| Leader | Mentor | Tail Ender | |
| Standards | Alan H | Tony | Lisa |
| Alternates | Bev | Ali | Ailsa |
Statistics: Standards: climbed 814m, distance 7km. Alternates: distance 11.2km.
As a consequence of three late withdrawals, 35 Bishopdale trampers boarded the bus for the foothills of Mid Canterbury on a cloudy morning, but with the promise of a sunny day ahead. The promise was fulfilled by Mt Somers, with bright sunshine illuminating the snowy tops of the Main Divide in the distance.
The Standard group of 17 trampers alighted in the carpark leading into the Hakatere Conservation Park, looking rather apprehensively at the track heading up the mountain, while the Alternates sped off in the bus, heading for Lake Clearwater.
After about 20 minutes of climbing, Alan called a morning tea stop by a bubbling brook and informed us that we had completed the ‘warm up’ and now the real work was about to start. The incline certainly increased markedly from that point and there were a few gnarly spots to negotiate as we gained height rapidly. While sunny, there was a brisk nor’wester keeping our temperatures moderated and Alan decided that it would a bit unpleasant at the top for lunch, so we lunched a bit below the summit in the shelter of some rocks.
It took another 15 minutes after lunch (three hours after commencing) to reach the top and we were rewarded with stunning views in all directions. Out to the west, the snow-capped mountains of the Main Divide looked spectacular and there was some discussion about which distant peak was Aoraki/Mt Cook. To complete the splendour of our experience, two karearea (native falcon) swooped nearby. A truly majestic sight.
There was considerable apprehension about the descent, given the gradient and some loose rock in places, but everyone managed well and we were back in the carpark in two hours, feeling satisfied with our day’s work and grateful to Alan for being such a patient and watchful leader.
Alternates’ Report
Arriving at Clearwater, we walked down to the picnic tables by the lake for morning tea. There was a cold wind so we settled on the grass in a more sheltered place. With a perfect blue sky, a view of snow-covered mountains and wind whipping up waves on the lake, our leader, Bev, led 18 keen trampers round the Lake Clearwater circuit track. After crossing a bridge at the east end of the lake and walking along the north side of the lake, we were facing a very strong cold wind, so it was a relief when Bev directed us to a slope out of the wind overlooking the lake, for our lunch break. After a relaxing break we continued round the lake having to negotiate a few boggy streams which meant some of us getting wet feet. There was a long stretch of boardwalk around the western end of the lake where the main river flowed into the lake. This boggy area had a lot of purei (native sedge) a plant great for stabilising wet land, providing nutrient for the soil and food for birds and insects. Some plants can live as long as 100 years. Our visitor Sharon, a keen bird watcher, was looking out for puteketeke (crested grebes). We eventually spotted a couple on the more sheltered Lake Camp. She also spotted a pair of the endangered black fronted terns, along with skylarks, a few mallards and harriers. The Clearwater settlement seemed very quiet, but we did meet a group of ladies from the Mayfield walking group and a man on a mountain bike with a gun slung over his shoulder heading up the valley from Mystery Lake to shoot thar. Not sure how he would carry one back on his bike.
Text by Selwyn and Jan M
