Having finished another year of teaching the week prior, I snuck away for a sublime mid-week, pre-Christmas overnight tramp to the West Coast.

Departing Christchurch at 8:20am and listening to many podcasts, I arrived at the Mt Brown carpark shortly after noon and I was walking at 12:18pm. I highly recommend NOT starting a steep uphill walk on a 21 degree Celsius day at midday at a time of year when the sun is most directly overhead - I was sweating like you could not believe. Hydration and cooldown breaks were had every 30-50 minutes. The breaks gave me time to appreciate the bird life, including some magnificent tūī. I was in no rush, given that I’d still have another six hours of daylight after reaching the hut, which I arrived at just after 4pm. 

There were a couple of Americans already at the hut, having wisely chosen to hike up early in the morning. The hut itself had a terrible odor, which has been noted in the Intentions book by several parties recently. Given how warm the hut was, that it already had a couple people in it, and the bad hut smell, I chose to use my Outdoor Research Helium bivvy bag and sleep under the stars.

After chatting with the Americans about their travels, I demolished the final 100 pages of ‘Odyssey’ by Stephen Fry, a brilliant retelling that also caps off his four-book series of Greek mythology. Stepping outside at 6pm to admire the view, a paraglider sprinted up to the hut, panting and frantically tearing up blades of grass and throwing them up in the air to determine wind direction.

The paraglider was about an hour later than intended in heading up the hill, and he was feeling a bit despondent about his chances for take-off as we both commiserated that the wind was better just an hour ago. Nevertheless, he deployed his wing and took off on his first attempt. It must be an incredible experience to glide over the West Coast on a serene summer evening.

I enjoyed a dinner of Real Meals Mexi Nachos (with extra nachos - thanks Emma for the tip a few years ago),a couple cups of tea, and Whittaker’s Almond Gold. By 8pm, the sun’s intensity was finally starting to ease off and I pitched my bivvy bag, mattress, and sleeping bag. I started a new book, ‘The Stardust Grail’ by Yume Kitasei, and went to bed at about 10pm with my bivvy bag’s hood fully open to the sound of a kea and weka. I went to sleep shortly after Jupiter, Venus, Canopus, Orion and other stars and constellations gradually made an appearance. I planned to try astrophotography overnight, but the near-full moon pushed most of the stars out of the sky, so I enjoyed an uninterrupted sleep instead.

The next morning was straightforward with a smooth pack-up of gear, a relaxed breakfast, a departure from the hut at 8am and a return to the car just before 10:30am. After being so grossly sweaty for so long, I enjoyed a life-changing swim in Lake Kaniere. While Christchurch was apparently overcast, gloomy and lightly rainy, it was 23 degrees Celsius, calm and blue skies on the West Coast, and the summer holiday crowds hadn’t yet inundated Lake Kaniere. It was a sublime, peaceful experience.

Stopping in Hokitika at the Hokitika Sandwich Company, I had the best sandwich I’ve had in years, no joke. Maybe it was the post-tramp munchies, but it really was fantastic, and it’s now a requisite post-tramp ritual for me. A relaxed, summer drive back up the West Coast and through Arthur’s Pass with more podcasts got me home shortly after 3pm.