its been a hot hot month. the locals tell us in is unusually warm for this time of year, and already farmers and such like, are complaining for lack of rain. the excellent weather has meant the we have been out and about most weekends, exploring bits of our new home country. weve just got back from the Thames (familiar name??) in the Coromandel. we stayed in a cool Back packers hostel aptly called 'Sunkissed', and were glad we werent the oldest guests this time! the highlight was enjoying a nice bit of fizz on the first floor sundeck, soaking up the evening rays, before heading out for a nice meal in the sleepy Thames village. we needed to be well rested as we planned a trek to the Pinnacles the next day.
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| Pinnacles in the distance..wow we climbed up that!!! |
The Pinnacles track follows the old pack horse trails from the car-park, over the river and up the valley to the Pinnacles hut. about a 3 hour trek. The track was used in the good old days to bring supplies up to the millers and tree fellers, who cleared out hundreds of acres of kauri trees in the valleys. In the late 1990’s, the track (which had become a bit scungy) was upgraded, and rebuilt, close to what it looked like at the start of the century. The result is spectacular . . . stone steps, wide enough for packhorses, dominate most of the track, crossing the river three times as it rises steeply to logging / power camp at the ‘near’ top. the stone stairs are great to look at but hard on the legs .
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| near top |
Whilst not dangerous, it isn’t for the faint hearted. It only takes 45 minutes to get to
the top from the hut, but you go up some steep rock faces, and several ladders before negotiating a large boulder, to get to the narrow ledge at the top. From the top, you can see both sides of the Coromandel – Tairua / Pauanui on one side, The firth of Thames and Hauraki Plains on the other. The view is
breathtaking...
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| what goes up..must come down |
It was quite a slog in the heat, -but a great adventure, boulder hopping across streams, crossing bouncy rope bridges, seeing lots of bush birds, (saw and heard Bell birds!) and hardly any people! We did pass some trekkers on their way back, who didnt all make the last push, due to vertigo/dizziness! we were now worried at what lay ahead.. but bravely pushed on and climbed ladders, foot holds, and boulders and made it to the top! yey!
once at the top, we were feeling the effects of too much sun (no shade on top of the world!) so a quick lunch break then on to start the journey down again! very hard on the thighs and knees! we made it down in double quick time, even stopping off to find a geo-cache or two!
thats one to tick off!http://www.aatravel.co.nz/101/MustDo_The-Pinnacles.html
Whilst not dangerous, it isn’t for the faint hearted. It only takes 45 minutes to get to
