Napier Tramping Club

based in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand

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Super soup for the solstice

June 30, 2018 by John Bennett Leave a Comment

Mackintosh Hut, Kaweka FP, Saturday 30 June 2018 – Winter Solstice. Map BJ37
Photos: Julia and Peter

This was scheduled as a day outing and an easy weekend tramp for beginners.

The crisp frost on the kanuka scrub

Day Tramp reporter John Bennett writes: Julia, Pete and I left Park Island at 7am as passengers in Hilary’s car on a cold crisp day – with patches of ice on the road beyond Sherenden. At the frosty, ice-puddled Lakes Car Park, we were joined by Simon, Alison, Juliet and Sue who were intending to stay overnight.

Julia joined them to tramp the low-level track to Mackintosh Hut, leaving Hilary, Pete and myself to take the direct route from the Mackintosh car park.

Astelia nervosa uprooted by pigs

For us, it was down to the bridge over the Tutaekuri River and up an icy track with lots of beech leaf fall and mountain astelia (Astelia nervosa) torn up by pigs looking for roots. We reached the hut, and Hilary got the fire going (we’d found a pot containing ice inside the hut) whilst Pete and I cut firewood supplies.

We had morning tea by the fire. The Solstice theme was football, so Hilary hung out flags on the beams under the canopy to represent those teams still in the World Cup.

Julia arrived 45 minutes later and the other four came out of the bush, chattering and laughing. Pete blew his referee’s whistle to quieten them down.

Pumpkin, bacon and caraway soup

We had a nice shared lunch with hot soup and cheerios. Our day-trip quartet left the hut at 1.30, leaving the overnighters behind.

Overall, a very good day.

Trampers: Peter, Hilary, Julia and reporter John B.

The Mackintosh overnighters – Simon Hill reports

We drove up Taihape Road to an icy Lakes car park. A day party member kindly drove our vehicle to the other car park. Then we took the track up to Mackintosh Hut via a freezing cold and fast-flowing river, and a very cold and sometimes slippery track through contorta pine.

The overnighters on the low level track

The sun was out, but it never fell on us. The group arrived at the hut at 12.30 to find it well decorated with World Cup football flags. As this was the theme of the Winter Solstice, the day party had dressed up appropriately, lit the fire and prepared a beautiful shared lunch with a Christmas touch. This was so unexpected, but it certainly beat our packed sandwiches. We all sat down to Julia’s delicious homemade pumpkin soup and buns, mini egg sandwiches, fruitcake, rocky road and a bag full of mandarins.
Once the day party left for home, we cut more firewood and sat in the sun on the deck. When the sun disappeared, it was time to share nibbles. There was so much variety, nobody cooked dinner!

At about 6pm, a young couple from Napier arrived and joined in with the festivities. The evening sky was clear with a full moon and the Matariki stars shining down on us. Everyone slept well, including a lie-in!

After breakfast and a quick tidying of the hut, we headed off in fine weather and drove back home, arriving before midday

Trampers: Alison, Juliet, Sue, and reporter Simon.

Filed Under: Recent trips

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About us

We are a group of like-minded people who love the great outdoors. We tramp mostly in the Hawke’s Bay province, in remote areas such as the Kaweka and Ruahine Ranges; but we also travel longer distances to new places, for longer walks.

The Napier Tramping Club was established in 1974 and has about 70 members. We belong to the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ Inc (FMC) and run Saturday, full-weekend and Wednesday tramps, every fortnight.

Interested in joining us?

Enjoy the great outdoors, keep fit and get to know others with similar interests.

More information

Latest news

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Latest trip

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Useful links

  • Dept of Conservation
  • DoC Huts Use, Kaweka Forest Park
  • Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ (FMC)
  • Heretaunga Tramping Club
  • New Zealand Tramper
  • NZ Walking Access Commission
  • Wanganui Tramping Club

Useful links 2

  • Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society
  • Weather forecast

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