Stewart Island Part II

When we last checked in with our intrepid travellers, they had been abandoned on the beach by their transport and fellow travellers and were left to make their way inland as best they could.

The path eventually became a bit more obvious and after one wrong turn, we found ourselves in a bit more wooded area. One would have to be pretty oblivious not to be able to follow this path!



We came upon a large shed which had a number of tents around and there was a young woman out walking a dog. There was an outhouse on the property, so we made use of it and while I was waiting for Debbie I was approached by a grizzled but cheerful man. It seems that normally dogs wouldn't be allowed out there but that these were students out doing a Kiwi bird count and the dogs were used to help find them. Apparently when the dog spots a Kiwi bird, it will freeze and point so the people can see them and do whatever they are doing with the birds (I didn't get all that info, but I would suspect banding?). I also discovered that in that particular location they have a lot of what they call "Sand Flys" or what we call "Black Flys". In the 5 minutes standing there I got attacked by swarms of them and I couldn't believe these people were camping there! In all fairness, though, that is the only insect problem we had on the whole hike. It was amazingly mosquito free, even in the swampy sections.

The land opened up a bit and we found ourselves in some mixed forest



In all honesty, we didn't see a whole lot of wildlife on our trek, but we did see a million Tent Caterpiller tents. Debbie joked that Stewart Island was a Tent Caterpiller sanctuary.


There were quite a few of these little yellow flowers and the bees were numerous and, of course being bees, busy.


We walked out of the more wooded area into a more grassy terrain. The weather on the beach in the early morning was quite cool, but as we worked our way inland the breeze fell off, and the temperature climbed to be pleasant without jackets.



I took a panorama of the grassy area. It's a full 360 degree panorama, and you can see the path leading back behind Debbie and onward over to the right side of the image. That's the same hill on the far right and left of the picture.


The path wandered through the grasslands and then back into some forested area. I liked the almost-filled-in tunnel feel to these sections.


Walking over the uneven ground with roots and washed away sections, we tended to keep our eyes on the path to avoid any ankle unpleasantness and we had to remind ourselves to look up and around at the scenery. We almost missed this hill, if you can believe it. Guess which way the wind blows around here.


And yet even more almost-closed-in path.


As the ground around got progressively wetter, we started to run into these narrow wooden foot paths.


Soon enough there was more wooden foot path than not. Early on they seemed like an improvement to the root and rut strewn dirt paths. The problem with them is that they are quite narrow and you don't want to step off into the swampy muddy water on the side, so you end up concentrating just as much on your steps as before, so the scenery once again must be looked at when you stop.






This little guy startled me when he jumped out of the bush right into the path. He wasn't the slightest bit concerned by us and kept jumping nearer. Perhaps he/she had a nest nearby.


Someone took some time out of their walking to weave this little trail marker.


The path led into a swampy forested area which then became less swampy.


We stopped here for a snack. The day before we had thought to pick up a couple of water bottles, but we forgot a trail snack so at the last minute before we left the hotel we jammed a bag of chips into the pack. How's that for the definitive sign of novice hikers. Sitting in the bush eating potato chips.


By this time, we were getting a little tired and our packs were feeling heavier. We had packed clothes and gear for our overnight stay on the Island, but as usual for us we packed too many things and along with the full complement of camera gear we were pretty well loaded. We loaded up our stuff and set off again.



Here is a mini-panorama of the area just off the path. The moss was quite colourful.


After 5 hours we finally reached the rendezvous point, greeted by the two women sunbathing on the dock and the German couple settled into the hut for the night. There are several hiker's (they are called "Trampers" here, not hikers) huts located at convenient one-day's hike spacings around the island. They are claimed on a first-come first-served basis, so I suppose getting there early is a plus. In the case of Freshwater Hut (where we were being picked up by the water taxi) the hut is located on the far side of the river. This is the bridge erected to reach the other side.




This is the hut as seen from the middle of the bridge. Debbie chose not to cross over.






The water taxi (which had been pre-arranged by the airplane company) arrived as scheduled and we were quickly loaded on. While we were loading, a single hiker showed up to ask about a trip back to town the next day. After terms were settled, she set off to hike over to Mason's beach (where we landed) and then was going to hike back the next day.


This is the river we travelled down before reaching the ocean. You can see the dock and bridge at Freshwater Hut in the background.



As the water opened up the driver sped up and we made good time.



The bay into which the river flows is a tidal basin and the driver told me that the whole area empties out every low tide. He said at low tide you could walk across the bay behind Debbie in the next picture.


The only town on Stewart Island is Oban. The town is built on a large bay with a smaller bay up over a steep hill. Needless to say the water taxi dropped us at the wharf on the smaller bay side and so with tired legs we climed the steep road over the hill to our hotel on the other side.


Hiking is thirsty work, as you can see.


The South Sea Hotel where we were staying is the only large-ish hotel on the island and we had booked a harbour view room. The rooms were well appointed though all of the rooms shared some common bathrooms and showers. The hotel is old and our room had a noticable slope to the floor. The room doors were peculiar as well since the doorknobs were located unusually high on the door. We assumed they were Hobbit proofing.


This was particularly strange since the lady running the reception desk couldn't have been more than 4 feet tall.

The restaurant in the hotel has a surprisingly good chef and the food was quite good. I appreciate that after a long hike, anything would seem good, but it was still quite tasty the next day. The first day Debbie had the Fish and Chips and I had a Blue Cheese Gnocci and the next day Debbie had the Seafood Chowder which was quite excellent and I had the Seafood Paella which was also very good. For us North Americans we expect our scallops to look a certain way, but this is how they really look.


I tried the orange bit on one of the scallops and it was a little "liver-y" in texture. I picked the rest off.

As I said above, we booked a harbour view room, but as it turns out, our room looked out onto a common balcony and as such afforded passers by a great view into our room. We kept the curtains drawn for most of our stay. We did, however take advantage of the balcony later in the evening.


And finally, here is a panorama of the waterfront taken from the balcony ouside our room at the hotel. The white/grey building centre left is the ferry terminal from which the ferry back to the mainland leaves. The giant chess board in the centre saw a surprising number of matches played while we were there.


Tomorrow, off to Ulva Island.


Don