Nirvana: Feb 26, 2016 Great Barrier Island and Mt. Heale Hut

After a few beautiful, then windy and rainy days in Port Fitzroy, we moved on to Smokehouse Bay. Unfortunately the bath, that is heated by a wood fire, was not functioning, and there was a total fire ban, so we couldn't have a bonfire, so we didn't get to enjoy the more unique aspects of this site. Axel was ok with the bath being out of order, as that meant he got to go more days without bathing.

Then through the narrow Man of War passage and into an area of incredible fishing. We anchored off Motutaiko Island for the afternoon so Gary and Gigi could go spearfishing. I took the kayak out to explore the nooks and crannies of the rocks in the island, then Axel and I fished off the boat and caught a few snapper. He got the only one big enough to keep. Gary speared a big kingfish (more than 1 meter) and a lobster. On our way to Whangaparapara Harbour we saw lots of blue penguins and dolphins, and we caught a kahawai. In Whangaparapara Harbour we grabbed a mooring, that Gigi noticed was covered in mussels, so once we were secure, she hopped in the dinghy and harvested a bucket full of mussels. With all this great seafood, we had an amazing feast.

The next day as we prepared for our big hike to the top of Great Barrier Island, we checked the mooring and saw it was chafing, so we moved to anchored off the pier, but the strong south wind made this an uncomfortable location. I checked the weather forecast, as we had cell coverage here in the middle of the harbor, and saw it was supposed to blow 35 knots, so we moved again to a better protected part of the harbor. The hike would have to wait until tomorrow. Fortunately when we woke up the next day, then wind was blowing lightly from the north, so we moved the boat back to the center of the harbor and headed in for our hike.

For PE for the kids school this month, we set a family goal to hike 20 miles, we way surpassed that goal, with our final hike being the biggest by far. Gigi did a great job describing the hike, so here is what she wrote.

One large hike we did was an overnight trip up to the highest point on Great Barrier Island. The first day we drove from Whangaparapara to the head of the hot springs trail then walked, loaded down with heavy backpacks, 45 mins up the very flat and well maintained trail to the hot springs where we soaked before heading off on the main part of the hike. From the hot springs we hiked 3 hours through green forest and hot hillsides passing beautiful lookouts and historical sites to the Mt. Heale Hut where we stayed the night. The view from the Mt. Heale Hut was stunning; looking across numerous green hills and valleys you could see down to the ocean where several boats were nestled in Whangaparapara harbor and as the sun set the open ocean turned to gold and the hills faded into grey. The next day we walked up over 900 stairs to the summit of the mountain which provided a 360 degree view of the entire island. We hiked back down to the hut, picked up our bags, and started back down the trail we had taken the day before. At the second fork in the road we changed our course from the previous day and headed down the tramline track, stopping to swim in a waterfall on the way. In all it took 5 hours and 30 minutes from the hut to the summit and back to the boat. The hike was challenging because of its length and steep slope and left me tired and sore, but was definitely worth it.

We are continually amazed at the engineering that the Kiwis put into their hiking trails. On this hike there were long boardwalks through the wetlands, lots and lots of stairs, and bridges over rivers. The cabin we stayed in appeared to be fairly new and was perfectly maintained. It had 2 sleeping rooms each with a long bunk with mattresses that could hold 5 people, gas stoves with pots and pans, a couple big tables for eating, running water, and electrical lights. It was a great hike, but I am definitely feeling it in my sore muscles.

Cheers,

Julie