Top... I mean... Bottom of the World

Imagine a forest of lively green moss, drooping lichen, and abundant Beech trees. The Toutouwai (New Zealand Robin) singing softly through the trees, snakes and poisonous spiders are nonexistent. Suddenly, a sweaty biped lumbers his way through forest wielding a walking stick. A loud crack sounds as the stick gets caught in some roots, snaps, and sends the hominid sprawling face first into the mud. 

That is how my day started. 

Last night, three others and I decided that today we would go on a hike, weather permitting. As I crawled out of bed I glanced outside and could only see clouds (not a good sign after a week of rain...). Being my day off, I pulled on some comfy clothes and headed up to the staff room with a book (Wild Sheep Chase; Haruki Murakami) to wait for the others to rise. A breath of fresh dry mountain air and I knew there would be no rain today. Once they were all up and fed, we took a drive west. 

Already being in the mountains, it was only a 20 minute drive to the trailhead. We parked, and began the trek.

Ten minutes out of the car I took a swan dive into the wet forest goo. Slipping our way up a barely visible path of moss, we eventually made it to the tree line. The mountain extended a ways farther into the sky, so we slowly climbed the final stretch. On one side it was a cliff and the other a hill of shrubs so steep I would only be comfortable if it was covered in snow and I had a board strapped to my feet. Barely pushing a fear of heights out of my head, (and not wanting to look like a wuss! ) I pushed onward. 

Finally, the summit, and what a view! 360 degrees of New Zealand mountains and countryside. Definitely worth the previous internal struggle. Laying in the grass at the top for a good 45 minutes, we ate our lunch and snapped some pictures. Reluctantly we began the descent. By the time we reached the car, all that was on my mind was the steaming hot spring that awaited my aching muscles.

A nice long soak, a big bowl of curry and I am moments away from sleep. 

Good. Night!!

 Our goal, dauntingly looming above...

 the path...

 Broken strap... 

 Almost there!!

 Pride rock looks a lot bigger on the screen...

 Maruia River in the distance

 Katsuya on the edge. No way I'm getting up there...

(And thats how steep it was!!)

Summit picnic