Captain Creek Hut – Mt Richmond Forest Park20230402 Captains Creek

Sunday 2 April 2023

After a wet Saturday, Sunday was sunny - ideal for five of us to practice walking Te Araroa. SOBO in the morning, then NOBO after lunch.

We left the car at the Pelorus road-end and headed off to Captain Creek Hut.  Surprisingly, we met no through-hikers, just a group of four other day-trippers with a friendly dog.  

The Emerald Pool looked more like a Greenstone Pool, the river being still swollen from the previous day’s rain, so we weren’t temped to go swimming.

We had an enjoyable lunch, swatting sandflies, at the picnic table next to Captain Creek Hut. We were surrounded by wonderful mixed podocarp, broadleaf, beech forest, and the wasps all seemed to be concentrating on the black trunks of the scattered beech trees, so they didn’t trouble us.

We got back to the car around 4.30 pm, having walked for about 3½ hours each way.

The trail walkers were Donell, Gael, David S (scribe), and enthusiastic visitors Sue and Greg.