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At 9.30 we were collected from the youth hostel by TrackNet, a bus company specialising in transport to and from tramping tracks. At 9.55 we were dropped off at the car park and 5 minutes later we were at the start of the Kepler Track at the lake level control gates. With the sun shining through thin clouds we set off through beech wood on a broad level path around the west shore of Lake Te Anau.
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Patches of fern vied with straggly beech saplings for the undergrowth. On the lake motor boats sped about spoiling the tranquillity, a sea plane also took off from the lake.
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The Kepler Track can be walked in either direction (though the way we were travelling was the most popular) so we met a few walkers coming the other way. Runners were also using the track.
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At 11.05 we reached Brod Bay and turned inland to climb steadily but relentlessly up the hill side through the trees. After more than an hour we came to a limestone bluff which we walked under until a platform and steps took us over the top where we stopped for 15 minutes for lunch.
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Limestone
The cliffs beside the track at this point are of limestone, a rock type formed largely of tiny fossil shell fragments cemented together by calcite (calcium carbonate). Larger fossil fragments in the rock are of molluscs, bryozoans and algae. Dark bands are of insoluble sand grains, concentrated in layers during dissolving of some of the calcite in the limestone
The limestone forms a discontinuous blanket up to 100m thick extending from the Murchison Mountains south to Lake Hauroko. It was formed in a shallow sea that covered most of Eastern Fiordland between 26 and 30 million years ago. The limestone was raised up to its present position here on Mt Luxmore some 1-2 million years ago.
In some places, streams have dissolved and eroded limestone to form caves, such as the Te Ana-au Caves, and the Luxmore Caves beside the Luxmore Hut ahead.
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Continued on up following a ridge until we soon reached the tree line and emerged to great views. First, ahead of us was Mount Luxmore clad with patches of snow. Then Lake Te Anau came into view on our right with the town of Te Anau at its southern end and mountains to the north and behind, to the south east were the Takitimu Mountains and the Murchison Mountains to the north. Lake Manapouri then appeared on our left.
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The path, passing through grasses, alpine flowers and shrubs, snaked round to the right of the hill in front of us and a board walk took us through an area of small tarns. As we walked a cool breeze started to pick up.
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View from Luxmore Hut
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At 1.35 we were at Luxmore hut with views over Lake Te Anau, but apart from that it was also a luxury set up - indoor toilets. Took a walk out to a limestone cave that was close by, it was worth the short trek with some interesting formations but not spectacular. Before dinner the hut warden took us on a nature walk where some of the four plants that make up the majority of the plant life were pointed out to us; hebe, mountain cottonwood, turpentine shrub, and curly tussock grasses.
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Also looked at the everlasting daisy and mountain daisy of which there are two varieties, one with soft leathery leaves and the other with spiky leaves, alpine cushion and the sundew.
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Went down to the tree line where we were told that the line occurred at the point where the average mean temperature is 10 degrees C. Looked at the silver beech with small serrated leaves and the mountain beech the small smooth leaves.
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Another sunny day. got away at 7.35 and made our way up towards Mount Luxmore practising naming alpine plants as we went. To the south low clouds filled the Waiau River valley. Snow that only one week ago had been severe enough to close the path, still clung to the north east ridge of Mount Luxmore. Continued climbing to the saddle and then took a side path to the top of Mount Luxmore with views in all directions, Stewart Island could just about be made out poking up above the clouds..
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Mount Luxmore
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After a quick look round we returned to the main path, collected our rucksacks, and continued on a path that would take us up and down over high ridges and round the sides of peaks calling first at the Forest Burn Emergency Shelter at 9.20 and the Hanging Valley Emergency Shelter at 10.30. We had hoped to stop there for a break but the sand flies to too bad and so we had a quick fruit bar and moved on hoping to out pace them, but after 10 minutes we resorted to insect repellent.
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Kepler path along ridge
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From Lookout Knob we started to descend steeply down a zigzag path back into woodland. Just as we were about to enter the sun which had been with us all morning disappeared behind clouds. The relentless climb of the previous day saw its counterpart as we dropped quickly through the beech forest, stopping briefly at a stream as we had plenty of time before arriving at Iris Burn Hut at 12,35. Having spent the afternoon sitting around the hut avoiding the sand flies we ventured out to visit the waterfall 20 minutes. The stroll was pleasant, as was the waterfall, but we didn't stay long as the flies were attacking us again.
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As we walked down the alley way where the boots had been left we were attacked by a swarm of sand flies that remained close to us until we moved off from the hut at 7.50. Initially we climbed upwards on a good zigzag path through beech forest before levelling out. After a while we came to open ground where a big land slip had taken place in 1984, the area was also fringed by dead trees, presumably damaged by the slip. Ahead of us were the Tikitimu Mountains.
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Reached the Iris Burn which we would follow all the way to Lake Manapouri, but it was not all down hill, the path had a tendency to wander off up the side of the valley before returning to the river. On the path we came across a fungus that grows on beech trees, similar to Indian Bread Fruit that we had seen in Argentina, we learnt that here it is called Beech Strawberries.
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Reached Rocky Point, the half way point on the days walk at 10.00 and stopped for a break, as we were making good time. Refreshed, we continued on through more beech wood, occasionally a light breeze would cause a shower of small beech leaves to fall on us.
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As we approached the lake we passed through an area of pampas grass and the turned left along the lake shore to take us towards the hut which we soon reached at 12.20.
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As a short excursion for the afternoon we took a walk to Shallow Bay and strolled along the beech looking at the pebbles trying to spot greenstone, we picked up a few pieces without any certainty that we were right in our selection. We also took a walk back along the track to look for a green hooded orchid that the hut warden had told us about and found in after 300m, just as we had been instructed.
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The forecast was for drizzle and they weren't wrong, Just before we set out at 7.50 it started and we had to decide whether it was heavy enough to need out water proofs. We decided that as we were walking through woodland we would do without. The high beech canopy kept us mainly dry, damp patches on the path indicated where we could expect to have a few drops on our heads.
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As the drizzle had almost stopped we took a short side track to Aboedoid Mire, a large wetland tarn, to take a look at the view and read about plant and bird life in wetland areas. Shortly after we crossed the Forest Burn, the stream at whose head was the Forest Burn Shelter that we had passed two days earlier, just as it was about to flow into the Waiau River.
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Walked along the high bank of the Waiau which flows between Lakes Te Anau and Manapouri before, at 9.15, dropping down to the bridge that crosses over it to Rainbow Reach. This is a point and which many trampers finish the trek even though there is in fact another 10km to complete the whole loop.
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With the drizzle increasing Dianne decide to put on her water proof top, I decided that as it was reasonably warm to get wet rather than sweat. The path for the last section was narrower and rougher than we had become accustomed to but still OK except that we kept having to brush against the wet leaves of mountain beech shrubs. Emerged into more open ground with manuka in full bloom before returning to forest, this time to the taller, slight larger leafed red beech.
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At 11.20 we were at the control gates having completed the full circuit, but 5km from the hostel. With the drizzle increasing even more we strode out on the lake side path to Te Anau, arriving back at the hostel at 12.30
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