NZ2020: Day 15, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park

February 5, 2022November 16, 2024 / margaretquilts / 3 Comments

February 8, 2020

After the beautiful evening views at Lake Ohau, clouds were hiding Aoraki/Mt Cook this morning. The wind was up, and Lake Ohau was a steel gray. We drove back around Ben Ohau and its landslip-streaked mountain face. Slight rain was in the forecast, but we pressed on to Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park.

Lake Ohau in the morning

Our driving route to Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park

The road follows the shores of Lake Pukaki, up the Hooker Valley toward Aoraki/Mt Cook. We will hike the Sealy Tarns/ Mueller Hut Track, and stay the night at the Mt Cook Chalets.

A rainbow in Hooker Valley, as we approach Aoraki/Mt Cook Village

Trail map showing our location in orange.

Sealy Tarns Track / Mueller Hut Route

This trail is famous for having about 2000 stair steps up to the tarns. It is one of the hardest I have done, but somehow I keep my legs going up. I count steps in sets, counting up to one fewer number each time (20-19-18-17…), with planned breathing/rest stops between sets. There should be 210 steps per set, 10 sets in all…some of the steps are almost ladders. There are clouds blocking some of our views and spitting rain; cold wind, then warming sun.

Trail stairs

Looking down at the Kea Point Lookout on Lake Mueller (circled in blue). Beyond Lake Mueller is a huge moraine, then Hooker Lake.

Kea Point Lookout on Lake Mueller.

Looking toward the camp on Mt Sefton, circled in orange.

Zooming in on a tent at the foot of the glacier on Mt Sefton.

Looking back down Hooker Valley to where we started the hike.

When we arrive at the tarns, I feel surprisingly strong. We eat lunch at the picnic tables, take some pictures of glaciers, then decide to go higher.

Sealy Tarns

Glacier on Mt Sefton

crevasses

wildfire dust?

rockfall

The Mueller Route, going up beyond the tarns.

Above the tarns the track is rougher, a bit cliffy. I miss the stair steps here! We continue up the rocky, “choose your own adventure”, anastomosing trails, until I decide I can go up no more. We take in the view, eat a snack, then go down.

From our high point we had a good view of Hooker Lake, the terminus of Hooker Glacier, and Aoraki/Mt Cook, still in the clouds.

Closer look at Hooker Lake, and the Hooker Valley Trail

Ice bergs in Hooker Lake.

Looking south down the Hooker valley from our high point.

We saw a few flowers and some interesting flora along the trail.

Mountain daisies

We returned back down the 2000 murderous steps, knees and legs a little wobbly. On the way down, we stopped often to admire the views of the glaciers, lakes, moraines, and the unveiling summit plateau of Aoraki/Mt Cook.

Down the steps…

Another view of the terminus of Hooker Glacier

Close up of Hooker Glacier

The peak of Aoraki/Mt Cook, coming out of the clouds!

Closer views…

The curved southern edge

Northern slopes

So beautiful!

Aoraki/Mt Cook, completely unveiled by the time we reached the bottom of the trail!

and Mt Sefton, too!

We make our way back to the bus, and check into our room at the Mt Cook Chalets, having hiked about 6.5 miles and 2800 feet. But we are not done with the mountain yet! After dinner in the cafe, we relax in the lounge, where we can see the triple triangle face of Aoraki/Mt Cook glowing bright white, then pink with alpenglow, in the pinky blue cloud streaked sky. Phenomenal!

Lounge with a view…

Mt Sefton, Aoraki/Mt Cook

Aoraki/Mt Cook

Tomorrow we are going back to Christchurch – our last guided tour day. The next two weeks in New Zealand will be on our own – with many more adventures that I am excited to be reliving with these blog posts!

January 2022 in Portland

February 4, 2022January 25, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

The first couple of weeks were very cold, followed by many days of rain dripping down the windows, yarn loops sliding by on the needles, and just a few sun breaks. A tsunami from Tonga, the Omicron surge just beginning to decline, a trip to Joshua Tree cancelled…another pandemic month in Portland.

Hikes:

1/9/2022 Wildwood Trail to Pittock Mansion in Portland – A rare sunny day – everyone out on the trails – we continued our section hike of the Wildwood Trail, completing about 3 more miles as we hiked up and back to Pittock Mansion from the arboretum, crossing the new Barbara Walker Bridge for the first time.

Up until last year, hikers had to scurry across the very busy Burnside Street.

Barbara Walker Bridge.

Urban trail graffiti

We reached the 1914 Pittock Mansion, and walked around to the viewing areas…

Pittock Mansion

Views from the property to the Cascade Mountains…

Mt Hood

Portland and Mt Hood

Mt St Helens

Mt Rainier beyond Mt St Helens

Returning back over the Barbara Walker Crossing…

1/12/2022 Eagles and snow near Lyle, WA – Our annual trip to see the eagles at the Balfour/Klickitat Preserve:

Calm Columbia River looking east from the Hood River Bridge.

Snowy ground near Coyote Wall.

We walked to the eagle viewing area near the mouth of the Klickitat River:

Osage oranges along the trail

Frozen lakeshore, eagle flying above the island

Eagle and ducks

Looking up Klickitat Canyon – white eagle heads in the trees.

Bald eagle

We saw more than twenty today.

Looking south to Tom McCall Point.

Next we walked some of the trails at nearby Catherine Creek.

Snowy slopes at Catherine Creek

Frozen Fairy Ponds

The arch

Mt Hood and the orchards of Mosier

Eastern Gorge

Grass widow foliage, but no blooms.

The waterfall.

1/18/2022 Swans at Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge, WA – We walked the 2.5 mile Oaks to Wetland Trail.

Swans in the distance, from the railroad bridge

Fungus

Belted kingfisher

Trumpeter swans

Then we drove the auto tour, looking for more swans.

Plenty of tundra and trumpeter swans in the northern lake…

American coot

Northern harrier next to the road.

1/28/2020 Chehalem Ridge Nature Park, OR – Our first visit to this new park south of Forest Grove. We walked almost six miles on the trails, quiet today with a few views of the distant mountains.

Chehalem Ridge Nature Park

Mt St Helens and Mt Adams

Farmlands and Coast Range to the west

Mt Rainier and Mt St Helens

Neighborhood:

On our first sunny day, I went outside for what seemed like the first time in weeks, to see blue sky and low angle winter shadows:

1/16/2022 – Another sunny day, we met friends and walked a long loop on the hilly streets south of downtown Portland.

Mt Hood from SW Portland

Mt Hood and the Tilikum Bridge over the Willamette River

By the end of the month, viburnum and crocus were beginning to bloom…

Viburnum

First crocus blooms of the year

Hexagonal sidewalk

Knitting:

I did get a lot of knitting done this month, since the outdoors were so inclement. And I am still meeting once or twice weekly with my knitting group over Zoom.

Winding yarn on my new swift.

Rose City Yarn Crawl Mystery Shawl, in progress

New pile of yarn from the guild to make hats for our service project.

I used online tutorials to learn Tunisian crochet.

I finished a languishing WIP – The Ella Improv Cowl, by Cecelia Campochiaro, using marling and sequence knitting techniques.

A Gnoah gnome, (Imagined Landscapes), sent via Intergalactic Gnome Transport to the burgeoning colony in Washington DC.

Addenda:

The volcano in Tonga!

The snow in DC.

Other adventures – January 10th was the 4th anniversary of my pituitary surgery. With constant vigilance and good doctors, all my hormone levels are now within the normal range. I feel healthy and strong and grateful for early diagnosis and the miracles of modern medical science, especially the monthly injections that keep the acromegaly in check.

On to February – pandemic numbers are going down in our neck of the woods – we may actually travel somewhere – stay tuned.

2021…review

January 13, 2022November 17, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Another year of playing the waiting game, getting vaccinated, then staying out of the way. We rode the roller coaster of variants, and stayed healthy. In between, we met up with family and friends, but once again cancelled travel plans as waves of Covid swept the globe. We visited our daughter in Washington DC in May, and then she was able to visit us in the summer and attend a several times postponed wedding. Delta rose, and we cancelled a trip to Iceland. We compensated by taking trips to the Olympic Mountains, Mt Baker, and Mt Adams. We experienced a heat dome and a couple of atmospheric river events, and, all along I leaned into my usual enrichment distractions – books and yarn. I met with my book group a few times, and my knitting group weekly, mostly on zoom, occasionally outdoors.

The Fiber Arts: Knitting continued to be a main source of both comfort and productivity. I finished 21 projects. By far the most satisfying were the 12 hats and cowl I knit for donation to the guild service project. I also thoroughly enjoyed knitting several gnomes and cats, a witch, an albatross, and a turtle; socks and hats for family members, a small blanket, a sweater, and skirt for me. I explored many new techniques, and have a sense that there will always be something new to learn about knitting.

I also made two quilts, a Dorset button, and a cross stitched bookmark, some pattern weights, and a few other small sewing projects.

Twelve hats and a cowl for donation

Pinwheel quilt

Knitted gnomes admiring the cookie selection

Plaid Rectangles Charm Quilt

A side

Dorset button

cross stitch

Hitchhiker shawl

Ravelry 2021 projects

Books: Of the 73 books I finished, many were biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, or historical fiction centered around the lives of women. I find so much inspiration in learning about how different individuals found meaning in their lives, helped others, made the best life out of a challenging start, sometimes just survived.

Hikes and Walking: I walked over 700 miles last year, about 340 of the miles on 68 hiking trips, that included over 56000 feet of elevation. Standout hikes were the Ptarmigan Ridge trail at Mt Baker, the Killen Creek trail at Mt Adams, and finally making it to Tunnel and Twister Falls on the Eagle Creek trail in the Columbia River Gorge. We revisited many favorite trails in the Gorge and Cascade Mountains, and completed 5 more hikes on the Wildwood Trail in Forest Park – we have less than 4 miles left to finish the entire trail.

snow geese

sand hill cranes

Columbia River Gorge

Oak grove

Tunnel Falls, Eagle Creek

Killen Creek Meadows, Mt Adams

Lewis River Falls

More stunning reflections, Mt Shuksan

Mt Baker

Trail along the cirque

Columbia Hills from The Dalles Bridge

Mt Hood, Eliot Glacier

Little Crater Lake

Three Corner Rock

Caspian terns

Pelicans

Looking south toward Arch Cape from Big Barnacle Rock – our turnaround point.

President Lincoln

Balsam root, Cottonwood Canyon

St John’s Bridge

White River Falls

Lewisia rediviva

Lunch view, near the Timberline Trail crossing.

Other things that delighted me this year: the Inauguration; neighborhood skiing in February; monitoring Brian’s cross country road trip in March; visiting family in Eugene in May; celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas with friends.

Screenshot

Women of the Inauguration

Yarn celebrating the women of the inauguration

Feb 2021

Postcards from the road

summer fruit

Thanksgiving table, 2021

Their tree

Hopes and aspirations for 2022: Besides coming out of the pandemic… besides reading and knitting and hiking. Perhaps more quilting, sewing, spinning, and learning Tunisian crochet. I still have more blog posts about New Zealand and quilt stories to finish. I want to hike the last few miles of the Wildwood Trail; we hope to go to DC and Italy, possibly to Hawaii, and back to Killen Creek Meadows when the wildflowers are out. But especially, I want to to reconnect with people, visit family and friends, in real life – that is my fondest hope for 2022.

Finally, a small tribute to two of the many people who inspire me, and have made my world a better place.

December 2021, Walking adventures

December 31, 2021 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

We went on a couple of hikes, and walked among Van Gogh paintings in a digital art experience.

Lyle Loop, 12/2/2021, 5 miles, 1250 feet

Clockwise track

A new loop has been carved out of the Nature Conservancy Lyle Cherry Orchard property. We tried it on a windy (but not tooo windy) day- lovely blue sky and puffy clouds our backdrop. We climbed up the familiar tiers of basalt flows, above the Convict Road,

Looking down on the Convict Road

Windy blue skies above

then headed west, to a new trail carved into the grassy slope.

It curves around the mountain above the town of Lyle.

As the trail circled to the north, Mt Adams appeared on the horizon.

Zooming in

On the northern side of the loop, out of the wind, we walked through lovely oak woodlands, occasionally switching back past views of Lyle, and of Mt Adams again.

Lyle, Klickitat River delta

Lyle town sign, in white rocks

Mt Adams again,

now with clouds.

Eventually, our trail intersected the Cherry Orchard Loop, and we descended on the familiar trail.

A lovely day on the sunny side of the mountains.

Tracy Hill, Catherine Creek, WA, 12/8/2021, 5.3 miles, 1200 feet

Our counterclockwise trail map

Calm and bright; clouds topping the highest hills; some blue sky distant:

some of our plant friends in their winter garb:

bitteroot

parsley

Ravens and cows:

ravens

cows

Columbia River shining:

oak and ponderosa sharing the sky:

Ent on the skyline:

It’s very birdie in this section, chirping and calling, flashes of blue, rust, white and black between trees, I can’t quite see them; blue jays and woodpeckers?

Up Tracy Hill’s open slopes:

View up Major Canyon, to the east

Seating at the top of Tracy Hill

A well earned rest

and down again:

halfway down

above the arch

Looking back at the top of Tracy Hill

It felt a bit like walking in a painting. I was interested to compare it with walking in digital paintings the next day…

Beyond VanGogh, Oregon Convention Center, 12/8/2021 – We did actually walk in pictures, as the digital imagery swirled around us, and the paintings painted themselves on the walls. All beautiful and colorful, and an excellent reminder of Van Gogh’s work. I loved seeing:

the flowers that melded together then blew away:

the swirls of starry night whirling:

walls of self portraits:

buildings appearing from simple sketched lines to full color paint strokes:

signatures writing themselves in a patchwork of squares:

dark starry skies dripping down the walls:

However, Beyond Van Gogh was not a wilderness experience. I enjoyed the visual imagery, but would have liked to see it in an Imax setting. Perhaps if we had been stationary, I would have felt more in control regarding Covid precautions, especially now that omicron is spreading. There were too many people wandering around in the hall. I was constantly checking over my shoulder to get away from someone standing tooo close with their mask slipping down. I guess I’m not ready to resume life in the peopled world yet.

For the rest of December it has been raining, and now is cold (for us) and snowing. Not conducive to driving to the trails or hiking. I’ve mainly been taking neighborhood walks in the brief dry spells. I will be glad to return to walking in the real hills after this Canadian cold front moves on.

NZ2020: Day 14, To Lake Ohau

December 6, 2021February 5, 2022 / margaretquilts / 3 Comments

February 7, 2020

Today began with an easier hike (than yesterday) near Queenstown, then we drove north to the vicinity of Aoraki/Mt Cook.

Driving route to Lake Ohau

Queenstown: After breakfast at a local cafe, we took a last walk through Queenstown and along the Lake Wakatipu waterfront.

Wall art in our breakfast cafe

Quiet morning in Queenstown

Queenstown waterfront

Sam Summers’ Hut Hike – 5.4 miles, 800 feet

Then we drove west along the shores of Lake Wakatipu to the Mt Crichton Loop Track trailhead.

Trailhead map – our trail circled in light blue

Dipping schist along the trail

View back to Lake Wakatipu

Juvenile lancewood, or horoeka

Adult lancewood

A bog near our turnaround junction

Small lake

Lake Dispute, Lake Wakatipu

Waterfall on Twelve Mile Creek

Quartz layers in the rocks behind the waterfall

Sam Summers’ Hut

An old gold mining lodging

Rustic…

The history

Interior…

Meadows and sandstone outcrops on the return hike

Twelve Mile Creek

I enjoyed the hike, and it was good to stretch our legs on an easier trail, after the challenging hike yesterday, and another challenging hike planned for tomorrow.

Arrowtown: Next, we drove back through Queenstown, and on to Arrowtown, where we stopped for a picnic lunch in the park, and a short wander around the western style gold rush town.

Western facades in Arrowtown

Driving north: For the next few hours, we drove north along Hwys 6 and 8, with several short stops, and lots of interesting scenery along the way.

Last glimpse of The Remarkables as we leave Arrowtown

Kawarau Gorge Suspension Bridge

Wine country near Gibbston

We stopped at a fruit stand near Cromwell, with orchards of ripe nectarines (southern summer!), and delicious homemade ice cream.

At Lindis Pass, over 3000 feet in elevation, we walked up to a viewpoint over the dry tussock landscape. The golden rolling hills reminded me of the high deserts of eastern Oregon and California.

We took one last break in Omarama, where I found a few post cards, but no knitting wool.

Lake Ohau: We arrived at Lake Ohau around 5 pm. Once again, I was taken by surprise, by the startlingly turquoise blue of the lake, and the barren mountain slopes streaked with colorful landslips beyond. I was not expecting anything so stunning, as we had just been passing through the dry summer landscape of the Mackenzie Basin. And into my mind came memories of the southwestern US, where I spent a fair amount of time geologizing in my younger days. Here in New Zealand, I was seeing glacial lakes such as those that filled many of the basins of western North America in the ice ages. It was like going back in time, in a way, and I was grateful to see a version of this ‘geologic setting’ in real life. So striking in starkness and color. Another of the amazing experiences I would have on this trip. And there would be more beautiful images later today!

Lake Ohau, Ben Ohau

Our lodge room had ‘picture’ windows overlooking Lake Ohau and the near and distant mountains. Standing beyond but higher than all was the stunning Aoraki/Mt Cook, 12,218 feet tall, the highest mountain in New Zealand. From our vantage, it was a giant chunk of glistening white, it’s peak plateau about a mile long, it’s faceted shear white slopes facing us, calling attention to itself, and I felt lucky to see it.

Our lodge room

Lake Ohau

Aoraki/MtCook

Aoraki/MtCook

The other glaciated mountain at the end of Lake Ohau

After a dinner in the lodge of pumpkin miso soup, salmon, and chocolate mousse, we returned to our room to see the moon rising and the the mountain glowing in the twilight, then in alpenglow. I seemed to be sitting in a picture postcard.

Later, the rising moon was reflected in the lake, and Aoraki/Mt Cook shone with moon glow.

We also saw Orion in the sky, but have not yet seen the southern cross. This day ended well, and tomorrow we were looking forward to getting closer to Aoraki/Mt Cook.

November 2021 report…

December 4, 2021 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

A month that sped by, interludes of rain and wind and another atmospheric river, a few hikes, some knitting, and a family Thanksgiving celebration indoors…

Hikes:

November 5th – Wildwood Trail, miles 0 to 1.5, Portland, OR

On a sunny afternoon, we walked the first section of the Wildwood Trail as part of a 3 mile loop. We saw some late fall color, a bald eagle, and a few other interesting trees.

liquidambar

oak

bald eagle

Redwood trees

Huggable!

Monkey puzzle trees

Not huggable!

I only have about 3 miles left to have completed all 30 miles of the trail.

November 10th – Catherine Creek – Bitterroot/Stringbean/Rowland Wall trails, WA

Another 4.5 mile loop on a sunny day in the eastern Gorge, Washington side.

Up the Bitterroot Trail, view to Catherine Creek Arch.

Oak groves on the west side of Rowland Wall.

Spotted towhee

Lunch view to the east toward Rowland Wall

another towhee?

Handsome old tree snag

Westward view

Back over Rowland Wall

Orchards of Mosier

We took a quick stop to check out the bald eagle nesting grounds on the nearby Klickitat River, knowing it was probably too early to see them.

No bald eagles yet,

but plenty of Osage Oranges,

and some small birds in the bushes.

Three bushtits

Spotted towhee

November 18th – Deschutes River Trail, OR

A two hour drive to get out of the rain – a pleasant 5 mile walk with friends…

Canada geese near the trailhead

The river level is high!

Some fall colors along the banks

Cliff views as we start uphill…

View back to the river mouth.

November 23rd – Stonehenge, WA

Again we drove east, looking for good weather. We found sun, but too much wind! We drove through the wind power installations in the hills, then stopped for our lunch break at the Stonehenge replica/ WWI Memorial near Maryhill, WA.

Rainbow and white caps on the Columbia River, from the Hood River Bridge.

Driving through wind power country…

Stonehenge Memorial out on a bluff over the Columbia River…

West toward Hood River

Eastward views

North…

Sun on the cliffs near Lyle, WA, as we drive back west into the rain.

Thanksgiving:

We celebrated with friends,

Thanksgiving table, 2021

Some turkeys were not eaten

while this bird feasted on the rudbeckia seedheads in our front yard:

Knitting

Mostly on a brioche project. I have become quite experienced at repairing knitted purls and vice versa.

Neighborhood

Many walks during the dry intervals. Leaves saying goodbye…

and this guy looking to the future…

NZ2020: Day 13, Ben Lomond hike

November 16, 2021February 5, 2022 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

February 6, 2020

After two days of being sidetracked by flooding, heavy rain and road damage, the road north was opening for limited time windows while being repaired. We departed from Te Anau at 5:30 am to drive to Queenstown. We waited in the dawn at Five Rivers for the 7 am opening.

Queue waiting for the partially flooded road to open

Sunrise with llamas

We arrived at the Queenstown Skyline Gondola on schedule for the 9 am opening.

A ten minute gondola ride took us up the first 1500 feet of the Ben Lomond trail.

Great views from the Upper Gondola complex.

Views below to Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu

We still had about 4 miles, and 3400 feet to hike to the top of Ben Lomond. We started up, through sun, mist, and a little rain. The weather got better through the day, but many of the surrounding mountains retained a high cloud cover. The cooler temperature was perfect though, as it gets warm hiking continually up. This was a challenging hike for me! We took a steady pace, with rests.

Lower trail. Ben Lomond is the high peak on the skyline.

Looking back toward Lake Wakatipu.

Getting closer to our destination.

First we have to get to the saddle,

then up the rocky and steeper ridge.

Looking back down at the saddle.

Up the rocky section, with mist wafting in and out.

A feral goat below on the rocky crags.

The last steep pitch…

At the top, my relief of making it to the peak was almost completely sidetracked by the surprise of finding mountain parrots at the summit!

Kea, or mountain parrot, perched on the summit cliff of Ben Lomond.

There were five or six of these large birds (about 18 inches tall), flying around, undaunted by the people, and fairly aggressively scrounging for hiker lunch crumbs. I am accustomed to seeing marauding chipmunks where I come from, so this was an unexpected reward for the last three hours of steady upward effort.

Kea and hikers on summit of Ben Lomond

Kea, metamorphic rocks

Kea, flashing orange back feathers while flying.

Face close up

Mists rolling in

I watched the keas for a while, and rested, while clouds rolled in and out from the steep southern cliffs. We looked around as much as possible before beginning the hike down. I would have liked to stay longer, but it was very cold and windy.

Lake Wakatipu

Clouds wafting across

The view!

Southern alps to the west

Starting down – view back to The Remarkables and Queenstown, with our trail in view.

(Geology interlude) As we looked back toward Queenstown on our return hike, I noticed the effects of the rain on the rivers downstream from Lake Wakatipu. The very brown and muddy Shotover River flows into the deep blue Kawarau River (the Lake Wakatipu outlet). Downstream farther, the Kawarau River is muddier in color. (I saw this happen a long time ago at the confluence of the Little Colorado and Colorado Rivers in the Grand Canyon, on a once in a lifetime river trip.)

Confluence of Shotover and Kawarau Rivers

Wider view, muddier Kawarau downstream.

We continued down the mountain, on tired and satisfied legs.

Resting, Southern Alps beyond.

Clouds have lifted, this peak finally exposed.

Last look at Ben Lomond

and the tiny people enjoying the summit.

The down trail crosses over the luge track at the Gondola Complex.

We took the gondola back down to town, then checked back into the Crowne Plaza Hotel. We had a group dinner in town, and said goodbye to our additional tour members and guide. We still had two more days with our guide Kaleb, and we were going north toward Aoraki/Mt Cook.

NZ2020: Day 12, Southland improvisation; Te Anau Bird Sanctuary

November 5, 2021November 16, 2021 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

February 5, 2020

After the previous few days of constant rain, we were happy to see blue sky this morning. The roads in most directions were still closed by flooding. Fortunately, our guides had grown up in the area, and chose some of their favorite places for our day’s adventure in Southland.

Snow on the mountains near Te Anau

Today’s route, and stops in Southland.

Clearing skies above the Southern Alps as we drive south.

Clifden Suspension Bridge

We stopped here to stretch our legs, and to look at the historic bridge over the Waiau River as it continues south to the sea. We had been walking along its banks yesterday near Lake Te Anau.

Historic Bridge

Clifden Bridge

Muddy river – from the recent storms

The Waiau River is connected all the way upstream to Doubtful Sound.

Feral rooster

We continued driving south on the Southern Scenic Route, eventually reaching Te Waewae Bay near the mouth of the Waiau River.

Quintessential New Zealand scenery – sheep and mountains,

Te Waewae Bay, muddy from the recent storms.

My Google maps image – showing that I am the closest I have ever been to Antarctica!

We stopped at several beaches and took two longer hill walks while in Southland.

Southland stops

Gemstone Beach

Once on the coast, we stopped first for a walk at Gemstone Beach.

Gemstone Beach

Caves in the sandstone

seaweed

beach rocks

oyster catcher

sandstone erosion

Orepuki

By this time, we were ready for a coffee break at the Orepuki Beach Cafe.

Lovely setting and delicious cakes!

Monkey Island Beach

We took a short walk at another beautiful beach – at low tide one can walk out to the island.

Monkey Island Beach

Monkey Island

Westward view

Long Hilly Walking track

Next we went on a short hike on the Long Hilly Walking Track to Round Hill, through historic gold mining areas of the 1870’s.

Tree fern forest

Tree fuchsias

Historic mining ventures

Riverton

We continued our drive along the southern coast to the town of Riverton,

Riverton, Pourakino River Bridge

Surfer crossing

then to a beach cove along the drive to Howell’s Point for our lunch break.

Cove with picnic bench along Rocks Road

Lunchtime

Exploring the cove…

Muddy water in the bay from the flooding river

After lunch, we stopped to see the view to the south from Howell’s Point:

Bluer water away from the river

Red billed gulls on the beach

Hilltop Lookout

Next, we took another hill walk over the headland – past cows and Balancing Rock.

Balancing Rock

And a cow…

After the hike, we drove back to Te Anau, with our guides keeping touch with the flood status of the roads for tomorrow.

Driving back through Riverton

View of the flooding rivers and the southern alps beyond

Sheep again, and the Tasman Sea

Te Anau Bird Sanctuary

We arrived back in Te Anau with time to visit the Bird Sanctuary. Here was a chance to see some of the endangered birds that are endemic to New Zealand. It was a challenge to get good photos through the chain link fencing.

Entrance to the Birdpark.

First, the parakeet/kakarike:

Next, the parrot/kaka:

We walked past the lake area, and saw some waterfowl…

Paradise shelduck

And last we spent quite a bit of time admiring the flightless Takahe, who were running around free range in their enclosure. There were several adults and a chick. they were very odd and fascinating to watch, and gave us a good final interesting new thing for the day.

Takahe are about the size of a chicken

Takahe chick being fed

Both beaks and feet look formidable!

Takahe

I enjoyed our improvised day in Southland. It was all new landscape to me, and as with everyday day so far, brought me surprising new views and experiences. Tomorrow, we were returning to our originally scheduled tour, and going back to Queenstown to take a hike up a mountain called Ben Lomond.

The only kiwi bird we saw at the bird sanctuary. It is extremely rare to see one anywhere, as they are nocturnal and almost extinct. There are a few refuges one can visit, but we did not seen on our trip.

The rest of October, 2021: knitting, neighborhood, more hikes…

November 3, 2021 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

A transitional month – the last of the summer flowers, leaves turning and falling, more rain, an atmospheric river event. We got our Covid booster shots, are poised for reentry, again, again, again, again….

Knitting, etc:

I knitted some little creatures – a gnome, three cats and a witch, and finished a pair of socks. My collection of twelve hats and a cowl are blocked and ready for donation to a local women’s shelter. I sewed potholders and a door light curtain for my daughter.

Witch and Cat (Susan B Anderson)

Mystery gnome Gnorwen (Sarah Schira)

Twelve hats and a cowl for donation

Weaving Socks (verybusymonkey)

New potholders for a gift

Tiny Speckled Window Cat (Sara Elizabeth Kellner) for a gift

Another Tiny Window Cat for me

Around the neighborhood:

Colors of the season:

Sunflowers

Crabapples

Two more hikes, besides our Mt Adams and Eagle Creek adventures:

With more frequent rain in western Oregon, we go east of the mountains, beyond the rain shadow.

10/21/2021 Tom McCall Point, Oregon: Orange oak trees, views of Mt Adams and Mt Hood, and a surprise viewing of a buck near the top of the mountain.

Tom McCall Point

Parsley Alley

Oak leaves

Oak tree

Memaloose Hills

Mt Adams, Washington slopes

Mt Adams

Mt Hood

Buck

Dried balsam root and puffy clouds

Summit view

10/27/2021 The Labyrinth, Washington: A saunter with our son through some of my favorite basalt piles and oak groves on an overcast day with sun breaks.

Oak grove

Orchards of Mosier

Friendly tree

Columbia River Gorge

New Zealand Albatross update: The chick Tiaki that I watched in the webcam from the time it was laid as an egg last fall, to its fledging in September 2021, has flown across the South Pacific Ocean to the coast of South America.

Screenshot from the NZ/DOC tracking page.

And some inspiration for staying positive…

Internet meme – author unknown.

Our first return to Eagle Creek since the fire of 2017

November 1, 2021November 1, 2021 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

October 12, 2021 Eagle Creek Trail to Twister Falls

We had been planning to hike all the way to Tunnel and Twister Falls in the autumn of 2017, after the summer crowds cleared out. Alas, the Eagle Creek Fire started on Labor Day weekend that year, scorching 48000 acres of the Columbia River Gorge on the Oregon side of the river. After years of trail maintenance, the Eagle Creek Trail has reopened intermittently this year, occasionally reclosed by landslides. I was wary of hiking this trail, and many of the reopened Gorge trails, for just this reason. Burned trees will fall. Burned, denuded slopes, will slide. And yet… we have been waiting to hike this trail for years.

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Map showing extent of 2017 Eagle Creek Fire. Our trail up Eagle Creek to Twister Falls shown in blue.

The trail extends for 13 miles up Eagle Creek, from the Columbia River, to its outlet on Wahtum Lake (elev. 3700′). We have hiked above this trail, from Wahtum Lake to Chinidere Mountain, many times. And we have hiked the lower trail, past various of the waterfalls, many times before the fire, but never all the way to Twister Falls, which is 6.5 miles from the trailhead.

A notable feature of this trail is that several sections are carved out of the vertical basalt rock walls that line Eagle Creek. Trail ledges were blasted out of the cliffs in the early 1900’s, around the time the old Columbia River Highway was built. People with fear of heights do not like this trail.

We chose a clear fall day, no recent rain, and not windy. Onward!

The trail begins near the banks of Eagle Creek, but mostly stays well above the creek on the east bank.

Trailhead

Eagle Creek trail along the cliffs

The trail passes by several waterfalls – we were not stopping much – keeping our end goal in mind.

Punchbowl Falls

Almost to High Bridge

Loo Wit Falls, near High Bridge

High Bridge, 3.3 miles

Looking down from High Bridge

After crossing High Bridge, the trail is on the west side of Eagle Creek.

New undergrowth in the burned forest beyond High Bridge

Skoonichuck Falls – the farthest we had been on previous hikes.

4.5 Mile Bridge – crossing back to the east side.

Fungi

“Potholes” section

Grand Union Falls

After 6 miles, we reached the first view of Tunnel Falls:

Tunnel Falls, East Fork of Eagle Creek, 175 feet.

Approaching the tunnel

View across to the cliffs and ledge trail on the other side

Into the tunnel

Looking up at the lip from the other side

Fern-lined trail ahead

My husband took this photo of me after I walked through the tunnel.

We continued around the corner, and upstream another quarter mile to Twister Falls:

Twister Falls, West Fork of Eagle Creek, 148 feet.

We couldn’t really get a good look at the full drop of this waterfall from the cliffside trail.

Eagle Creek, just above Twister Falls.

We found a quiet place beside the creek to rest and eat lunch before heading back down the trail.

Top of Twister Falls

Back through the tunnel,

and out the other side.

My turn…

Hiking back through the “Potholes”, where the trail surface is a parquet of columnar basalt:

Potholes

Columnar basalts

We continued hiking downstream:

Vine maple turning orange in the burned forest

Big leaf maple turning yellow

We hadn’t noticed Wy’East Falls in a side canyon on the hike up.

Basalt cliffs on the east

4.5 mile bridge again.

There were many areas of obvious trail repair in the burned forest.

Scree slopes, burned and fallen trees

High Bridge again…

We successfully completed this hike – 13 miles, 1600 feet for the day. I was glad to have seen Tunnel and Twister Falls, but I also felt a bit of vertigo on that section of the trail, and thought that maybe I won’t need to repeat this hike. The week after our hike, the trail was closed again briefly after an atmospheric river event caused more trail damage (quickly repaired by the valiant trail-keeping organizations in the area). It is a special place, and I am glad to have finally been able to see it.

Last look at Punchbowl Falls.

Margaret Quilts

Quilting, Knitting, Hiking

Hikes

NZ2020: Day 15, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park

February 8, 2020

Sealy Tarns Track / Mueller Hut Route

January 2022 in Portland

Hikes:

Neighborhood:

Knitting:

2021…review

December 2021, Walking adventures

NZ2020: Day 14, To Lake Ohau

February 7, 2020

November 2021 report…

Hikes:

Thanksgiving:

Knitting

Neighborhood

NZ2020: Day 13, Ben Lomond hike

February 6, 2020

NZ2020: Day 12, Southland improvisation; Te Anau Bird Sanctuary

February 5, 2020

Clifden Suspension Bridge

Gemstone Beach

Orepuki

Monkey Island Beach

Long Hilly Walking track

Riverton

Hilltop Lookout

Te Anau Bird Sanctuary

The rest of October, 2021: knitting, neighborhood, more hikes…

Knitting, etc:

Around the neighborhood:

Two more hikes, besides our Mt Adams and Eagle Creek adventures:

Our first return to Eagle Creek since the fire of 2017

October 12, 2021 Eagle Creek Trail to Twister Falls