More summer adventures before autumn arrives

As we were packing our van we had some curious visitors wanting to come along on our trip:

A bosh up Binser Saddle over to Casey Hut

Mike, Charlie and I picked the hottest day to travel lightly over some hills with lots of rocks. Sounds like fun, doesn't it? Mike figured out that when he gave me a mathematical puzzle, I slowed right down (which really annoyed Charlie), so he gave me lots of them. Since I am not a maths nerd, I didn't crack one of them. Pretty depressing..or maybe its a good thing. View from above Binser saddle.

Come on Mike! stop speaking in maths riddles.

Rock that rocks

Planning the route down the bush to Casey Hut

Charlie - the mountain goat

Casey Hut was incredibly hot inside and I would not recommend anyone to stay in the hut after a sunny summer day. The sandflies were going mad outside.

We met some very nice and hard working DOC (Department of Conservation) staff that were marking up nests of Orange fronted parekeets. The area has a significant conservation value, but require lots of predator trapping to keep the nests from being pillaged. I hope that DOC continues to get funding to keep these important bird species alive.

Scree slope Biking at Craigeburn

Another nice day, Neil, Charlie and I packed our bikes to try out the scree slopes from the Carigeburn ski field and then check out the juicy beech forest trails around Cass (on the Cass-Lagoon track). We are having a food stop at the top hut where before we climb the summit and get on our bikes.

Charlie has been talking a lot about this scree slope. I admit I have been too scared to do it, but I now felt naive enough to give it a go. The scary part is that the shape of the scree prevents you from seeing the end of the slope. You just have to trust that you will end up somewhere good eventually...

It was tricky to get on the bike and stay on it too. My front wheel wanted to dig into the gravel, but once I got the momentum it worked better. Speed is your friend.

I like this picture since it looks like I am out of the air. I may look fast, but the picture doesn't show that I am actually going snail pace with a pretty much locked back wheel.

There were some great parts of track when we hit the forest. All in all it was a successful trip. Nothing I would do every weekend, but certainly once a year.

Tramping to Lake Mann in Lewis Pass
This weekend was meant to be a running mission, but it turned into a heavy loaded tramp instead. The party comprised Mike, Alex, Charlie and I. We were aiming for Lake Mann and had some great views along the way.

We pitched our tents by the lake and started a cooking frenzy. I was cocooned in my sleeping bag while Charlie did all the cooking. I had a cold coming on and I was incredibly cold. I actually sat with all my clothes on, with full water proof jacket and over trousers..inside my sleeping bag..with a beanie and gloves..and I was still cold. I just don't know how I would ever survive doing any mountaineering.

The next day when my head was full of snot and I felt pretty average, I at least made it to the top of this mountain (can't even remember its name). It was probably thanks to all the talk we had about having warm tea cakes at the top. In the picture I showed my anger of the fact that there were no such things at the summit.

Back in Chch, we had some very gorgeous views towards the Southern Alps while the sun has been setting. It is these views that make us wanna go tramping again.