A Frog Pond & A Rock- Kumara

A last post from our time in Hokitika.

We took the long way home after one of our Blue Duck visits, carrying on up the road from the canal track and coming out on the main Arthurs Pass highway (SH73) then heading back to the coast through Kumara. There’s not much on the road other than native bush and scenic reserves before Kumara so when I spotted an old weather beaten sign I was intrigued to find out what was up the track.

This is Kumara’s ‘Frog Pond’ (as it was known to the locals), once the largest swimming pool complex in New Zealand, it measured 46 x 30 metres (50 x 33 yards) and had a 2 metre (6’6) deep end. It was built in 1933-34 by voluntary labour & unemployed relief workers during the Depression using the tailings(waste rock) from nearby gold workings for the walls. The pool had a clay bottom, two shallow bays for children and a 12 cubicle dressing shed. Water came from a reservoir south of Kumara through the same iron pipes that had supplied water to the gold sluicing claims. Looking at this isolated, quiet, overgrown patch of land, it's hard to visualize all the fun and action that would have gone on here, back then.

The pool was a popular meeting place for locals until it’s closure in the 1940s when it lost it’s water supply.

Just before the pools another track turned off the road near a hydro canal and pump station. After a short bumpy ride this even more weather beaten sign appeared. I had read about the Londonderry Rock but wasn’t sure what to expect. Going by the sign I’m not so sure they’re selling the experience too well.

From the carpark I can see a huge mountain of rocks through the overgrown bush; tailings from gold workings- they obviously didn’t use them all on the pool then.

A short rather lovely moss & bush clad track leads you through the rock tailings which are piled high on either side in numerous places.

Towards the end a large rock could be seen, it actually didn't look THAT big (the sun & shade in the same shot are playing havoc with my exposure)

But in fact it is quite large once we get up underneath it. This is the Londonderry Rock, a rock too large for the gold miners to break up or move. It is thought to weigh between 3-4000 tonnes.

Hopefully you can read the information panel and local folklore about the rock (click photo to see full size).

We didn’t stop in Kumara itself which was a shame as there are a number of old buildings and a lot of history in the little settlement, perhaps we’ll do that another day. Sometimes when we’ve been out all day we just get in the mode of getting home as quickly as we can- although I did manage to grab a shot of the newly painted Kumara Racecourse grandstand & buildings with some snow capped mountains in the background.

These photos are of a section of the old Arahura road & rail bridge which I took on our way to the ducks. This span has it’s own special reserve beside the new bridge which opened in 2009. The original one lane Howe Truss Span timber bridge was built in 1886-88. It’s a pity they didn’t think to keep a section of the old Hokitika River road & rail bridge before they blew it up! And I see that just the other day a new bridge has been OKed to replace the last remaining road & rail bridge on the Coast over the Taramakau River.

And that’s a good dose of snow on the Southern Alps that we woke up to one morning explaining why we were a little cold with all our blanket on. It didn’t last long though….the rain washed it away!

Dorothy Falls, A Memorial & The Blue Gorge

We stayed three nights in Punakaiki and would have liked to have stayed a few more but the weather was too temperamental and Easter was fast approaching so we decided to head straight through to Lake Kaniere and get a good site at the DOC camp before the Easter onslaught.

We did have an unusual encounter on the Cave Creek walk, I didn't mention it on the last blog though as I thought it wasn't quite appropriate to add it to the end. As we were making our way back up the track, David spotted a small dark animal on the track quite a distance ahead of us. I zoomed in on it and could only see a dark ball of fur.

A wallaby? Don’t be funny, there are none of those on the West Coast.  A wild cat? Highly unlikely out this far, but still a possibility. A big rat? Run for your life Shellie! We crept up on it and as we got closer it turned to the side and I could see that it was a possum, grazing on the track grass. Possums are nocturnal and this was about 4pm so either he forgot to change the clock for day-light saving, or more likely it was sick.

We crept up on it and got quite close before it heard us and ran into the bush on the side of the track. We quickly zeroed in on where it disappeared and David poked about in the undergrowth and under a large flax bush but didn’t find anything. As we were walking away I looked to the tree behind the flax and there it was, down low and staring at me with little beady eyes and gripping the trunk for dear life. He stayed put for quite awhile until David moved closer and he shot off up the trunk to the top at full speed. Where he sat and stared down at us again before crossing over to a larger tree and disappearing. That was our first encounter with a possum in daylight (and it wasn’t going to be too long before the second one either). He was just lucky that we saw him and not someone with a gun.

Our last morning at Punakaiki dawned fine and clear and from our vantage point (zoomed in) I could see that a steady stream of people were already checking out the blowhole.

Not far south of Greymouth is the iconic Taramakau single lane combined rail and road bridge over the Taramakau River. I think this is last remaining rail & road bridge on the West Coast, there used to be one over the Arahura River and a very long one over the Hokitika River. I chuckled at the road sign, there wouldn't be too many places that you'd see a sign like that.

We stopped in Hokitika for provisions and headed out to the DOC camp at Lake Kaniere which is 22kms inland and surrounded on three sides by mountains. We arrived mid afternoon to find that we had the large camp to ourselves. And so it was for the next couple of nights and then as you know, all hell broke loose- here are the blog post links from Easter-

A Quiet & Sunny Easter- Part 1

A Wet & Noisy Easter- Part 2

Easter Sunday dawned fine and with the weather forecast for more heavy rain we decided to do a little exploring while it was clear. We’d also just about had enough of all the power boat noise and needed to get out for awhile. The road continued on and turned to gravel just past the DOC camp, it’s a lovely scenic drive to the top of the lake, through thick native bush with the odd glimpse of the lake and  a few small parking areas beside some of the stream mouths.

About half way along and right beside the road are the Dorothy Falls, a multi-tiered 64 metre waterfall that must look impressive after heavy rain….hmm, it has been heavy rain so either they clear quickly or in fact they’re just a trickle usually. You can just see a tiny tier up the top and behind the front tiers. We decided there must be a few more tiers hidden up there.

And this will give you an idea of the height of the falls, David standing on a boulder at the waterfall pool. I took this from the road bridge.

Across the road from the falls is the Dorothy Creek Walk, a short track leads you out to the lake’s edge and, surprise, surprise, there’s the seat we saw from the boat when we explored up the lake a couple of days ago. What a beautiful spot to sit, relax and take in all the wonderful reflections.

At the top of the lake we pass between two ranges and cross over the Styx River which flows from the Southern Alps and joins the braided Hokitika River system further down stream. I now know that there are Blue Ducks/Whio up this river too- captivity hatched & reared ducklings that were released here once they passed their 'stoat-proof’ weight.

The road now enters the fertile river flats of the Kokatahi Valley where dairy farming is the number one industry. We’re heading towards the Hokitika Gorge- the Blue Gorge, and the road zig-zags across the farmland; left, right, left we turn, the road turns at right angles often. Obviously the farms were in place before the road which has had to follow the farm boundaries.

We stop to view the Kowhitirangi Incident Memorial along the way, a huge rock mounted on a plinth with memorial plagues and cast bronze description plates at the side. This is the site of New Zealand's first mass-murder. In 1941 an unstable farmer, Stanley Graham, shot dead seven men -including four policemen, two home guardsmen and a civilian before he was shot 12 days later and died of his wounds, after one of the biggest manhunts in NZ’s history.

Beside the memorial is this plaque explaining the events as they happened (click to enlarge if you would like to read them & excuse the patch job!)-

This part of the memorial is rather unusual but makes you even more aware of what took place in this peaceful farming countryside a long time ago.

There’s a lot of traffic passing the memorial as we read, and it’s all heading towards the back of the valley on a dead end road. The Hokitika Gorge is one of the top tourist attractions in the district and really is well worth visiting even though it’s 33kms from the Coast road and Hokitika township.

The glacial water (aka glacial milk) that flows through the magnificent granite Hokitika Gorge is a vivid turquoise blue and is caused by rocks, high in the mountains, being ground into a fine powder by the movement of glaciers. The suspension of white powder- known as rock flour- in the blue water creates an intense turquoise colour.

From the car park (it was full so we had to park down the road) there’s a short 2min walk to a viewing platform where you first catch sight of the beautiful colour made more intense and contrasted by the deep green forest that surrounds the gorge.

You’ll have to forgive me, but there are quite a number of gorge photos-

A swingbridge is suspended across the middle of the gorge and there’s a continuous file of people crossing back and forward over it.

On the rocks behind more people are clambering about.

Five minutes further on the track leads onto the swingbridge where only 6 people at any one time are allowed on the bridge. A group of children raced ahead of their parents and past us as we approached the bridge. One was very concerned to count seven after they entered the bridge, he quickly ran back shouting to the others he couldn’t follow because the bridge might break. It was good to see that he was taking note of the signs.

This is looking up stream from the middle of the swaying bridge.

And a further 5 minutes on and we arrive at another platform looking upstream and over a small pool that has formed at the side of the river. The rocks below are covered with people taking photos, there’s a gate in the fence (with a child-proof catch) that allows people down to explore.

There’s also a life-saving ring in case somebody falls in.

Which isn’t surprising when you see some of the places people are posing!

I catch David up at the swing bridge where he’s patiently waiting for me, and watching…

A fisherman on a rock downstream, there’s actually two guys, one is tucked in behind the rock out of view. I’m not sure how they got there but it looks like an awesome spot to be, even if there are no fish.

Back in the car we follow the road further into the hills; it’s a rough track but we’re hoping we might be able to check out the river somewhere along the way before it enters the gorge. After 5-6kms it ends on a gravel patch and it’s a surprise to see so many cars parked up. There are a number of multi-day tramping tracks that leave from locked gate so maybe there are a few people spending their Easter tramping in the mountains.

There’s also an overgrown and boggy walking track that leads down to the river which is quite a distance away, we decide to back up a side track and sit on our tailgate to have lunch while enjoying the birdsong and the distant rumble of the river. Just as we’re leaving another car arrives and a guy gets out and, with a whole heap of gear slung over his shoulder, heads off down a different track through the trees; his gear consists of a shovel, a pick, a gold pan and some other gold finding paraphernalia. Now that was not what we were expecting at all.

Horseshoe Bend & the Lonely Graves

The next day we decided to do a tiki-tour to the little settlement of Beaumont which is 35kms further down the river and where one of the very few bridges crosses the mighty Clutha.

Before we left I dove up the river to get a photo of the Roxburgh Bridge.

Now that we have been following the river downstream from its outlet back at Lake Wanaka I’ve discovered that most of the bridges are historic and usually painted in either red or blue. By my count there are only 13 opportunities to cross the river in it’s entire 338km length. One of these is a dam wall (Roxburgh), another a suspension bridge for foot traffic only & one other that I’ll keep as a surprise.

So far I have taken photos of 11 of the crossings; of the two that I have missed, one is on a main road to the West Coast, back in Albertown which we will cross again at some stage & the other (at Beaumont) was covered in scaffolding and didn’t look that photogenic. Hopefully we’ll pass over that again sometime in the future and then I’ll have the full set!

The Roxburgh Bridge, like the Alexandra Bridge has the old piers of the original bridge nearby, in fact two sets of remains, one on either side of the new bridge.The remains in the right hand photo are of the 1875 bridge. After looking for the build dates of the earlier bridges I came across this information, very interesting-

“Bridging the Clutha was a considerable challenge, which became clear in the great flood of 1878. The Bannockburn bridge on the Kawarau River was swept away, and its wreckage destroyed the Clyde bridge on the Clutha, which in turn ruined the Roxburgh bridge, a laminated wooden arch, only erected in 1875. Further downstream the Beaumont bridge was washed away and it in turn destroyed the Balclutha bridge.”

By driving to Beaumont we would be able to follow the road down the north side of the river (the true left), cross over at the Beaumont Bridge and come back to Roxburgh via the main state highway. The very new & very impressive Clutha Gold Cycle & Walking Trail also follows this same loop, the cycle trail is a continuation of the Roxburgh Gorge trail I talked about in the previous post. They are pretty impressive trails and have had a lot of money spent on them. The track ran past Pinders Pond, between us & the river, and although its out of season at the moment, we saw quite a number of people using it.

The track follows some of the old rail corridor through the Teviot Valley & the Beaumont Gorge with all new bridges over any creeks & streams, there’s plenty of signage, fencing & gates down both sides of any farmland it passes through, tiny cattle stops & cyclist sized Give Way signs at each outlet back onto the road.

There are a number of historic buildings & places to stop at along the trail. Many of the buildings are left over from the railway including the Teviot NZR goods shed and this old water tower just along the road from Pinders Pond.

Two more historic places I had marked down to check out were the Lonely Graves & the restored Horseshow Suspension Bridge both near the old Horseshoe Bend gold diggings. It’s actually quite a drive to visit both these sites, it wasn’t so bad for us as we were exploring along the road anyway but if you planned to visit from the main road as you were passing through you have to cross over at either Beaumont or Millers Flat and travel along a narrow gravel road for a good few kilometres. The Beaumont end is especially narrow & isolated as you’ll see further down.

The Lonely Graves have quite a story behind them. The story goes (& there is dispute of how true this is) that in 1864, William Rigney found a shivering dog beside the dead body of a young man. The police were notified but nobody claimed the body. Rigney dug the grave and the many of the men from the diggings attended the funeral. The pine slab with these words burned on- “Somebody’s Darling Lies Buried Here” marked the grave (it’s now inside a glass case attached to a second headstone).  When Rigney died in 1912 he was buried alongside as he had wished. His stone was engraved- “Here lies William Rigney, the man that buried Somebody’s Darling”. How wonderful is that & I’d like to think its entirely true! It’s kind of romantic too. I wonder what happened to the dog.

Very near the graves is the fully restored Horseshoe Bend suspension bridge which was built in 1913 at the narrowest part of the Clutha in this area. It was to replace an old pulley chair that was at the time the only way for the children of Horseshoe Bend to cross the river to attend school. It must have been terrifying sitting in a rickety old chair as it was pulled across the mighty Clutha with it’s deep water & foreboding swirling currents below.

The bridge was also used by farmers to get stock across the river and is now the only remaining suspension bridge on the river. It is 70 metres long & swings 75 metres above the river. We only had a short walk to the bridge from our side but there is an hour long walk to it from the main highway on the other side.

Back on the road we continued on towards Beaumont, the road, while still ok, looked a little less travelled and the area more remote. We had a bit of Mexican stand off when we came across this bull. He was reluctant to move from his mates on the other side of the fence. He backed off with his head down at one stage and then took off ahead of us down the centre of the road which was fenced close on both sides. We tried it slow so he could turn & run back past us; that didn’t work, we tried it fast; he could run faster, we tried it stopped & he just stood & looked at us. In the end he trotted behind a road side bush and we zoomed past before he could emerge on the other side. Later we passed a learner driver heading his way & wondered what the stand off would be like for them.

"Halt who goes there?!"

We hadn’t realised that it was quite so back country & in fact it’s lucky we didn’t have the fifth-wheeler on the back as we soon realised we’d have had to turn around (if we could have found a turning point, they were few & far between) and drive all the way back the way we came especially when we got to the very narrow Tallaburn Bridge. There would have been no way the fifth-wheeler could have squeezed through here. The bridge has actually been built over the metal supports of the old railbridge. No wonder it is so narrow.

Finally we reached the end of the road where we stopped briefly at the Beaumont Hotel to check out the camp site facilities, it’s listed in our directory & was recommended by a fellow “full time on the roader”. It looked ok and had the added benefit of drinks & meals available in the pub but we decided we’d head further on down the road when it came time to move.

We headed back home along SH8 stopping at Millers Flat to take a photo of another baby blue bridge over the Clutha.

We also stopped for afternoon tea in a lovely reserve beside the river and across the road from this long abandoned shop which is now beside the much bigger Four Square store. I liked the look of Mr Four Square on the roof of the shed behind the store. He looked right out of place thumbing a lift atop an old garage.

Then it was back to Pinders Pond in time to catch some more reflections before the sun went down.