William Chong

On Boxing Day, a group of us went tramping up the Pinnacles, in the Coromandel Ranges. We stayed overnight at the Pinnacles Hut and made a couple of good attempts at the Kauaeranga trail that takes you right up to the summit of the Pinnacles. The views from the top were stunning, and the tramp featured some heartfelt EGC moments amidst the huffing and puffing, the encouragement, and the character-building.

We left Auckland at 9am and took State Highway 2 and 25 towards the township of Thames. After some last-minute food purchases, we drove along the Kauaeranga Valley Road to the start of the tramping – tucked in a good 20 km into the heart of the Coromandel Ranges.

Tramp and trail

There are a few tracks around the Kauaeranga Valley area that can potentially take you to the summit. The most popular (and easiest) route to the Pinnacles Hut is the Webb Creek track, which takes about 3 hours. The first half hour was pretty easy going and weaved about the Kauaeranga River at a number of places (including a 30m-high swing bridge).

The track got significantly steeper about the first hour in, with the introduction of crude stone steps. These were cut way back in the 1870-1920s by kauri-felling opportunists who needed to carve a route up the Pinnacles to reach the valuable kauri trees – the entire area is now under Department of Conservation (DOC) protection.

Were they difficult? Let’s just say that I’ve seen enough stone stairs to last me a good while.

There were plenty of photo opportunities along the way as the trees would, on occasion, part to reveal stunning views of the rugged and mostly unspoiled Coromandels.

After the second hour of stair climbing, we were all elated to finally reach flatter terrain that followed the Hydro Camp checkpoint. The last part of the Webb Creek track we’d been following gradually morphed into a stony track, with vegetation that was more untamed scrub, and less lush native bush. When tramping, it’s always fascinating to observe the flora and fauna patterns change as you move up and down a mountain – the Pinnacles was no different.

From Hut to the top

The Pinnacles Hut is a most atypical DOC hut. It’s got 80 bunk beds, gas cookers, running water, chemical toilets, cold showers and even a fully-equipped BBQ. In comparison, staying in of the more remote backcountry huts will pretty much guarantee you a roof over your head, and nothing more.

We had a fantastic dinner, where everyone selflessly shared whatever food they brought with them. It’s not too often you will have cold spaghetti, cheesy sausages, spam, chicken kievs, potato soup, focaccia bread and hot pepperoni slices all in one meal. Even if you did, it probably wouldn’t be in a dining room overlooking the majestic Coromandel ranges. After dinner, some of us slept early/collapsed with exhaustion while others stayed up playing card games.

Most of us made the effort to wake up before the crack of dawn (5 am) to make a bleary-eyed attempt at the summit. There’s a strangely refreshing sense of isolation shuffling up step by step to a peak that’s shrouded in low-lying cloud. The air isn’t quite rarefied, though there’s a sharp scent of nature mixed with the moisture of the mists.

While the advertised time from the Pinnacles Hut to the Pinnacles is 50 minutes, I think that the modernisation of the track (DOC have replaced the old rope and rock systems with steel ladders, rungs and well-spaced stairs) made for a significantly easier ascent. Most of us were at the summit ledge admiring the misty views within 30 minutes of leaving the hut.

On a clear day at the summit (altitude: 759m) you can see the Pacific Ocean in the east, and the Firth of Thames to the west. Being perched on the roof of a mountain and looking out across the Ranges is quite an experience – put it on your bucket list, if you have one.

All in all, it was a pretty decent tramp. We didn’t get the best of viewing conditions due to the cloud cover, but that will only motivate each one of us to go again!

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I’m sitting in office doing a little paperwork to start off the week. Here’s a picture:

I couldn’t find a 50cent stamp, so have plastered an envelope in front of me with ten 5-cent stamps to make up the sums. It lends a somewhat comical look to a fairly important letter: apparently we owe a roofing company $280 that never got paid (this is from March). Anyways, I digress:

Saturday
Was able to get back to teaching kids (was under the weather the week before), some which have practised more than others. After Academy rehearsal, drove over to VernAl’s house to pick up our big family photo block, and ended up staying for dinner. As some of you may know, I am a sucker for polentas (I used to get the chefs at NYNY to just cook me deep-fried polentas for dinner – totally delicious!). For Saturday’s dinner I got to try the Zimbawean staple called sadza, which tastes similar to polentas. I should learn this recipe as an emergency food source or something – it seems so practical and better than potatoes that go mouldy, or apples that rot.

Watched the Hurricanes get whomped by the Crusaders with the Zim crew before heading back home.

Sunday
As eager beavers go you can’t beat me. I was up for an 8.30 church service by 7, and Cheryl, Kim and I (CKI) had a great time going grocery shopping afterwards. I was able to cook a Sunday lunch with the extra time available, and Tommy came over. Proceeded to shoot terrorists and criminals all afternoon. In between all that I also received a “come join us” email from HBC which was very nice and thoughtful.

Also had a pretty good paperclip (even though turnout was low), got the lowdown on Dennis’s 48 hours adventure. We chatted excitedly about end of Lost season 4: will definitely have to get together the coming weekend to watch that through. Fong mei is still the cheapest of the cheap in filling our stomachs, seriously: $6.30 a head is great great great.

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Hope everyone has a good week!

Today, being the lazy Sunday it was, paperclip had a fabulous time playing Texas Hold ‘em and Blackjack all afternoon and evening. It was fantastic stuff! Even Jacob who’s leaving for American Bible College had a bit of fun with cards, as well as playing a little on the PS3. In blackjack, Hsuan joined us from his break in UNSW and we had a good time catching up with him – his new career direction now includes particpating in Christian ministry, which is such a fabulous development! Will most likely see him on Friday, he’s considering hosting a do at his place.

One thing to point out regarding Blackjack was that it eventually turned to a teamwork versus the House (that was me) game – they all invested very heavily in each other, but without card-counting and serious mathematical prowess I eventually ate up all their hard-earned (not) cash.

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Oh, starting classes again on Monday. It’s the end of the road! How intriguing. Last 12 weeks of structured university study in conjunction with examinations. Bring it on!

I’m happy sitting here.

On Friday the Corbans judge came into NYNY, and I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to serve him.  I can’t wait to hear what the results will be like!

I ate an apple today for the first time in 2 years.  I mean like, headfirst “crunch” experience, you know.  Totally refreshing.

Oh and paperclip last night went from dinner to a discussion that repeated the same thing over and over.  I’d prefer a movie next time, or something more inclusive (imagine wine buffs reiterating to each other that reds should not be chilled.  Again and again.  It’d put you off the wine industry given enough time…)

I have this DVD of Battlestar Galactica that Kenneth passed to me.  I’m not sure what I do with it.  *scratches head*

Food smells really delicious from across the road… but I’ve had my lunch.  There are midterms to consider across most of my papers, so I’d better get back to them.

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Oh, and apparently Brian’s concert went pretty well.  There’s a review here, but it mentions little of grammatical value.  You can see my name in the background image, and I’ll be chatting with Brian about how my piece was received.

Have a good day!

 (it was a yummy apple)