TROTTERS GORGE AND BEYOND

TROTTERS GORGE AND BEYOND – TRIP REPORT 1-9-2013

Fifteen of us meet at the car park on a cool but sunny morning, with the youngest member of the party being 4 ½. It was good to see the families out tramping on father’s day. We headed off for the Trotters Gorge Reserve car park and I picked Robbie up on the way so that made our group up to sixteen. It was frosty at the car park so it was on with the packs and off up the valley. With a few creek crossings first up, a few people had wet feet from the start. We stopped in at the Otago University Hut for a look around and probably woke up the students that were staying there. We carried on up the valley admiring the lime stone cliffs till we came to the start of Dave’s track and this was where we started to warm up a bit with the sun shining on us. The start of Dave’s track is a wee bit hard to find if you done know where it is. We headed into Dave’s track and started our climb up this bush and shrub valley. It’s been 2 years since I had been up this track and it was starting to get over growing in placers. It probably took us an extra ½ hour to find our way up this over growing valley. When we finely climbed up and out of the valley and on to the lime stone tops, we stopped for a breather and had a bite to eat and looking back down Dave’s track and wondering how the how anyone could get up there. After our break we headed along the line stone tops till we meet the forest road. We started our walk up the road with great views all around us because there were no trees to be seen. Over last 2 years Blakely’s have been logging in here so it was quite bare. It wasn’t long before we came to the bottom of South peak. Usually you have to find a way up to the top through the bush and shrub but with all the logging that has been going on they had made a track up the side, so it was an easy climb to the top. Once on top we stopped for lunch and took in the 360 degree views with no wind and it was quite warm. After lunch we decided to take the short route down to Pigeon Bush because it had taking a bit longer to get up Dave’s track. So off we went down the track that starts by the locked gate at the base of South peak. Just as we started we meet a group on motor bikes that told me that the other track I was going to take is quite rough and over grown. The track that we were on was old 4.W.D track and it is also starting to get over grown with gorse in placers. Half way down we meet a 4.W.D coming up the track out of Pigeon Bush. We got down to Pigeon Bush, had a quick break and then it was off to have a look at the big Totara tree with the steel rope around it. The tree was used as an anchor years ago when there was a wee saw mill in Pigeon Bush. After we had a look around it was back up the track to meet the forest road again at the bottom of South Peak. Then it was back down the road into the back of Trotters Gorge Reserve, back along the track pass the University Hut and back through the 6 creek crossings again. Wet feet again for some great. We got back to the cars about 4.30pm after being away for about 7 ½ hours.

Thanks for a great day Robbie, Jo, Sam, Linda, Bill, Maurice, Phyllis, Murray, Robin, Wallace Family and the Anderson Family – Neville