Arthurs Pass, NZ

Early start to head to Arthurs Pass, somewhere up in the southern alps. The whole strip provides a connection between Christchurch and Greymouth. The Transapline departed at 8:15am arriving about 2.5hrs later just east of Arthurs Pass. It was amazing to watch the countryside flash past with the size of the hills increasing with each minute. The information was a great setup of the history of the place as well as giving an idea of the walks available within the timeframe that I had. Five minute walk into town and found a cafe for breakfast, which included some caffeine stimulus - I'm still in school holiday mode - not functioning before 10am!! Anyway after a nice start to the day. Within town many of the huts are/look like originals. Tiny one bedroom huts which look like with a little push could topple at any stage - must be cold in winter. No wonder a couple were for sale!!

Undertook a few of the walks - all around the hour: Devils Creek and Punchbowl Waterfall, Bridevale Walk and Bealey walk. The whole area was magnificent. Could still see patches of snow on the tops off many peaks. Did the walks well below the suggested timeframe which gave me ample time to go well up the Bealey River. The main walk actually stops as it hits the river. There are then markers which guide you further up the mountain which was fun jumping from rock to rock. Would be good skiing through winter - though no chairlifts!! It was obvious where avalanches had been through as the mountain had been left bare with rocks scattered behind. There were signs posted everywhere regarding caution with avalanches - I figured it was safe enough since minimal snow and no rain.


The waterfalls throughout the area were lovely though not very large at this time of year. The Devils/Punchbowl walk was probably the most tiring. The way up is a straight stair climb - ½hr up,15min down!! Particularly made more difficult as it was the first thing and you haven't really warmed into the whole walk/hike. Though if done last would probably still be challenging as you would potentially be a little more tired. The height of the steps (even for me) were reasonable. Usually stairs at place like this are made to the shorter leg length - so these were larger than I was used to. Seeing the size of some of the children doing the walk I was amazed they could do it. Once at the top it was fabulous. Must be a sight when the waterfall is fully flowing. The trip back down was easy - could almost run down the stairs.

The train back down was delayed by an hour. There are track works happening between Arthurs Pass and Greymouth which means it has to go slower than usual. Anyway spent a bit of the trip in the outdoor viewing area. Was good to get a few hit or miss photos! The train can really pick up speed on the track. Looking back up at the shrinking mountains and then down at the rivers and lakes - the ever changing colours and terrain was impressive. Well worth the trip and highly recommended!!