South Branch of the Ashburton River

After the first decent snow of the winter, I spent a weekend tramping the South Branch of the Ashburton River. The soft snow made for hard work, especially further up the valley. Snow shoes would have been handy here!




Starting from the Hakatere - Lake Heron Road the weekend started with a long walk in, reminiscent of the Scottish Cairngorms. The route follows a 4WD track across open country before picking up the Paddle Hill Creek. There was little snow here, but once I started to cross the base of the Dogs Range, the snow quickly covered the track and made walking quite tiring.


The Long Walk in from the Hakatere Road.


Mount Guy (1319m).


By Paddle Hill Creek.


The Dogs Range.

After four hours I arrived at the Boundary Creek Hut. Snuggled away in the bottom of a dip, the hut is not immediately apparent as you approach, in fact the only thing visible is the hut toilet, leading me to briefly wonder whether it had been destroyed. However it is in good condition, except that a bird had managed to get inside and make a bit of a mess.


Boundary Creek Hut.

From the hut I picked up the South Branch of the Ashburton River. A quad bike had been this way in the snow, which helped considerably in consolidating it under foot, at least as far as he had gone. However once I reached the end of his tracks the going became very, very slow. I eventually reached the Musterer's Hut as darkness was falling and camped nearby.


Ashburton South Branch and Wild Mans Hill.


Looking back down the South Branch.


Sun setting below the Big Hill Range.



Musterer's Hut in deep snow.


The last light of day over the Arrowsmith Range.

The following day I was up well before dawn, hoping to take advantage of colder conditions to freeze the snow a bit on the walk out. I was lucky enough to see a beautiful sunrise and the first light of day strike the Big Hill Range.


A pre-dawn start in the South Branch.


First light over the South Branch of the Ashburton River.


First light over the South Branch of the Ashburton River.


First light over the South Branch of the Ashburton River.


Morning light over the Big Hill range.

After morning tea back at Boundary Creek Hut, I headed out with just a short diversion on to some terraces to have a look at the Taylor Range. An excellent weekend, but a long way - some 50km there and back.


The Taylor Range viewed from terraces near the Lake Heron Road.