

Lindsay and the Tramp, version 2.0

So my tramping buddy Lincoln knew I have a half marathon coming up next weekend, so he took it easy on me this time.   We hit up Mount Egmont again, this time from the southwest.

The black dotted line trail in the Lower Left side of the mountain was our tramp--- the Ihaia Track to the Waiaua Gorge Hut. 

 Ihaia? Waiaua?  With all the a's, i's, and u's in theses Maori names, all it'd take would be to slap on an "-ski" and you've got one heckuva Polish name, doncha think?  :)

Anyways, since the tramp was a short one (2 hrs each way), we had an early afternoon start, with absolutely gorgeous weather.  Check it out--- i'm dry!!!

We passed the remnants of an old hut, which only used to have about 4 beds in it.  Talk about tight quarters!   Hopefully the other guests were nice, quiet (and not too smelly!) back then!

The tramp was through lots of moss and forests, definitely somewhat spooky-looking...

Fog makes just about anything look creepy!

There were a few river crossings, involving more rock and boulder hopping than actual river fording:

So a quick two hour trip (only half of it rainy!) to arrive to our home for the evening, Waiaua Gorge Hut!

Hello, Hut!

A peek at the inside:

The view from the front porch:

There was a tiny waterfall in the distance, but mainly TONS of trees!

Here's the helicopter landing site for hikers with bad boo-boos.  (only boo-boos this trip were a Lincoln wardrobe malfunction and a Linz 'tree branch versus face" incident).  No helicopters necessary for either.

We had two others joining us in the hut this time-- a young guy who got lost in the dark the night before, and this little man who got a free ride in on my pack!

Call me a meanie, but I made him sleep outside on the porch.  :)

The night consisted of another INCREDIBLE steak dinner, and a nightime porch visit by a cute little possum!   I wish I could've grabbed the camera in time, but didn't.    These possums must know when there's a gourmet chef like Lincoln staying the night....

The next morning...after an awesome bacon n eggs breakfast, we headed back down the mountain.    While the rain mostly stayed away, there was *plenty* of water on the trail! At some points we were almost up to our knees in water and mud!

I received some nature lessons, including learning about this tree:

The rimu is a large coniferous tree endemic to NZ.   It used to be called a red pine.  It used to be a great source of timber for furniture and housebuilding for NZ, but now it's protected.  It's absolutely beautiful the way the branches and pines just softly sag.   Kind of looks like a green Snuffalupogus.  

So, the two hour trek back (NO rain whatsoever on the return!) and we were back where we started.  Success!

(PS, that sign lies, the OLD track used to take 1hr 40 mins, the NEW one takes 2 hours each way--- or longer if you're not as awesome as us....) 

Cheers from the mud bog!