TA Days 98 to 105: Channeling my inner mountain goat in the Richmond Ranges

I have to say the Richmond Ranges are one of my favorite parts of TA!

A lot of people underestimate how difficult the stretch is with all the hills, but I personally loved it. The diverse terrain made me feel like I was back on the Round the Mountain route from Tongariro, in the Tararuas, and passing through Death Valley (albeit with rivers and forests on the sides). This being the South Island, there were also several beautiful river crossings!

After our rest day in Nelson, Sarah and I headed back to Pelorus Bridge to start the Richmonds.

It took two buses and two car trips to get to our destination; one with a cute Kiwi mother-daughter duo, followed by a British couple who came up the TA last year.

Unfortunately, hitchhiking isn’t always quick, and it was a good fifty minute ride to the Pelorus Bridge. When we arrived, we were both feeling dizzy from the windy roads.

After a quick lunch in the car park we began the 13km walk to the start of Richmonds.

Since it was already quite late, we only went to the first cabin. At least a dozen tents were already set up around the camp, however, only Team Chokolade was staying inside the Captains Creek cabin. We also met them at the cabin that night.

The next morning the crew set out for the Hacket cabin. However, an empty Browning cabin an hour before Hacket was a tempting alternative when we arrived in the evening. Once again, we were one of the last people to arrive at the camp, but we were able to sleep inside. Browning was a good place too, because we knew Hacket must be much busier.

Even though we were only a couple of days into the section, we were behind schedule and still had a long way to go. My snacks were also running out faster than usual due to the strenuous terrain. Any weather delay could potentially run me out of food; making me a little nervous.

To get back on track, I opted for a more important day; jumping from Browning to the Old Man’s cabin. It was only 23 km (about 14 miles), but there was a lot of elevation gain. The estimated time for the section was 12.5 hours.

Luckily for me, when I’m feeling good I’m a beast on the hills and enjoy the hard work of going up and up.

I left Browning shortly after 7:30am and on this particular day I was in mountain goat mode. I flew over stream crossings around Hacket cabin and then up steep hills; reach Starveall cabin in less than four hours.

After filtering some water, eating a snack, and checking some messages, I was back at it; heading to the Slaty cabin.

I had a slower start, but made it to Slaty in 2.5 hours. After a brief visit with other hikers, I continued on my way.

While I had been doing very well time-wise, as soon as I reached the ridge, everything changed.

The views were stunning and with the light, weather and changing angles; I fell into tourist mode taking photos every few minutes.

I definitely took my estimated time for this section because I kept stopping. Although it’s worth it… I want to enjoy and remember where I have been.

Finally I reached the turnoff towards the Old Man’s cabin. A steep path led through the forest and descended into a valley before Little Rintoul.

It was already approaching 6:00 p.m. and I was feeling hungry and fatigued.

Towards the end of the trail, I stepped on a log on the other side of the trail. Despite its solid appearance, the trunk was more mush than wood. Instantly, I found myself lying on top of my backpack in a bush.

It was nice to finally get off the steep, slippery trail and into camp. The cabin was already full, but there was plenty of room for tents. Little Rintoul’s eyesight wasn’t that bad either.

After my long day skipping three cabins, I wasn’t in much of a rush to get going the next morning. I felt quite slow and took a while to warm up my legs on my climb back to the main trail.

When I started climbing Little Rintoul, I felt more awake and ready to go. The weather was perfect and the views spectacular.

Although the climb was steep, it was easy and not too difficult. Going down to Little Rintoul was a different story. The steep and slippery scree made for a slow and treacherous descent.

Although it was a little challenging and scary at times, I felt pretty safe. It was the twelfth anniversary of my grandmother’s passing and I felt like she was there protecting me.

Fortunately, I came down safely to begin my ascent of Mount Rintoul.

When I reached the top, I sat down for a short break and caught up on some messages while on duty. Even though the sky was blue at the beginning of the day, it was cooling and the clouds were approaching.

An eerie feeling came over me when I found out that I knew the TA hiker who had drowned a couple of weeks earlier. He was infamous for us, as we met him in Paihia during a rest day in early October. The next day we kayaked from Paihia to Waikare before walking to the farm. Meanwhile, this hiker also arrived at the farm that same night, after walking the entire stretch from Paihia.

He was very kind and said goodbye to everyone knowing that he would surpass us all. He wasn’t wrong about that. Throughout our journey, we always looked up his name in the DOC intent books to see how far along he was.

Deaths are always difficult, but the impact is different when you know the person. The news was shocking and put me in a bad mood during my descent.

When I arrived at the Mount Rintoul hut, I took a short break, signed the intention book, and spoke with another hiker I met the night before. From there I climbed more hills before descending to the Tarn hut.

It was strange not being with my tram, who I out-walked the day before. He was hoping that they would also reach the Old Man’s cabin, but unfortunately he was alone for the moment.

Although my friends were a day behind, I was excited to run into some friendly faces I hadn’t seen since Mercer in early November.

Being alone also makes it easier for me to engage with other hikers. I spent the night enjoying the scenery around the Tarn hut, watching a family of goats and weka and having nice conversations with new faces.

The next morning, I made sure I was one of the first to leave camp. I was a little nervous about the upcoming river crossings (the first real ones on the South Island) and felt more comfortable knowing others would be behind me should I need help crossing.

Fortunately, the crossings were not too difficult. The most complicated one featured a fallen tree across the river over a waterfall. However, there are no problems crossing to the other side.

Overall, the rivers were absolutely stunning; a refreshing bright blue.

As the day progressed, the forest turned into desert, making me feel like I was back in New Mexico, where I grew up.

Arriving first at the Top Wairoa hut, I claimed the tent spot closest to the hut. From there I took the steep path to filter some water.

Since there was no one else, I also took a mini bath. I enjoy getting to camp early to relax, and on this particular day I made a little square by the river to while away some time.

The next morning I woke up around five when everyone in the cabin got up. However, unlike the others, I didn’t want to leave so early. I went back to bed and didn’t leave camp until around 8:00.

Knowing that he was entering a desert area and that he had to go through a big pass; The late start was a mistake.

My day started by walking uphill over large rocks. Although it was difficult to climb the hill, a strong wind kept me from overheating. In fact, I had to layer up while traversing the exposed ridge.

Even though it is only 17 km (10.6 mi) from Top Wairoa to Porters Creek; It was another great day. Lots of elevation and terrain exposed to heat wore me down. The afternoon depression hit me hard as I reached Hunter’s cabin.

It wasn’t even 1:00 p.m., but the heat had consumed most of my energy. I forced myself to sit, eat, and rest for a bit before filtering more water and continuing my journey.

The more I walked, the more I felt like I was walking through Death Valley, except there were trees and streams along the trail.

I was grateful walking this section on a dry day as there were some very steep and slippery dirt hills to maneuver around.

Shortly after 5:00 p.m., a cabin distant from Porters Creek came into view. Despite being still far away, it was a relief to finally glimpse the cabin. It’s amazing how much more attainable something is when you can actually see it.

The final stretch seemed to last forever. I finally did it; freshen up with a makeshift bidet shower before others arrived.

That night there were only three of us in the cabin. We all slept inside, on the bottom bunks. Best night’s sleep I’ve ever had in a cabin!

Knowing we had a twelve-hour hike to St. Arnaud ahead of us, we got up early to prepare. Shortly after 6:00, I was on my way again.

I was feeling pretty good and wanted to get as far as possible before it got hotter. After crossing a river, accidentally slipping on a yucca-like plant, and falling face first on the trail, I reached the swampy section just before the Red Hills cabin.

Although my shoes were no longer dry, I was still in a good mood. After a quick chat with a couple of other backpackers at the cabin, I continued on my way.

Before the stretch of road towards St. Arnaud, we were on some shared bike paths. While I fell in love with mountain biking riding the Timber trail, these trails were expert level. Imagine almost vertical hills through a forest with roots, rocks and fallen trees along the trail. I would definitely break a bone riding these.

Crazy enough, I saw two cyclists going down the track while I was going up.

After the really steep section, we ended up on a nicer, less intense trail. Despite walking, I was in the zone going back and forth around curves.

Over time, the bike path became a walking road to St. Arnaud.

In town, I bought a passion fruit ice cream before crossing the street to pick up the box of food he had sent me for the next section.

Accommodation in St. Arnaud is expensive, but I was lucky that someone offered me a place to stay. A friendly angel from the Couchsurfing route named Nathan picked me up in the city. I spent the night in my own room with a real bed, which was great!

Nathan is a farmer, so while I was waiting for my tram to arrive the next day, he took me to help look after some livestock.

It was great to see how the dogs help move sheep and cows from one pasture to another. The farm Nathan works on stretches far and wide, and even has an old upper house used by travelers in the 19th century.

While I was initially reluctant to wait on my tram since they were in the bubble, I had a nice day off and was able to catch up with some close friends while still on duty.

Finally, Animal Encounter and Team Chokolade did it. That night we went back into town so they could pick up their resupply boxes and we had a delicious pizza for dinner.

I really appreciated the generosity of our nice trail, angel, and the fantastic week in Richmond!