2/25 7:15pm, Dart Hut
One word: Damp! Lots of people are in the hut now, with some people using mattresses on the floor. The hut is bustling with wet hikers trying to stay warm…. I slept maybe 2hrs last night. A typical pre-adventure night's sleep, where I'm excited about a big day, and not wanting to miss the alarm. Wendy alerts me at 4:45am (she's always in charge of the alarm, with her iphone). Quietly we grab our pre-arranged gear and move into the kitchen to cook our cereal under headlamp. The stars and moon are out! The forecast was for rain, but looks great now! We're the first ones up today. We finish prepping our gear, and hit the trail early at 6:15am, just as others are getting up. Beautiful pink clouds are alit as we start the hike.
We cross the swing bridge across from the hut, and take the fork to Cascade Saddle, climbing through a forest, and descending down to the Dart river, where we'll be hiking on the grassy flats along side for a couple hours. Soon a glacier comes into view, just in time for the first rays of sun to cast a golden light on the top.
The trail led down to the Dart River...
Rocky hopping across a stream, as we admired the morning sun on the glacier ahead...
Wendy carries a fanny pack today (lid of my backpack), while I carry the rest of my pack (though much lighter, with just day hike supplies). We're the 1st on the trail today.
The stream crossings aren't too significant, though the big one rises to mid shin, and I offer to give Wendy a piggy back across, so she can ensure her blistered heal would stay dry. I shuttle both packs and Wendy: 3 crossings.
A look up and back along the river...
Time flies on this beautiful morning, and we're surprised 1.5hrs have already elapsed. It's cool in the shade of the steep mountains. We approach the glacier, and turn up the valley, passing waterfalls on the far side of the valley, where the glaciers are hanging down.
LOTR and Zelda music alternate in my head today. I'm trying to figure out what scenery triggers which. LOTR for glaciers and majestic vistas? Zelda for challenging terrain, and quest mentality?
1st pic: A look down from my position in the previous pic above. The trail soon flattened out...
More scenery ahead! We were heading towards a hanging glacier and waterfall. A group of birds flew past us...
Looking back after descending a small scree field...
The guy from Quebec gave us a tip last night: Drop to the river bed, and hike along the sand instead of riding the undulating trail above the river. We found a good place to drop down, and began walking on the sand, below (for a safe distance from) the lip of a hanging glacier on the far side cliffs. Wendy wrote "Hi" in the sand, for other passer-bys.
Walking on the flat sandy river bed was much smoother than the undulating trail...
Looking ahead, with the lip of a thin glacier on the left, and Cascade Saddle far ahead (the low point on the ridge)...
Wow, it got cloudy in a hurry! Glad we got to enjoy the morning blue sky, if only for 90 minutes...
Eventually we found a route back up to the trail, but after some exploring, realized we left too soon, and had to descend back before finding the trail at the end of the dirt covered Dart glacier, to start of the long climb to Cascade Saddle.
...and follow the trail up towards Cascade Saddle...
Clouds were developing very quickly by the time we started the climb. We moved quickly and efficiently, with no water breaks. The rock was shale. Very crumbly/flaky. Views of the dramatic Dart Glacier continued to unfold behind us. The weather grew chilly and windy. We stopped to put on our jackets, and 3 guys passed us, wearing shorts, with no packs. No doubt they wouldn't be hanging out here very long.
Lots of ascent to reach the Saddle...
That pile of dirt behind us is actually the Dart Glacier!
Despite the speedy cloud formations, the Cascade Saddle (notch in the ridge) still looked "in the clear" ahead. We pushed on hard...
A look back at the Dart Glacier. Man this is one heck of a scenic hike...
Wendy keeps pushing hard up the hill, likely moments before stopping to put on some layers. Cascade Saddle is the notch on the right side of the pic...
The wind was fierce on the exposed trail, knocking us hard enough that we needed to pause and hold our ground. But we pursued none-the-less, and topped out at the saddle at 10:15am. A sharp cliff dropped below on the other side, but a low cloud ceiling clipped our views of the peaks ahead.
The wind was blasting us, but the ridge was near! The clouds were starting to shroud the mountain tops over the glacier. Still the Saddle was in the clear...
Nearly there... Wendy is the red dot on the trail. Pretty impressive mountain side...
The edge of the cliff is just ahead...
Here we are at Cascade Saddle, ~10:15am, 4hrs since leaving Dart Hut. The mountain views were clipped by the low clouds, but we could stare down the cliffs into the valley ~3000' below...
We continued along the ridge/shelf, and saw another glacier ahead. There were some scattered flowers near the small streams.
Just before the trail dropped a few hundred feet to the Cascade Stream, we decided to rest in a semi-sheltered area, and analyze the weather situation.
I ate the last of my PBJs, and snacked on some of my mom's date nut bread (saved from xmas). It was cold and windy, but we had the foresight to bring all our winter gear for today's hike, and stayed toasty. We laid down against a grassy slope for a long time. The clouds didn't abate, and soon we felt drizzle. Time to head back. No point of continuing up to the pylon for the best viewpoint.
The clouds were gaining strength, and would engulf the area at times...
When we return back to the saddle, the view down the cliffs is completely fogged over. the skies lighten a bit, so we hang out longer, hoping this is a sign for improvement. I lay down, and am incredibly happy to rest after getting so little sleep last night. The skies can't seem to decide if they want to clear or stay cloudy. For a brief moment, sunshine hits us, and a patch of blue opens above. Wendy sees the valley down below again (I'm too tired to get up and look again).
Wendy takes a self portrait while I lay on the ground, exhausted, happy to pass out and hope for better weather...
Wendy catches a brief break in the fog, and snaps a pic of the valley, and a waterfall coming from the cliff...
Eventually, a hiker shows up, coming from Mt Aspiring in the opposite direction, and we chat for ~10 minutes at the Saddle. He's from CA and is hitching across NZ, fitting in as many tramps as he can. I spend the conversation laying on the ground for the most part, the thought of getting up seems too tiring. Then the rain starts up and intensifies, answering our question whether the weather would improve. We finally head down at 12:45pm, after spending 2.5hrs up on the saddle/ridge. We didn't see any other people from Dark Hut at the top during our time here.
The wind is gusty and pushes us around more. The rain starts coming at us horizontally. Aside from the CA guy ahead of us, we don't see anyone else on the trail the rest of the way. The crushed shale rock scree surface acts a bit like wet cement, to our benefit, helping with a sturdy descent. I put the fanny pack in my backpack, covered with the rain shell. My new Go-lite hard shell is keeping me warm and dry in its first serious test, however, my new water resistant Go-lite pants have given up the fight, and are completely soaked thru. Walking through wet vegetation really soaks you…
On our return, the streams are noticeably higher now, and the waterfalls are thicker and more plentiful. The misty views of the glacier cliffs and waterfalls are very pretty, and we're both having an enjoyable time on the hike. It's too wet out for many pics. Every so often, Wendy sings out, "Rubber Ducky, you're the one," which gives me a smile. Wendy's awesome. She's was definitely enjoying the wet conditions in her full rain outfit.
Our gear held well against the rain, and we had a very pleasant hike in the drizzle. The waterfalls kept us well entertained...
The wind was less intense down lower, though still gusty at times...
The trail was all ours (since the CA hiker was way ahead), and I was glad we still got to have a quality experience with the Cascade Saddle, thanks to are early start (and blistering speed up the trail). We missed the panoramic saddle views, but still left with a good feel for the area, and it felt like we had the whole world-class valley to ourselves today...
My feet, socks, gaiters, pants, were now soaked through. The trail seemed A LOT longer during the return, even though we maintained good speed. Guessing not many people made it up today, since the clear skies turned into heavy cloud within a 90 minute period from ~8-9:30am. The stream crossings were higher now, but are feet were already soaked, so it was easy to just plow through. Wendy was somehow able to keep dry feet until this last stream crossing.
While passing the glaciers, it started to clear again, and the wind just about dried our jackets, but then the rain returned for the rest of the way. it was a LONG hike back (guess time takes longer, when all you're thinking of is getting to a warm hut). The moss was a beautiful pastel green in the forests, given the misty air.
Soon I heard Wendy: "Are we there yet?". I asked, "What happened to Rubber Ducky?". Wendy replied, "Rubber Ducky wants to go home."
Finally we return ~4:45pm, to a hut packed with people, and full of wet clothes dangling down from the drying racks. Many people were eager to hear how far we went, and what we saw. Only a few made it to the saddle today, and most were too late to see anything.
We took off all our wet layers and searched for the few remaining places to hang them near the warm stove. Lots of card games were being played on the tables. Our bunk room was now full, including an additional mattress on the floor in the middle. We were grateful to already have our bunks reserved from yesterday. When I first walked across the crowded kitchen/lounge with my pack, my DSLR fell out the back, causing a loud, awful sounded smash. The whole hut went quiet, fearing the worse.. I've dropped my camera numerous times before, and figured it'd survive (it did), but it was a rather undesired grand entrance. Wendy and I found a seat, near the door (constant draft), and got to business with dinner. We cooked up dehydrated asparagus soup, butternut squash, WG, and had a tuna packet and freeze dried ice cream for dessert. A couple from Auckland, NZ sat across from us, and we had a good chat with them during dinner.
We shift our wet clothes around, for optimum drying. Some guys are already in their sleeping bags for bed at 8:30pm. I'm relaxing on my top bunk above Wendy. It's chilly out, but the rain has stopped, and people are outside. Hopefully the streams will settle overnight. Heavy rain is forecasted for tomorrow afternoon, but maybe the morning will be ok.
5:30am alarm for tomorrow, so we can leave early to beat the rain and get a good bunk at the next hut.