13 November 2007

Lake Waikareiti Track

Two in a Row...

page 3

Older maps show a ladder providing access here, but all this is brand new.

In Maori, as far as i know, a rahui is a ban of some kind that falls short of a tapu, which is a complete ban usually for spiritual reasons. A drowning will cause a tapu to be placed on eating fish from the area for a period. A shortage of shellfish might prompt a rahui for a specified time while stocks replace themselve. I wonder idly what the history of this name is.

The lake is about 10m from the top of the staircase. Tamaiti is "child". Quite a beautiful name.

It's about 80-100m across. I'd love to see it in dead calm but its waters too are "rippling"

A small track leads off to one side, possibly a DoC inspection track, but not an obvious public route.

Sometimes a piece of graffiti is disarming.

We head back down the staircase

I recall climbing steps like these - ones you could see through - in Cologne Cathedral many years ago, and the watery feeling in the pit of my stomach and the back of my knees as we got higher and the floor below was quite visible.

Miranda takes a look down the lake. "I think I can manage that..."

The water in Lake Waikaremoana is quite clear, but this lake is something else again. Sunlight is turned into ripples on the floor of the lake.

Now which way are we going....?

We take our time, but we also take time to think about what it would be like if one of those fabled fast weather changes happened. Advice from DoC is to head towards land and hug the shoreline, but any sort of real wind would make rowing this beast extremely demanding.

Here we are. You can just see the shelter. Miranda is still feeling in good shape. She has put in some hard work. Thank you.

We return number 2 to her berth, and the oars to their locker, and make our way through the lengthening afternoon back to the van.

We head around the corner to the DoC motor camp, and some wonderful hot showers, some superb laundry facilities and roomy kitchen/dining facilities. (This is also a base where you can safely store your vehicle while you do the Waikaremoana Track, and you can get a water taxi from here to either end of the track and a pick up at the other end. It's a fine facility.