Club Night – May 2012
The Club held its 36th Annual Meeting on the 14th May 2012. There are slight changes to office bearers with Bronwyn McCone remaining President and Neville Corry becoming treasurer. Uwe Grasmueck is newsletter editor. Subs were increased slightly for family and social members.
The Club is a nominee for the Trust Power Otago Community Services Award.
Mountain Safety are running a First Aid course in June.
Trips organized by the club over the last month included a South Temple social trip by 4 members.
The Hoods Creek Reopening day was held on the 15th April in brilliant weather with about 90 attending. Groups then walked the various tracks in the Herbert Forest which is owned by Blakely Pacific.
Mount Buster near Naseby was climbed on a blustery day by 8 members, with a visit also to the Buster gold diggings, which at 1200m are the highest gold diggings in New Zealand.
The Routeburn Caples circuit was walked by 5 members. Incidents they came across included saving the Routeburn Falls hut from burning down upon walking into the hut to find a white spirit stove burning out of control. Luckily there was only smoke damage. There was a search and rescue operation happening in the Caples Valley, with helicopters everywhere. Members were impressed with the quality upgrade of the McKellar Saddle track.
The Wednesday Walkers climbed Station Peak from Little Roderick, walked the Benmore Walkway to the peninsula with brilliant autumn colours, climbed Mt.Difficulty from The Dasher, and did an anticlockwise circuit which included the Earthquakes Reserve near Duntroon.
Coming Club trips are the Elephant Hill – Mussen circuit on the 20th May, Dunedin Hills including the Pipeline and Swampy on the 27th May, and Otehake River in Arthurs Pass on Queens birthday weekend, where a soak in the hot pool is a must do. More details are on the NOTMC website.
Guest speakers were Club members Ann and Steve Leidecker who walked several day trips in the Appenine and Apuane Mountain ranges of Italy in September last year with a group of 12 friends.
They based themselves in Sommocolonia where they rented a very reasonably priced villa. Sightseeing in the pretty towns of Lucca and Barga started the trip. Then a day walk, including an extensive limestone cave tour, in the Apuane foothills. The views from the steep ridges were spectacular.
The third day saw them in the Appenine foothills climbing 2054m Mt.Prado, the route taking them up through the green beech forest and along a long ridge above the tree line.
The next day saw them walking through colourful heather, tussock, and wild bilberry meadows close to their Villa in the Appenine’s. Mt.Rommechio at 1700m and Cima del Ormo at 1850m were their objectives with a 24k round trip.
The last walk showed the limestone and high grade marble of the Opuane Mountains, where they visited a delightful church built into the cliff face, and saw the marble quarry that Michelangelo used for his masterpieces.
The pictures and talk were an enticement to members to visit this scenic part of Italy with its many well marked tracks.