| Leader | Mentor | Understudy | Tail Ender | |
| Standards | Janice | Bev | Brent | Ailsa |
| Alternates | Ray B | Norma | Ali | Min |
Stats: distance 15km, elevation gain 676m, time 5hrs approx
Well! Your correspondent walked with the Standards today – and can’t possibly ever go back! It is just too embarrassing. Not only was an (unnamed) Standard wearing the same brand of new tramping boots, but they were also the same colour! The fashion clash was just too awful for words. Anyhow I managed to soldier on and kept up reasonably well with the pace set by the leader – Janice. Janice ran a good and very democratic ship. The democracy part did seem to be a little puzzling to some members with more authoritarian views. For instance one of the trampers was heard to shout “ecstatic” in response to a request on how did they feel if lunch was a little later.
Our group started off from McCormacks Bay gaining altitude at a breathtaking pace. It was interesting to note the chatter amongst the trampers dying off as the pace picked up. After some time, we arrived close to the top of Mt Pleasant and then descended to Evans Pass and finally on to Moncks Bay.
Some history about Redcliffs, McCormacks Bay, Evans Pass and Moncks Bay:
Māori used the Moa Bone Point Cave for shelter and the preparation, cooking and eating of food, including moa, seals, rats and shellfish. Areas within the cave appear to have been used for manufacturing artefacts of stone, bone and shell.
McCormacks Bay was named after William McCormack who arrived in New Zealand on the Charlotte Jane on the morning of 16 December 1850. He ended up buying about 50 acres (ca 20 hectares) of land in the area.
The road over Evans Pass from Sumner to Lyttelton was completed in 1857, and carried all traffic between the city and its port until the road tunnel was opened in 1964.
The first European owner of 100 acres (40 ha) in Moncks Bay was George Heath, who arrived in Lyttelton in March 1851 on the Isabella Hercus. He also had 500 acres (200 ha) of land on the hills behind.
Several trampers have let me know that they enjoy the trip reports. One even saying that he had to praise them because he didn’t want to do them!
The Sumner Steam Tram ca. 1904
Txt by Bill S
