Day 97: St Arnaud to Angelus Hut (1945-?)

Monday, March 6

I woke up around 7 so I could make it to the St Arnaud Cafe around 8 when it opened. Sara and I were planning one last meal together before we parted ways. She wanted to take a zero day and I need to keep going to get to Boyle Village and Christchurch in time to meet Sam and Lauren.

There was no outlet in the dorm room I was in, so as soon as I woke up I plugged my phone in while I got packed and ready. It was charging slow so I didn't make it to the cafe until 8:15. We both ordered the big breakfast and talked until around 9:30. Then it was time for me to go. One last hug goodbye and I walked down to the lake to take the Peninsula Nature Walk to Mt Robert Road. The trail to Angelus Hut started at the end of the road.

It was sad to say goodbye to Sara. We had practically been hiking together since the Whanganui River trip.

As I started walking on the road, a car drove by and offered me a ride. There were two Montanans in the car headed to the end of the road was well. A few minutes after they picked me up, they drove by another person walking the road and offered him a ride too. He was an Australian hiking to Angelus Hut, but he was doing the multiple day loop, not a TA alternate route like me. When we made it to the car park I thanked the nice couple and stared the Pinchgut Track to the hut around 11 am.

It was straight uphill with lots of switchbacks for the first 3 kilometers, but it was overlooking the beautiful Lake Rotoiti the entire time. After the switchbacks to the ridge line there was a nice rest hut. I went inside and ate some snacks before going back on the trail. A few minutes after I started walking again a woman was walking down the trail toward me. She said those first three kilometers of switchbacks were the most difficult and the rest of the walk to Angelus Hut was well worth it. I walked by an old and no longer used ski lodge and resort and lots of beautiful tiny lakes. The trail got more and more rocky and boulder-covered but it wasn't difficult.

I passed a few more groups of people walking to the car park and made it to the hut around 3:30. It was such a nice hut with two big bunk rooms. I set up my bed and made coffee. When I hike I usually don't drink coffee, but I got to the hut early enough and it was a little chilly. Coffee sounded perfect.

I met Mary, the volunteer hut warden, and the Aussie arrived and set up his tent outside. I talked with people in the hut and painted a water color. Usually I don't have this much time to kill. Bad weather was supposed to come in tomorrow, so I got my backpack as ready as I could. If the weather happened to be decent at 7 am I wanted to be ready to go.

As usual, I watched a few episodes of the West Wing and went to bed.