Some Pics From the Routeburn and Caples Tracks (South Island, NZ)

The Routeburn and Caples tracks form a 60km circuit walk about an hours drive from Queenstown.
Although we spent four days, we had several long stops and could have easily done it in three.
As we we staying in huts, all we needed to carry was sleeping bags, food, clobber and mess kit.
It's easy to hire kit, but I couldn't resist getting a shiny new stove and a ultralite sleeping bag.
The 2-days on Caples were grim as there was no view (forest) and the track was flooded out

Crossing a stream via a wobbly chain bridge at the start of the Routeburn.
We would later long for bridges on the flooded, bog ridden Caples track

The view from the first hut (Routeburn Falls) was pretty decent. You'd pay top
dollar in hotels for views like this! We walked up from the valley in the day

Zo taking a break to check out the scenery just above the Falls hut

Trying to keep fit up here is not easy - no swimming baths. Here I'm doing press-ups.

Sometimes the drops where pretty steep and you had to watch above for falling rocks.
Checkout Zo's meaty 65-litre pack (hired). She was the sherpa - I just took a 25-litre daysack

Me doing my Arnholdt impression - one of hostages has just been wasted.
We stayed in the McKenzie hut on the left. The other hut is for the guided walkers

Passing massive Earland falls before the Howden Hut on the Routeburn.
Here we also got to practice steam crossing - larger river crossings lay ahead!

Zo atop the McKellar saddle on the Caples track having just
battled through some real bad-ass bush. Worse was to come...

Heading off the McKellar saddle - the track turned into either bog, stream or cow pat for the next two days.
But we had no idea at this point that we would be munching on freshly caught Rainbow Trout for dinner.

At the end of the track, we finally got a chance to clean all the cow shit from our boots

I was probably more knackered than Zo - but I put that down to all the press ups!

That's all for now folks, more later...