This text was read by OCR from a scanned newsletter and has not been proofread yet, so expect odd characters and mistakes.
Easy Trip to North Egmont 26 - 28 July 1996
ladder pressure, bad weather and _ being squashed between Hazel’s and Steve's legs were my first impressions of Mount Egmont (or Taranaki; it depends on your treaty claims). The Duchess had parked for the night up at the
roadend, near an old shelter known as the Camphouse. We would have slept in there, but it was locked up pending renovation and full of rat poison besides. What a way to start my first Tongue & Meats trip in a year!
— _ Reb Cruickehank
The weather continued to rain at us through the usual breakfast and pack rearranging until it became clear that we weren’t giving up. The rest of the day was cloudy and windy, not that we were taking any notice. We were push-starting the Duchess for the quick spin to a lookout further down. We didn’t know it was an omen ...
F/X HORROR CHORDS
There were seven of us Easy typés: myself, Keith, Sue, three others whose names I have forgotten, and Kara, who was leader. We were to be led up the garden path, or failing that the Kokowai (?) track to the Holly Hut track. Our stop for the night was the hut of the same name. Unfortunately, our maps were decidedly out of date about the lookout area.
Following the signpost at the first junction, we found ourselves going down a hill, over a stream, and staring at a sign at another junction informing us that the bridge on our route had been removed, and that we should use the Kapawai Bridge, or some name like that. But where the hell was that track?
We tried heading down the next . slope to where the bridge wasn’t, but it was too dangerous. Yes, there were ladders and footbridges, but they were too slippery to gain a secure footing. After I had a spectacular pratfall, it was decided to head back to the first junction and bushbash our _way down the marked, abandoned and utterly impassable track.
= As it turned out, the track to the I Kapawai Hut (and, funnily enough, to the bridge) was just along the other fork. By the time we crossed the bridge and found the turnoff of the Kokowai, it was about noon. We'd been walking back and forth for an hour and a half.
The Kokowai is actually quite steep; we'd got quite a way up by 2 o'clock, when we stopped for lunch at a small clearing behind a large tree with a trunk that appeared to have been twisted like a sock being wrung out.
At about 3pm we finally met up with the Holly Hut track. A stop for catching breath, a snack and photos later, we set out on the last leg. Speaking of legs, mine arrived at the last junction (Holly Hut left, Pouakai Hut right) first. Half an hour later, Sue and friend arrived and informed me that Kara had seriously injured her ankle in a fall. \t was decided to continue to the hut, and see if the warden (if any) could help.
As it turned out, there was no warden, just another lone tramper called. Keith, who was happy to help. By the time we’d returned to where Kara and the rest were slowly wending their way down the track, her pack was already being dealt to and she was able to walk - very carefully. The possibility of torn tendons or equally grisly possibilities was eventually followed by discussion on whether or not to leave Kara behind tomorrow while the rest of us walked back to the roaraise the alarm. Then that topic too was discarded for dinner: a nice vegetable ratatouille and pasta, with chicken for us omnivorous types. That night the wind and cloud were nowhere in sight. With a near full moon in the sky, the mountain looked spectacular. And soto bed. Saturday had had us walking for 512 hours. The next day was fine with only a slight breeze. We'd decided that Kara would stay at the hut whilst the rest of us sloped off to the roadend. Keith offered to check the slips on the track past the Kokowai turnoff; he’s leave a marker at the junction if they were passable.
Between Kokowai and the roadend, the Holly Hut track is cut by several slips, some old, one named (Boomerang Slip) and another very unstable. After breakfasting on last night’s dessert (fruit salad) we took off, and found that the signpost at the Kokowai turnoff had a bit of red tape wrapped about it. Along the top it was, then. Boomerang Slip wasn’t much of a concern, just a lot of very large and unstable-feeling rocks. The next slip, however, had “One Person Per Time” signs and was very worrying. As we went along we found a fair bit of snow all over the place. By noon we'd reached a high ridge that we’d seen from the junction, and a long time later, we came to another junction with the summer route to Matatua Hut (Hope I got the name right). Keith turned up coming the -other-way-as-well, not-to men-_ tion a fair lump of cloud.
More walking and we came on a lookout. There was a brief giggle at the warning sign (it mentioned you had to have an experienced leader, or some such) then down several and a half _ steps to the roadend.
On our way down we saw a helicopter blast overhead, then after we'd touched base at the DOC centre and started down the road to the Duchess, it roared overhead again. The truck started this time. First stop:
_ New Plymouth Hospital to get _ Kara.
Next stop: Wanganui for tea. Once again the Duchess had to be push-started. I don’t really feel like detailing the final gasps of the alternator a few kms outside Bulls or the fanarkeling about before it was replaced. Strange weather, missing bridges, twisted ankles, and busted alternators - well, it’s one way to spend a weekend.