Day 95: Top Wairoa Hut to Red Hills Hut (1900-1928)

Saturday, March 4

The wind didn't let up all night. Rattling the chimney and at times the entire hut. I woke around 4 am and just lay awake. Thoughts of Dorothy and her house flying away to the Land of Oz filled my head. It wasn't going to be light until 7, so there wasn't much I could do except lay in bed and plan how I would quickly grab my pack and a few items if the hut really started to blow away.

As soon as it hit 6 am I started packing. If it was clear and I could stand up in the wind I was leaving the hut. As it grew brighter, I kept packing. I could make out the last star in the sky through the window so I knew it was clear. When I went to the outhouse I realized the wind sounded a lot worse than it actually was. It was easy to walk in.

Sara wanted to wait for the wind to die down a bit more but I was ready to get out of the hut. I also wanted to try to do a long day today so I'd have more time in St Arnaud tomorrow to do laundry, get my food figured out and eat a few real meals.

As soon as I decided it was bright enough to hike, right around 7, I hit the trail. It was an amazing morning. It was all uphill, but as the sun rose behind my back I could see the tips of the mountains in front of me slowly become crowned in golden light. A cool wind kept pummeling me, but it never got too strong to walk in. Around 9:30 I happily reached the tree line. My face felt a bit wind burned but the feeling went away within the hour so it couldn't have been that bad.

Around 11:15 I made it to Hunters Hut. After quickly snacking, reading and signing the hut book, and getting some water I hit the trail in 30 minutes. I really wanted to make it to Red Hills Hut before dark.

The hike to Porters Creek Hut was pretty easy. Usually the huts come out of nowhere. I have a GPS, so I know when I'm getting close, but they're usually surrounded by trees so you only see them once you're a few meters away. Porters Creek Hut was different. I could see it from a kilometer or so away because it was down in a valley (and painted BRIGHT orange like Top Wairoa Hut). Seeing it put a little speed into my step. I got there a few minutes after 2 and quickly snacked and looked over and signed the hut book.

The walk to Red Hills Hut was much trickier than I had hoped. The most difficult aspect came before and after the river crossings. The trail would go very steeply down to the river and sometimes it was hard not to slip because the scree wasn't solidly in place. After crossing the river, there were a few steep rock climbs up to the trail, but it was all doable. I also thought the trail would be more sheltered because it was below the tree line. But the scenery and shubbery has completely changed from the Richmond Range. The trees are small, bushes are more common, and the soil is more red, dry and rocky.

Just before 7 I made it to Red Hills Hut. It was a relatively new hut and was so clean and nice. There was a really friendly Kiwi lady there that walked the South Island section of the TA last year. We talked for a bit as I got my bunk ready and made dinner. It had been a long day of hiking so after dinner I curled up in my bunk, watched an episode or two of the West Wing, and went to bed.