Stewart Island's Southern Circuit

Links

DOC website | Komoot (GPX) 1 2 3 m a 4 5 6| Transport - water taxi

After a morning of rambling around Oban, including getting pancakes at the pub (which were luckily cooked before the generators failed), getting the fear of god and the weather put into me by DoC and panic buying more additional days food, and marvelling that the movie theatre has a regularly scheduled film about a wee black staffy (nobody tell Jo!) I eventually got on the road, heading onto the Rakiura Great Walk and walking to the North Arm Hut.

This gave me a wonderful false sense of security, barely getting my boots muddy despite the pounding rain. Little did I know what was to come....

Day two - North Arm to Freshwater

Just over 8 hours moving | 17.1km

This day felt like it nearly got me, being honest. I had eaten a new type of meal the night before from Hunting and Fishing, and naively had not checked the calories content - presuming that since it was from H&F, it would probably be closer to a 2 person meal than one. In reality, it was probably a 0.7 person meal.

Hungry but not yet realising it, I started my trek to Freshwater Hut. I'd been warned that the way Stewart Island is set out, this would be capturing a lot of the water on the island and that today technically had a severe weather warning. The bridge over the creek had been removed, and there was the potential the river could be impassable.

Luckily, the creek was fine (barely up to my knees) and easily passed... but soon I hit a greater road block when the effects of undereating caught up with me. I ended up angrily eating 2 minute noodles on the side of a hill (underrated! I'm bringing cuppa noodles for lunch for all my winter tramping) and that rejuvenated me to continue trekking to the hut, now with hail and snow pelting me.

Day three - Rocky Mountain, then Freshwater to Masons Bay

Rocky Mountain: 4 hours | 8.2km || Freshwater to Masons Bay: 3.5 hours | 12.8km

I woke up to a freezing morning and snow still on the ground, and got ready to head up Rocky Mountain.

I was looking forward to getting above the bush line, but I was also pretty aware that as DoC had mentioned there would be reception at the top of the summit that my family and partner would be waiting to hear from me. Despite that, when it started snowing again and snow properly coating the ground I was too distracted to notice! My backpack converts to a real cool kid fanny pack, so with a lightened load I headed up the hill.

After I'd made it to the top of Rocky Mountain, struggled to find the spot with reception, and thoroughly explored the tops, I headed down the hill and had a relaxed lunch back in Freshwater Hut. I then headed off to Masons Bay, which I expected to be somewhat flooded/high in water but otherwise a very cruisey walk. It ended up being wet, but excessively boardwalked. Near the end of the walk, realising that my relaxed lunch was a little too relaxed and I'd run out of daylight, I was pleased to see the hut - only to find that it was the historic homestead and I still had fifteen minutes to go!

In the walk between the homestead and the hut, I ran into some very confused looking chunky kiwi which made the delay worth it.

Day four - Mason's Bay to Doughboy

8 hours recorded moving before my watch died | 21.3km pre-watch-death

I was lucky enough to wake up early and head out kiwi spotting. Stewart Island has 400 people living on it and 13,000 kiwi - and outside Mason's Bay hut that morning it was never more obvious. I'd have kiwi running out at me, confused when the weird tree started moving... it was amazing.

Then the day truly had to start. Weirdly enough, this is where the Southern Circuit officially commenced - previously I was on Rakiura Track and the southern side of the North West Circuit.

Once I got off Mason's Bay beach, this is where the mud truly started in full blast. I knew I had two long days to Doughboy and on to Rakeahua, but I didn't realise just how long the days would be! The mud, previously only semi-regularly reaching above my long gaiters, suddenly started being swamp instead of tracks. I'd often have to make detours where the track was now soul-destroying, boot-sucking swamp puddles, keeping a watchful eye on the orange markers showing me the way.

The true pain came when I hit Adams Hill. I'd read one or two things online about this, but looking at the topo nothing looked too crazy - 400m elevation? pshhaww. I got up there, enjoyed the beautiful look of the tarn, went to join the track... and got completely lost. Eventually, after a bit of first going for where I knew the paths would meet up and then being sensible and back-tracking, I found the track which quickly devolved into swamp too deep to get through. Once I'd finally got off the top, the steep descent with waterfalls of mud kept me busy until eventually I dropped into Doughboy Bay and the hut. The mud didn't end there, with a lovely hole between the doc loo and the hut to annoy me all night...

Day five - Doughboy to Rakeahua

9 hours walking | 25.7km

The second day of the Southern Circuit continued along the same lines as the first, with a small walk along a beach, a slog up Doughboy Hill for some amazing views and then... mud. As the hut book at Rakeahua eloquently put it, the mud was "balls deep".

The day was long but enjoyable, despite my phone deciding to stop playing nice with Spotify and all my podcasts not playing. At the end of the day, I had the butter chicken freeze dried meal I'd been looking forward to all week and it was just as good as I'd hoped. Mmm.

Day six - Rakeahua to Fred's Camp and the water taxi

Just under 6 hours walking | 17.4km

My final day dawned bright, early, and really really cold. I'd tried to wash my tramping gear the previous night (mainly because my pants could stand up on their own with all of the mud), but not being any good at lighting fires with wet firewood they hadn't dried out much at all overnight.

I wandered my way to Fred's Camp (which was very very cute - I wish I'd stayed the night!) and was picked up by the lovely Rakiura Charters and taken back to Oban. Despite looking forward to real food the entire trip, when I got into town on a Friday afternoon the only food option was 4 Square... so potato chips and a Cookie Time cookie it was! Eventually I headed back to Invercargill on the very busy plane (full seats with everyone heading to the big island for the weekend!) and got home after an amazing trip.