Day 64: Copland Track

The story behind this drawing began with me tripping and nearly falling face first in the water/mud while hiking the Copland Track. My clever friend said, without pause, after this near disaster and said "Did you bring your snorkel and goggles?" because if I did fall I likely would have drowned without them. Maybe too much of an inside joke but I laughed so hard I nearly peed. One of us was rather frustrated with the conditions of the trail at this point.

Having been told by some Israeli travelers we met in Taupo about how amazing the Copland Track in the Tai Poutini National Park was, with its hot pool and beautiful views, it was an obvious "must do that" when we are in the glacier area, It was an anticipated part of our journey around the South Island. We made plans to spend two nights at the Welcome Hut, an 18 km trek from the carpark. We had been warned that there were a couple river and stream crossings throughout the track. However, we had not expected a river crossing in the first minutes upon starting the trek. Now the pictures make it look small but it was a very wide stretch of river with very few places to cross without getting your shoes wet, and it was deeper than it looked.

After ditching our shoes and forging the river barefoot, we made it across. What an annoying way to begin a hike! And this was only the beginning. Never have I ever been on such a wet and muddy hiking trail. There were four instances where we had to take off our shoes to cross the rivers/streams that had flooded the once passable path. But it was a beautiful trek.

       

   

Arriving tired, hungry and with sopping wet socks and shoes, but it was clearly it was all worth it. We spent two nights at this wonderful hut, miles away from civilization. It was glorious. Choosing to spend two nights was the best decision ever. The majority of people only stay for one night then either hike further on the trail to other huts, or they head back to the carpark. We spent the majority of the second day alone in the hut. We went on a venture further up the trail to find our way to a glacier that was apparently 45 minutes from the Welcome Hut. Unfortunately 10 minutes into the walk we came across mud and water so turned back to keep our dry shoes dry for our hike to the carpark the next day. What we were able to see was beautiful. 

The best part of the day was warming up by spending a few hours enjoying the glorious hot pool and the breathtaking views of the Sierra Range. There were three hot pools, all being different temperatures, which was perfect for lounging in all afternoon. 

 

We had a lovely day for our hike back to the car AND the trails had thankfully dried up some meaning we only had to take our shoes off once. We hiked out with an Israeli guy, having some interesting conversations and even some tunes along the way. Copland Track lived up to the hype and has become one of my favorite places in New Zealand. 

Once on the road, we decided to stop in Haast for the night due to the fact that we were both exhausted from hiking the 18 km back to the car earlier in the day. After a quick dinner, popcorn included, at a nice picnic table at a petrol station we found this wonderful spot right by the beach to camp out for the night.