Another long day brought me to Boyle, and then to Hanmer Springs for a resupply.
The wind from last night continued this morning, and the rest of the day, making it occasionally tiring and challenging to walk in a straight line. It was also cloudy in the morning, and overcast the rest of the day, making it a bit cooler, and a nice change of pace from the sun constantly beating down on me.
Leaving Anne Hut, the trail headed through a meadow, which gradually picked up trees as I continued to follow the St James Walkway to the forest.
After reaching and crossing the Ann River on a footbridge, the trail generally followed the river upstream, towards Ann Saddle. Horses are allowed on this stretch of trail, though there was a separate horse track through the riverbed when the trail went through a boggy area requiring a boardwalk.
The trail tread was generally easy, but when the track was in meadow, it was narrow, with overgrown grasses on either side that, in the wind, often covered the trail, making for a frustrating walk.
Around Ann Saddle, the trail was in a nice forest, which blocked out most of the wind. After leaving the forest, it followed the Boyle River downstream, back into meadows. This seemed to be a hangout for Canada Geese, and the trail was lined with goose droppings for a few kilometers.
I reached the junction for the Boyle Flats Hut, across the river via a swingbridge. It was only 1 pm, and though I was a little tired, I wasn’t ready to stop for the day. I made the decision to go on the rest of the way to Boyle and try and hitch into Hanmer Springs. But, needing a break, I was going to stop at the intersection and have a snack; that plan didn’t last long, as in the few seconds it took for me to drop my pack, sandflies were all over my legs. I picked my pack up and hurried across the bridge to the safety of the hut.
After leaving the hut, the trail was largely in forest for the rest of the day, with a generally much nicer trail than earlier. Sheltered from the wind (which continued to pick up), and with good tread, I kept an excellent pace to Boyle.
After crossing the Boyle River on a swingbridge, a light drizzle blew in, and I was glad I hade the foresight this morning to put on my pack cover. The rain didn’t last very long, though.
The trail eventually ended into a gravel road, passing the Boyle Campsite and Boyle River Outdoor Education Center. I passed a couple who had just driven up and stopped at the parking area near the campsites, exchanged pleasantries, and said I was going into Hanmer Springs, and that I guess I should go out to the highway and stick out my thumb.
Which I did, and the first car that passed by stopped to pick me up. Alex, who runs a bike shop in Christchurch, gave me a lift to the junction between the highway and Hanmer Springs. That took about 40 minutes. It rained a little shortly after I was picked up, but that didn’t last long.
At the junction, one of the first cars to come by heading towards Hanmer Springs was the one I saw at the parking area — they had Maud in the back seat (she was only a few minutes behind me), and stopped to pick me up, saying that they were going to Hanmer Springs and it just didn’t register to them at the time that they could give me a lift. In fact, they were going to the same place as me: the Kakapo Lodge YHA!
I got a private room (a motel unit, larger and more pricey than I needed, but it was fine, the only private room they had left, and I didn’t want to run around town looking for other lodging), and picked up the shirt that CareFree mailed, and went to my room to relax and get a shower.
At the advice of the manager who checked me in, I went to the Alpine Village Inn, which had a two-for-one special on burgers tonight. I actually managed to eat both of them, and still somehow had room for ice cream after.
It started drizzling on my way back to my room, but all together, it was less rain than I was expecting today.
Tomorrow, I resupply, and relax.