Tag: Mini-Hike

The other week on Wellington Regional Anniversary weekend (Monday 25th January), I decided to walk back up Boulder Hill as it had been 9 months since I first went up that hill and wanted to see how I feared now that I had been on this walking lark for the past 10 months (10 months!  Man how time flies!).  This time I took a friend with me (the same friend that went on the Rimataka Incline walk with me on New Years Eve).  

We set off about mid mourning, I won’t be going into great detail on the ascent as that can be read about in my previous posting on this walk.  But I did find the walk up a lot easier than the last time.  The first section of 4wd track I did without really much effort at all, and didn’t actually need to stop for a rest for the entire ascent, which took us 1 hr 20 mins.  I was quite happy with that effort actually.  It was quicker than last time which took about 1 hr 40 mins.  We only paused for a brief rest (no sandwiches this time, i’m a serious walker now, not a picnic-er) and time to pose for photos and we were off down the hill.

Me at the to of Boulder Hill

Once again, I was pretty happy with the initial descent as my knees were not hurting at all really.  My feet were, and my blisters were coming back.  But we stopped at the park bench where the Boulder Hill track meets the “Dry  Creek Loop” track.  There I put on my new remedy for blisters – Hiker’s Wool – which is basically just a slightly washed sheep wool you stuff in your sock next to the area that is rubbing and hurting, and it stops it rubbing and hurting.  Simple, but brilliant and effective.  I’ve been using it a lot since then.  The only other pain I was having was from my black toe, courtesy of my previous walk up the Rimataka Incline.

It was at this point we made a slightly ill advised decision.  Drawing on my vague memory of the park map, and making a best guest, I asked my companion if she would like to turn off here and return via the Dry Creek Loop track.  Thinking that it would be the same distance and difficulty as what we came up.

She foolishly agreed with my suggestion and off we went.

It wasn’t the same length, it was 3 km longer.

It wasn’t the same difficulty, there were some significant hills and declines on the way.

I was not impressed with myself.  It was a hot day.  I hadn’t packed snacks (although luckily had enough water), and my friend was just getting over a cold (and as it turns out, had an infection). 

Although she is much fitter than I am, she started to feel pretty ill and faint as we progressed further and further along.  She did an amazing job actually, as me in the same position would have been in tears.  It did make me kick myself for making such a rookie mistake as taking an unfamiliar path.  But we made it out no harm or foul, so all’s well that ends well.

Belmont Regional Park Map

Overall though I am pretty happy with how I managed the walk.  Besides the frustration of going sideways when I thought we were going forward, and making a poor route decision, I managed the track, hills, and declines well.  Much better than 9 months ago.

It is now only 2 months until I do the Milford Track.  I feel my fitness is coming along well.  I am now picking up the effort in my walking and trying to try hard at the dieting.   I worry about my stamina on prolonged and steep uphills. But although I may struggle, I do recover quickly once the hill is over, or I stop for a breather. Which does give me confidence that I can cope with what the Milford Track will throw at me.

I need to turn my mind again to equipment and clothing for the walk, as I am not happy with some of the things I have.  But that is the fun part.

On boxing day last year (26/12/2015, for those unfamiliar with the term) I had planned with my sister and brother to do the walk from the Desert Road across to Whakapapa Village (where the historic Managatepopo walk started all those months before), walking between Mounts Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe.

Originally I was wanting to do an overnight walk by myself on Boxing day, starting at Whakapapa Village and walking to the Waihohonu hut, overnight there, then walk back.  But the hut was mostly fully booked by the time I came to look at it, so changed plans.  We chose to walk this direction because, as a one way walk, we would need to be dropped off and picked back up, and going this way meant we were walking towards cafes rather than away from them.

The route was long, and the day was really hot.  Although I packed in about 2 litres of water with me, by the end of it I was starting to worry I would run out.  But didn’t.

For the most part this track was beautifully well maintained.  A good distance of it is also a well-used track to the Tama Lakes which is a popular tourist walk about 5 hours round trip from Whakapapa Village.  It was nothing like the Mangatepopo track which even the DOC ranger we spoke to said was terrible. She was saying that it needs to be completely rebuilt as it is too far gone for maintenance to fix it.  I am glad I am not alone in my appraisal of that track (I was worried I was just a fat whiner).

Track Start

There is not really much to say about the walk itself, as it was completely drama free.  And let’s face it, it is the drama, whining, complaining, and general moaning that make these blogs remotely enjoyable.

Walking with my brother and sister was interesting.  I did get a perverse joy from hearing the few complaints that they made.  Mostly my sister was grumbling that I didn’t stop for a rest often enough (I did every hour, thank you!), she has relegated me to the same position held by her husband in the “walking without stopping” ranks, which I kind-of take as a compliment.

Andrea at Waihohonu Hut

I also took a great deal of satisfaction on seeing my brother struggle with the up-hills.  Historically my brother has always been fitter and thinner than me, although he has let himself go . . . a lot . . . in the past couple of decades, he is probably still fitter, and he is definitely faster at walking than I am.  But looking back and seeing him doubled over with his hands on his knees on some of the longer up-hill stretches was immensely satisfying.  Does that make me a bad person?

To add insult to exhaustion there was a side trip (10 minutes each way) to the Lower Tama lake which I wasn’t that keen on doing as we walked the four hours from the start to where the track diverts to Tama Lakes.

Lower Tama Lake

However when we did arrive at the junction I was a slight bit ahead of my siblings (we had just walked up an incline and they were recovering while I walked on) so I waited there for them.  When they got there we had a discussion about whether we should do the side trip.  They were dead against it, so now I really wanted to do it.  So they waited there and I walked to the lakes.  It was awesome.

So I was fairly well pleased with how that walk went.  I believe it is the single longest walk that I have ever done, clocking in at just over 25 km (taking about 6.5 hours) it is easily longer (distance wise) than anything that I will encounter on the Milford Track (the longest day on that walk being 18 km).  This walk also demonstrated to me how far I have come since March 2015 when I first started on this endeavour.

Hike Selfie

My next big Mini-Hike (yes I am aware of the oxymoron inherent in that phrase) came on 25th April, ANZAC day.  I like to partly think that I chose this walk in honour of my ancestor and his charge and death on Chunuk Bair, and I certainly did think on it as I walked up, mostly thinking about how I wouldn’t have even made it to the beach at Gallipoli, such a sad excuse of a physical specimen I am.

Anyway, I decided that I would go on another one of the walks I saw in Belmont Regional Park when I did the Waterfall Track.  I did a bit of research and decided that Boulder Hill is what I felt like doing.  Various descriptions had it from “easy” to “steep”, so figured it would be a good challenge.

I set off, wearing the new pair of boots I had bought a few weeks earlier, at about 9:30 am.  There was initially a sharp climb for a minute or two to a 4WD track which wound up the side of the Dry Creek Valley for about 1.5 km.  It was not too steep, but still a challenge and got me well out of breath, having to pause frequently.  But a good even track.  At the top I got my first sight of my goal and thought . . . oh bugger . . .

View from 4WD track of Boulder Hill in the distance.

the photo here doesn’t quite convey the impact, it did look both far away and high.  But, in the spirit of ANZAC I soldiered on, however not in the spirit of ANZAC I did complain a fair bit about it.

The track from here went off across farm land, and although there were a few declines, it was predominately an incline.  The transmission lines marked the half-way point (I discovered on the way back), and soon after the climb up Boulder Hill proper started.  At least I thought it did.

I got to a rest spot (read Park Bench) where another track meets the Boulder Hill track and rested for a spell.  Then continued on, and from there it did get proper steep.  I thought I was walking up hill before, I wasn’t. For the next kilometer it was serious hard graft.  But I was alone, and not on a clock, so could correctly pace myself.  And then finally . . . I wasn’t at the top.  It was one of those horrible moments where you get to where you think you are at the top, but then look further ahead and “OH CRAP!”.

At least is wasn’t too far to go.  Across a fence with a stile and then a short climb and I was at the top.  And it was an amazing sight, and an amazing feeling.  From the top of Boulder Hill I could see out to Wellington Harbour, across to Porirua harbour, and then back down the Hutt Valley from whence I came.  There was even a small pile of boulders to mark the summit.

The view of Wellington Harbour from the top of Boulder Hill

I took various photos and then sat down (in the wind which was significant) to enjoy a sandwich well earned, soaking in a feeling of accomplishment, not unlike that I am sure Sir Edmond Hillary felt on Everest.  Then a couple of woman jogged on past from the way I had just huffed and puffed up.  Cows.  Way to minimise my achievement.

View of Porirua Harbour from the top of Boulder Hill

Post sandwich I commenced on that which I was dreading the entire journey up . . .  the journey down.  Once again, slowly does it, and although not a technically ‘difficult’ as the Waterfall Track was on my knees, it was long, steep, and unrelenting decline.  I made it without much drama.  No slips or strains.  My knees ached like all-get-out, and there was the occasional sharp searing pain in the tendons behind my knee (a really strange and disturbing feeling).  But I made it.

The view of the Hutt Valley from the top of Boulder Hill

The rest of the walk, down the 4WD track was fairly routine.  I experimented a bit with different walking strides and technique to see what would hurt least.  I think “knees bent” is the way to go.  Not stiff legs – short strides.

By the time I reached the car I was pretty much at my endurance limit.  The knees were very sore and the legs getting stiff. For the rest of the day I was quite sore and stiff.  It got better later in the day, and the next day I was walking fine, and even put in my standard 4 km walk that The Plan™ dictated.  But the Monday after I decided I would benefit from a rest.  And it was a public holiday.

All up I am glad I did this Mini-Hike.  It was nearly 10 km, and took about 3 hours, which isn’t a bad pace for me.  And 5 km walk up the whole way is a decent effort.  It leaves me feeling like I might actually be able to do this Milford Track.

Next on the agenda is a Chateau to Mangatepopo Hutt walk in Tongariro National Park on Queens Birthday weekend (the end of May).  So my focus is on that now.

After my first week on The Plan™ I was feeling quietly confident and still optimistic about this entire endeavour.   I had already incorporated into The Plan™ to do a Mini-Hike on this first Saturday, and I wanted to keep it short.  So a bit of research into the local surrounds kicked up a couple of good looking walks at the near-by Dry Creek entrance to Belmont Regional Park.  Only about 7 minutes drive from home.

I figured that The Waterfall Track sounded like an ideal first up walk for me.  It was easy grade, about 35 min one way, ended in a waterfall.

It proved to be way more challenging than I was expecting.  The grade was easy, which was disconcerting because I still found it tough at times.  What was difficult was that it was basically walking up a stream bed – and it wasn’t dry.  The path crossed the stream regularly, really the best definition was “criss-crossed” and that wasn’t a problem.  What was a challenge for me was that the steps up and down were quite high.  Now I can step up just fine, stepping down is another issue.

Looking down the track from the Waterfall. It is really just a stream.

I have damaged my knees on a number of occasions through my life.  Starting when I was 16 when I completely twisted one knee 90º and then spent a week in hospital followed by 3 months in a full leg cast.  Since then I have dislocated my knee cap twice and am now very careful of twisting my knees.  My nightmare is that I will wrench my knee while out on one of these walks.  Even one as close to civilization as The Waterfall Track.

So any time I am presented with a uneven surface or even small drop I have to negotiate, it takes me time, and also hurts.

Interesting fact:  When walking a stress 3-6 times your body weight is exerted on your knees with each step, when walking down hill the forces on the knee are 3 to 4 times greater than level walking.  So for a man my weight, I have up to 4488 kg of compressive force on my knees when walking down hill!  No wonder they hurt!

Added to this stress was that I was walking over a lot of wet slippery stones.  Slipping makes Jordan sad.  I actually had one big slip on this walk on a boulder.  Luckily it was a slow slip, so could control it, to the dulcet tones of “oh f..k, f..k, f..k, f..k, f………….k!”

I did have my handy dandy hiking pole with me which was a big help.  Don’t leave home without it (honestly I don’t, I keep it in the boot of my car).

After about 40 minutes walking I was beginning to despair, not knowing how much further I had to go, and worrying that I would do to much to soon, and that I would get myself into a position I would struggle to get out of (even though the park’s website said that this walk was suitable for children, bugger it).  And was contemplating turning back and trying about another day, I spied the the waterfall ahead around a bend.

The Waterfall at the end of the Waterfall Track in Belmont Regional Park (Dry Creek entrance)

At this point I abandoned the track which wanted me to climb up and then down a particularly dodgy section of track (in my estimation) and just walked along the stream bed.  The waterfall itself was actually quite beautiful.  And all the more so for the effort I had to put in to get there.  All up it took me 45 minutes to get there.

On the walk out I was very circumspect with my foot placement and path I took.  I mostly abandoned the path and it’s ups and downs, and walked along the stream.  This seemed to work better for me, but was slow going.  By the time got out my legs were trembling.  My right forearm was very sore as a result of jarring it when I slipped, and the weight it was bearing onto the hiking pole.  But I made it, with little injury and a sense of accomplishment.

It was a little disheartening that what was essentially a simple walk caused me such hassles, but I have to bear in mind that it was only after one week of conditioning, and I didn’t expect to do well.

If I keep up doing those sorts of walks, my knee and leg strength will improve.  My balance and coordination will improve, and my risk of injury at Milford will decrease.

And I wasn’t too sore the next day.