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You are here: Home / Archives for Mountains

Mountains

Power Line Track

May 14, 2023 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

A couple of weeks ago, Elijah organized a four wheel drive trip. He bought a souped-up Surf last year, and badly wants to use it, and has been wanting to go on a particular track for several years. It is called the Power Line Track, and goes from the Buller Gorge, over the mountains to Denniston, north of Westport. Five vehicles went on the drive, including Elijah’s Surf and another young man’s Surf, Simon’s L300 Mitsubishi ute, one friend’s Land Cruiser troop carrier, and another friend’s 4WD Mitsubishi van. They took off from here reasonably early one morning and got back late in the afternoon.

They took off from this bridge, the Iron Bridge, over the Buller river between the Upper and Lower Buller Gorges.

Ready to go! Elijah’s Surf is in the lead, and Simon brought up the rear.

Simon driving his ute, with Mr. Imagination in the coveted front middle seat.

They hadn’t gone very far when Elijah’s Surf stalled and smoke came out from under the bonnet. The ground wire had burned through and they had to jerry-rig something. No problem–there were five mechanics on the trip!

They came across a DOC camp, where people were checking on the local kiwi population.

The Surf made it through the deep river crossing!

As they approached the river crossing, the spare tire fell off the van.

This crossing was rather exciting–several people took videos of it! Everyone was worried that the van wouldn’t make it across, or that water would get through the air intake, since the van didn’t have a snorkel. If you watch the video, you’ll see our James leaning out of a window behind the driver’s seat, watching the intake to make sure water didn’t get in, and even putting his hand over it at one point. They had hooked a strap from the Troopie to the van to pull it through, in case the water got too deep and the van had to be shut off suddenly to protect the engine. No problem; it made it through–but as they came out the other side, the strap wound around the front axle and it was a challenge to get off.

Partway through the trip, the group came across this coal bank. There was an old chimney beside it; apparently, the people who lived in the house mined coal from here to heat their house.

At the end of the trip, the group drove up to Denniston, a former coal mine. This was the newest building up there, a bath house, which was vandalized after the mine closed.

Everyone who went on the trip enjoyed it! Esther and I enjoyed staying at home and getting some things done here without being jounced around for hours on a rough track.

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: 4WD track, Deniston, Mountains, West Coast

Mountain Climb

May 7, 2023 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, when Simon was home for his two days off, he took Mr. Imagination on an excursion. They took along Simon’s deer rifle in case they would see a game animal, but ended up climbing a mountain and not doing any hunting. The only animals they saw were a couple of goat kids. They came home tired, but very happy with the climb they had done. It was a mountain up the road from us maybe a half hour’s drive, overlooking the Ahaura River.

That’s the Ahaura River visible through the trees.

Looking to the northeast from the mountain. Simon was able to make out one of the farms he works on, and Gloriavale is visible, as well.

Mr. Imagination found this katydid.

It was after dark by the time they got home, and both boys were hungry and tired, but they had the time of their lives, and Simon felt rejuvenated and ready to go back to another week of work.

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Ahaura River, Grey Valley, Mountain Climbing, Mountains

Tramping!

December 7, 2022 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, Simon and Elijah decided to take a three-day tramp in the mountains. Simon was between jobs, and Elijah had cut his hand and had a week off work, so they took off. Elijah took a lot of pictures with his phone, and shared them with me. Here is Simon, taking off up a river valley.

This picture needs a bit of explanation! The two of them had a thing going where they left their fingerprints on each trail marker. They figured that, if they got lost, someone could come along and dust all the trail markers to see where they had been!

That is the Top Trent Hut ahead. It was their goal for the first night; they had lunch at Elizabeth Hut.

This was the lunch stop on the second day.

Their second night out was spent at this hut, the Tutaekuri Hut. A French fly-fisherman joined them there for the night. They walked out from this point and arrived home early in the afternoon.

Here are some video clips Elijah took. They’ll give you a better idea of the terrain.

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Mountains, Tramping, Video

Snowball Fight

August 1, 2022 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

Last weekend, we went over the hill (to the other side of the mountains) to visit friends. On the way home, we stopped near the top of the pass to play in the snow. There wasn’t a lot, but enough pockets of it here and there among the grass and bushes that we could have a rousing snowball fight. What fun! I hadn’t done that in probably 20 or 25 years. I’m a very poor aim!

This was the first time Miss Joy had ever been close to snow, and she enjoyed her experience!

Esther took several video clips with her phone, and I put them together here. The last bit was when Mr. Sweetie threw a snowball at her, and she dropped her phone. The screen protector cracked, but the phone itself was uninjured.

We were right beside this beautiful little lake. We often stop here as we go over the mountains, and enjoy the scenery for a few minutes.

We had to stop in Reefton, because Miss Joy was feeling sick. After she walked both directions over this swing bridge, she was fine and we could drive the last half hour home.

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Mountains, Video

Cone Creek

July 17, 2022 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, all five of our boys, as well as two friends of theirs, went on a tramp. That Friday was a holiday, so they took off fairly early in the morning and headed up into the mountains. Their destination was a hut the older boys had been to, coming in from the opposite direction, a couple of years ago. Some friends of ours tried to go to the hut last year and couldn’t find it, so the boys wanted to be sure to arrive in the vicinity with plenty of daylight–and Elijah also downloaded an app onto his phone with topographical maps of the entire country. They found the hut with no trouble, and spent a few hours chopping firewood to replenish what they used.

On the way up the river, the boys spotted this wild sheep, off by itself.

They also spotted a pair of blue ducks.

A view up the misty valley!

When the boys reached the hut, they found snow on the ground.

Inside the hut. They said that the open fire didn’t heat the hut very well, but they were out of the weather and comfortable.

The front of Cone Creek Hut.

Elijah was trying to focus on the river here, but I liked the horizontal tree in the middle.

I’ve never seen a bright blue mushroom like this before! (This picture is for you, Mom.)

A stop for lunch on the way back down on the Saturday.

The boys loved their tramp and want to go again!

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Boys, Mountains, Tramping

Windy Point

November 7, 2021 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

We made a quick trip to Canterbury yesterday for a friend’s 21st birthday celebration. She invited us in January and we’ve been looking forward to it ever since! It was originally scheduled for September, but lockdown happened. We were delighted to be able to attend now! We didn’t have a deadline for arriving, so decided to have a more relaxed trip than usual. We left late in the morning, and packed a picnic lunch. We stopped at Windy Point, a DOC site, the jumping-off point for a series of tracks through the high country. Three years ago, Gayle and the boys had gone backpacking through there. After we ate lunch, on this beautifully sunny, warm day, we walked out to the first swing bridge, which is really almost the trailhead. The views were spectacular!

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The boys love the challenge of walking across the bridge without touching the wires with their hands. I’m not sure how many, if any, of them accomplished it. That bridge really swings and bounces! I didn’t even try to walk that way. In fact, I didn’t look down or around at the scenery. I looked straight ahead.06-IMG_5695

Elijah took this video with his phone as he went back across. It doesn’t even begin to show the grandeur of the setting, but you can get a tiny glimpse.

Esther tried to do a photo shoot with Miss Joy on the way back. Mr. Diligent photo bombed her! He decided the two of them needed to wear his shoes on their heads! He carried those shoes all the way from the van, and then back again, rather than wearing them. Goofy boy!07-IMG_569708-IMG_570009-IMG_570210-IMG_570311-IMG_5705

Eventually, she decided to cover her smile!12-IMG_5711

Miss Joy did not appreciate the way Simon carried her!13-IMG_5712

She decided to walk by herself, instead.14-IMG_571515-IMG_5716

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Mountains, Video

Tramp to Elizabeth Hut

April 25, 2021 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

About the middle of February, Gayle and all five of the boys went on a tramp to Elizabeth Hut, in the mountains to the south of us, with several other men and children from our church. I stayed home with the girls, and with the help of a neighbor, did the milking. Mr. Diligence took his camera along and took these photos. Here they are getting ready to head out. Simon is in the center, and Mr. Sweetie and Mr. Imagination to the right in the photo.

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They tramped up a river valley.IMG_1517IMG_1520IMG_1521

These little fish were found trapped in some puddles that were drying up.IMG_1527IMG_1532IMG_1533IMG_1536IMG_1538IMG_1545IMG_1547

This is a hot spring partway up to the hut. At some point in the past, someone made a concrete pool, but it’s in bad shape now.IMG_1550IMG_1557IMG_1561IMG_1562IMG_1563IMG_1565IMG_1566IMG_1569IMG_1572

Inside the hut! There are only six bunks, so the men got those and most of the young boys spread their sleeping bags on the floor.IMG_1575IMG_1581IMG_1582

They headed back the next morning. Soon after setting out on the 4-5 hour tramp, Simon twisted his ankle, and just kept going. He could hardly hobble by the time they got out, and didn’t walk on his foot again for a few days.IMG_1589IMG_1590IMG_1595IMG_1596IMG_1597IMG_1601IMG_1603

They all thoroughly enjoyed this tramp, and want to do it again!

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Mountains, Tramping

Castle Hill and Beyond

January 20, 2021 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

After we left Cave Stream, on the second day of our trip, we went to Castle Hill. We have been there two other times, but the boys have never been able to spend as much time exploring the rocks as they want to, so they wanted to go back.

Mr. Diligence took a few pictures while we drove between Cave Stream and Castle Hill.

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There is our van ahead of the one he was in.34-034e-IMG_074235-034f-IMG_074936-034g-IMG_0752We quickly separated into groups to walk out to the rocks. Lest you think this photo has been artificially colored, that is the way the sky looked that day! It was so blue I couldn’t stop looking at it!

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29-034-IMG_7149We almost didn’t stop when we saw how full the carpark was, but then we found space in a second park, to the right here.

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The boys, of course, hustled out to the rocks quickly and started climbing.

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Mr. Diligence, Simon, and Mr. Sweetie49-042a-IMG_461250-043-IMG_7158

This is a tired baby! Esther and I soon decided to take her back to the van and give her a nap on the bed. Though it was quite a hot day, it was very pleasant in that van with all the windows and the side door open. There was a nice breeze, and it has a high roof, which means the heat isn’t trapped down where we sat. She got to sleep for an hour before we left.51-044-IMG_715952-045-IMG_716053-046-IMG_716154-047-IMG_7163

Gayle and Little Miss did some exploring on their own, and had fun experimenting with the camera on his new phone.55-048a-IMG_20201229_14133856-048b-IMG_20201229_14250357-048c-IMG_20201229_14384958-048d-IMG_20201229_144220

Mr. Diligence had his camera with him, too, so here are perspectives from high up on the rocks. This is Mr. Imagination and Mr. Sweetie.

59-048e-IMG_0758Simon and Elijah had to help each other up this section. It was nearly perpendicular to the ground.

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Mr. Sweetie pondering life from the top of a rock.70-048p-IMG_078371-048q-IMG_078572-048r-IMG_078973-048s-IMG_0790

Wild roses74-048t-IMG_079575-048u-IMG_079776-048v-IMG_0798The adventurers are coming back! Esther zoomed her camera in to take this from the van. Left to right are Mr. Imagination, Simon, Elijah, Mr. Diligence, and Mr. Sweetie.78-049a-IMG_461879-049b-IMG_0799

Soon after we left Castle Hill, we went over Porter’s Pass, leaving the high basin. 77-049-IMG_716780-050-IMG_716881-050a-IMG_462182-050b-IMG_462383-051-IMG_7169

Then, we were suddenly down on the plains! The road drops fast as you come down from the summit of Porter’s.84-052-IMG_7172

We spent this night with friends. Their house was too small for any extras, so we happily slept in the vans in their driveway. After a day in the sun, everyone slept soundly, though our faces felt hot!

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Holiday Trip, Mountains

Cave Stream

January 17, 2021 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

On the second day of our holiday, we packed up the vans in Arthur’s Pass and headed out about mid-morning. Our first destination for the day was Cave Stream. Gayle and Simon had gone through it four years ago, and now all the boys, as well as Little Miss, wanted to go through. Esther and I did not! We don’t think it’s that fun to wade through waist-deep, cold water, in the dark!

Here is some of the scenery we enjoyed on our way down from the pass, through the high basin. It was such a gorgeous day!

01-016-IMG_712602-016a-IMG_456403-016b-IMG_456804-016c-IMG_456905-016d-IMG_457106-016e-IMG_457207-016f-IMG_457508-017-IMG_712909-019-IMG_7132There were a lot of cars at the carpark when we arrived.

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It was incredibly beautiful there! Pictures can’t do it justice—you have to actually be there to really get a feel for the beauty. This is only a tiny glimpse. You could turn around in a complete circle and see amazing scenery all the way around. Also, in a photo you can’t capture the feel of the warm breeze, the fresh mountain air and the scent of the flowers, and the sounds of sheep and lambs baaing off in the distance. Such a wonderful experience!11-020b-IMG_4578

Mr. Imagination12-020c-IMG_458513-020d-IMG_458614-021-IMG_713615-022-IMG_7137

I saw this wild rose bush beside the track.16-023-IMG_7138

The entrance to the cave is that hole down at the base of the cliff.17-024-IMG_713918-024a-IMG_4587

The boys ran on ahead, leaving Gayle and Little Miss to catch up with them at the cave entrance.19-024b-IMG_459220-025-IMG_714021-026-IMG_714122-027-IMG_7142

After seeing them off, Esther and I walked on up the trail to the exit of the cave, where the stream goes in. She carried Miss Joy; I carried the security blanket.23-029-IMG_714424-029a-IMG_4597

The stream used to flow here, but when it eroded back enough that it found a way underground, this streambed dried out.25-030-IMG_714526-031-IMG_7146

The stream goes underground here, and this is the exit when you go through the cave. 27-032-IMG_714728-033-IMG_7148

After our crew came out of the cave and put on dry clothing, we laid out our picnic. We cooked the last of the hamburgers we had for supper the night before. 30-034a-IMG_460131-034b-IMG_4602

Miss Joy put on her big sister’s gumboots and walked around the carpark.32-034c-IMG_4603

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Holiday Trip, Mountains

Five Thousand Sheep! (includes video)

June 21, 2020 by NZ Filbruns Leave a Comment

A week ago, we went to visit some friends in North Canterbury. It was a beautiful day for traveling, with clear skies all the way over the mountains. This was about half an hour from home. The mist rising from the river, in front of the mountain, was stunningly beautiful!

09-IMG_646517-IMG_6466The tops of the mountains, around the pass, were covered with snow.

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We reached the other side of the divide, and as we left the highway and traveled up to our friends’ farm, we saw more snow-capped mountains in the distance.02-IMG_6469

Then, we arrived on their road, and saw this mob of sheep coming toward us! They move their 5,000+ sheep from the hills to their flat farm every winter for grazing, and this was the day of the big move. We’ve heard about this move for years, but I never expected to get to see it. What a nice surprise that it happened the day we went to visit! Our three oldest boys joined the ones who were walking behind the sheep, and helped them get the rest of the way to their destination.

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The scenery continued to be stunning as we drove on up the road into the hills to their house. What a beautiful country!

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I took a video of the mob of sheep as we drove through. Enjoy a tiny bit of our experience!

Filed Under: Away From Home Tagged With: Mountains, Video

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The Family:


Dad and Mom (Gayle and Emma)

Girl #1, Esther, my right hand

Boy #1, Seth (Mr. Handyman)

Boy #2, Simon (Mr. Inventor)

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Boy #4, Mr. Diligence

Boy #5, Mr. Sweetie

Boy #6, Mr. Imagination

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