Day 52 – Locke Hut to Hurunui Hot Pool

From Locke Hut to the top of Harper’s Pass was quite difficult. There’s loads of windthrow on the track, and though it’s been there long enough that a de facto alternate track has formed around most of it, the constant detours and crouching under fallen trees makes things hard.

As I reached the top, things became easier, and I cruised on down to the Harper’s Pass Bivouac. Bivs are tiny huts or lesser shelters that are often placed in high country as emergency shelter.  Generally they have two bunks.  This one was especially adorable because the whole thing was painted blaze orange!

The trail was easy, and I hustled right along.  My goal was to reach the hot pools before dark and camp nearby so I could enjoy both an evening soak and a morning soak.  It was a bit tight, but I arrived with just enough light to set up my hammock and cook dinner.

Someone has done a good bit of rock moving to create a pool that will hold water, which is otherwise cascading down a steep rock face.  It is big enough to hold two people, though evidently it could hold more before a recent rockfall. By the time I got in for my soak it was full dark and I was able to peer at the stars, though my glasses kept fogging up.  I was quite glad of the opportunity to warm up my core before going to bed, because it was a cold night.  But I carried a good amount of heat into my sleeping bag with me and was comfy through till morning.