Rakiura Weekend

The weekend of the 14th through the 16th of May found our crew in Rakiura/Stewart Island. We rented a silly bus (twelve-seater van)piled seven people in it (Thimo, Thomas, Al, Anjali, Liz, Brenda, and I) and drove south to grab the ferry!

The naming of the island (Wikipedia)

The original Maori name, Te Punga o Te Waka a Maui, positions Stewart Island/ Rakiura firmly at the heart of Maori mythology. Translated as The Anchor Stone of Maui’s Canoe, it refers to the part played by this Island in the legend of Maui and his crew, who from their canoe, the South Island, caught and raised the great fish, the North Island.

Rakiura is, however, the more commonly known and used Maori name. It is usually translated as Glowing Skies, possibly a reference to the sunsets for which Stewart Island/Rakiura is famous or for the Aurora Australis, the southern lights that are a phenomenon of southern latitudes.

For some, Rakiura is the abbreviated version of Te Rakiura a Te Rakitamau, translated as "great blush of Rakitamau", in reference to the latter's embarrassment when refused the hand in marriage of not one, but two daughters, of an Island chief. According to Maori legend, a chief on the island named Te Rakitamau was married to a young woman who became terminally ill and implored him to marry her cousin after she died. Te Rakitamau paddled across Te Moana Tapokopoko a Tawhiki (Foveaux Strait) to the South Island where the cousin lived, only to discover she was recently married. He blushed with embarrassment so the island was called Te Ura o Te Rakitamau.


KIWI! The island and Rakiura National Park are famous for their Kiwi birds, a type called Tokueka, which is not fully nocturnal like most kiwi, but also searches for some food during the daytime hours. The island may be the best place to view kiwis in the wild, because of the low population of rats, possums, and stoats. One of our major goals on the trip was to see us a kiwi or two...

Getting our Tramp On
We did the three-day-circuit Rakiura Track, beginning and ending in Oban, or Halfmoon Bay (map). The first day we tramped along the coast to the Port William Hut on the north shore of the island, where we had a delicious meal of burritos before playing cards for a few hours and heading off to bed. The beach, hermit-crab view, and tent images are from this first day. Not seeing or hearing any kiwi the first night, we headed out the next morning to cross the island to the north arm of Paterson Inlet, to the appropriately named North Arm hut. This is where our exciting Saturday began. Prepare yourself for a story...

Early Saturday morning, as the sandflies were just waking and the mist was receding, the gents on the trip were just finishing packing our bags, distributing weight (mostly food) among us. The gals decided they would get a head start on us, since they did not move quite as quickly as we did, thus getting our morning off to a faster start. Liz and Anjali both have slightly bum knees, which had been acting up the day before. It seemed like a great idea to us, so we said "See you soon - we're right behind you!"

After zipping the last zippers and pulling our packs on, we hit the trail to catch up with the girls, giving them a 15 minute head start. We snaked our way around, moving quickly along the boardwalk, and still had not caught up to them 30 minutes into the hike, where we got back on the main circuit track (see map above). We were a bit baffled that we had not yet caught up, but just gave the gals some credit, and decided to press on, thinking that perhaps they had really been moving.

Another half-hour into the forest, up and down wild flights of stairs, we became more and more skeptical about the ladies' location ahead of us, and started to theorize about how we might have left them behind us. When we passed a dude coming the other direction and asked him if he had passed three women our age, he said, "Nope." So we knew.

The three most probable ideas: (1) they had gone down to the pier to check out the bay, since Anjali had not been there yet; (2) they had accidentally turned left at the fork, and gone back to Oban rather than crossing the island to the North Arm Hut; and (3) they had accidentally taken the difficult and muddy track north along the shore, which is a ten day hike to get all the way around.

We sat around for a bit and ate lunch, then I ran back for a few kilometers and yelled from the top of the tallest hilltop for ten minutes. I heard nothing in response but birds, so I returned to the other guys, and we decided to press on to the North Arm hut, and then return to find the girls. The main issue was that it was getting dark and cold, and the girls only had bread and dried apricots to eat. This had turned into a rescue mission before we knew it!

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In the image collage earlier, the fern forest (center-right) is from midday Saturday, as is the view of Halfmoon Bay from high point lookout (bottom-left). The last image is me standing in the gorgeous fern-lush temperate rainforest on Sunday afternoon, just before entering "fern gully." I kid you not.

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Okay, back to it: Luckily, after only a ten minute return trip, just as the sun was setting behind the hills, the girls emerged into our sight, slowly sauntering on. We were all very happy to see eachother, and everyone got hugs. They did not want to stop and rest however, they just wanted to keep moving and get to the hut. Liz's knee had been in pretty extreme pain, and Anjali's to a lesser extent, before they decided to have some painkillers, chased with wine. Yes, it ends up they also had a bottle of wine with them as well, and some snack food.

They were ready for a good meal when we got back, so over spaghetti we got to hear about what had actually become of them, and how we got separated. It ends up Liz had thought we said to go on the Northwest track, and so they had trudged through the mud on a skinny trail for about 45 minutes, leaving fun messages for us to find, and having a generally fun time, before it occured to them that they might have taken the wrong path! Then we found out that they COULD hear every scream I made from the top of the hill, but I was unable to hear them respond, and they had blown their rape whistles too late for me to be in range. Golly. So, after a rough day, we were all together and safe again.

The night was not over, however, for we had to go hunting for kiwi-sighting opportunities! Thomas and I ran out too look after a couple also staying at the hut had seen a kiwi by the latrine. We delved into the forest with a infra red light, so as not to disturb or blind the bird, and sat around, listening and waiting. A large Stewart Island Tokueka ended up hopping its way into our path, and we got to watch it for about ten minutes! They are about the size of chickens, and are the largest kiwis, so it was quite fun to watch from a distance as it jumped around, poking its long beak into the ground periodically to sniff for insects. The kiwi have nostrils at the end of their beaks (very rare) and do not actually have feathers, but rather feather-like hair! Their wings are flush with the side of their body, and have small claws al the end (see picture above). It was great to see one - many native New Zealanders have not even seen kiwis - especially not in the wild!

After a satisfying night's sleep and a slow, lazy morning, we got back on the track and walked the last six hour leg back to Oban and Halfmoon Bay, where we made a dinner feast and stayed the night in the Stewart Island Backpacker.

Here is a lovely group shot looking out on Kaipipi Bay, a small cove of Paterson Inlet, on the tramp back to Oban on Sunday. From left to right: Dan, Thimo, Liz, Thomas, Al, Brenda, Anjali.

The sunrise over Halfmoon Bay on Monday morning was breathtaking. I am unsure of whether or not I have ever seen one so beautiful. We officially witnessed Te Rakiura a Te Rakitamau, the "great blush of Rakitamau." I guess he must have been wonderfully embarrased. The glowing skies of Rakiura will be remembered!