Short Walk: Godley Head Loop Track Redux: 22nd April 2019

Another trip to Godley Heads....

 This last weekend I was scheduled to go for a tramp up Mt Herbert with my oldest daughter but due to the inclement weather it was scaled back to a shorter walk on the Port Hills.

Georgia crossing the fence at the Godley Head Loop Track

We decided to go and walk around the defense works at Godley Heads, an excellent short walk in my opinion.

Godley Head Loop Track: map of the whole defense site and the buildings at the campsite

I have previously been out to the defense works on Godley Heads many, many times the latest in late March, but this was the first time Georgia has ever visited the site.

Going clock wise this time....

When Karen and I visited recently we walked the Godley Heads Loop Track in an anti clockwise direction so this time for a change we walked clockwise. I think walking clockwise (...through the campgrounds first...) is a better way to travel, it was certainly easier. 

Godley Head Loop Track: timings on this sign are for the trip to Taylor's Mistake from Godley Head

It was a lot cloudier on the day Georgia and I visited but it was actually much warmer as there was zero wind to contend with.

The car park at the Godley Heads site....holds about 30 cars

Toilet block at the Godley Heads Defense site car park

There is a set of toilets at the car park, there is also a couple of picnic tables and a sheltered spot under some well placed pines if you wanted to sit down for a picnic. 

Decent picnic spot next to the Godley Head car park

From the car park we headed up the campsite access road, this will eventually deposit you down where the coastal gun battery was situated. The gate is locked at all times if you want to gain access to the camp site you need to book a campsite on line and they send you a code for the lock. 

 Georgia was keen to come stay up here as well though she said it would be cold...which it most certainly would...

The road leading to the Godley Heads campsite, the gate is locked....

People walking the tracks can just pop over the stile located next to the gated entrance to the DOC camp site. The track is well signposted and clearly marked so there is no risk of becoming lost. 

Georgia crossing a stile on the Godley Head Loop Track

One of the restored buildings used by DOC at Godley Heads

This map is right next to the Godley Heads camp site

Point of interest, there is a turret off a M3A1 light tank sitting next to the workshop building at Godley Heads. It is missing all of the hatches and the main gun and has numerous 2 pdr shot holes through it but the shape is unmistakable.

The strange thing is New Zealand only used the M3 in North Africa and Europe not in New Zealand or the Pacific (...the New Zealand 3rd Division did some tough fighting in the Solomon Islands...). Gawd knows how it ended up at Godley Head.....very curious....

M3A1 light tank turret next to the old workshop building, Godley Heads

I imagine it was used by the tankers for target practice in Tekapo or up at Waiouru....I read recently the trust also have a couple of heavy anti aircraft guns in one of the sheds, not on display yet but hopefully one day. 

At the Godley Battery site

We went down and had a good look at the defense battery site including inside the gun bunkers....we found a short track that allowed us to circumvent the big fence around the site...enough said about that..

Gun emplacement E1, Godley Heads Defense Installation

There is a massive amount of graffiti on the defense site buildings...it is really poor taste to desecrate these historic sites but unfortunately anything this close to a major city is bound to suffer a lot of damage from assorted idiots. 

Gun emplacement E2, Godley Heads Defense Installation

Georgia and I walked a short distance down the track to Taylor's Mistake so we could see the sea cliffs. I managed to get a couple of good shots of the Taylor Battery gun site. This was the first temporary gun site housing 60 pounder field howitzers in open emplacements but was quickly superseded by the main battery.

The Taylor Battery gun pads from near Godley Heads Battery

 You can see the trees around the main battery position at Godley Head in the background of this photo of Taylor Battery. Once the larger naval cannon were fitted to the Godley Battery this site was abandoned...it was only a temporary fix but it would have provided some protection to Lytelton.

Godley Heads: the 60 pdrs at the Taylor Battery circa 1940.....

View from Godley Head towards Taylor Battery (middle ridge), Taylor's Mistake and Pegasus Bay

We walked back over the ridge and had a look at the main defense installation, you can get a good look through the fence (it is fenced off as the site has suffered earthquake damage) but as promised I went over the fences and took a series of photos of the gun pits, bunkers and emplacements that made up the Godley Battery. 

I do not recommend you do this but the choice is yours, just be careful as some of the ground around here is unstable. 

Map and information panel near Godley Heads Battery, Godley Heads

E1 gun emplacement from the battery access road, Godley Heads Battery

Closer view of E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Looking down into the magazine for E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Looking down into the magazine for E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

If you would like to see what the tunnels and underground bunkers look like go to the Coast Central Construction website. They are the firm contracted to restore this site prior to the Christchurch Earthquakes and they have a series of photos of the underground works. 

Interior of the E1 emplacement Godley Heads Battery

The gun pit which house the naval gun in the E1 emplacement at Godley Heads Battery

View out to sea from inside E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Looking back into E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Gun crew bunker, next to E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Inside the Gun crew bunker, next to E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Ancillary building next to E1 emplacement, Godley Heads Battery

Godley Heads Battery: the E1 emplacement from near the E2 gun pit

Gun emplacement E2 at the Godley Heads Battery

I'm not anti graffiti style art...some of it is very good but this historic place is not the right place to paint it. I don't like the graffiti painted here but at least the one below is topical...a Maori soldier in World War Two gear.

I think this one is nicely done....

Godley Heads Battery: a nice graffiti painted at the E2 emplacement

The interior of E2 emplacement at the Godley Heads Battery

Godley Heads Battery: a powder bag chute at the E2 emplacement

The last of the gun emplacements at Godley Heads (E3) was open topped so it had the maximum arc of fire. If they had built overhead cover it would not have been able to swing to the north to cover the beaches of Pegasus Bay

The gun housed here was powerful enough to lob a shell as far north as the mouth of the Waimakiriri River/Woodend about 20-25 odd kilometers away. 

Gun emplacement E3 at the Godley Heads Defence Installation

The main entrance to the underground bunker system is located in between the E2 and E3 battery positions. It would be good if the bunkers were opened to the public but they were five stories underground so perhaps they may have been damaged by the 2010/2011 earthquakes. 

Stairs to the main magazine, Godley Heads Defense Installation

E3 had protective bunkers to its rear for the gun crew but I bet this was the gun they put all the people on the 'shithouse list' into as it was the most exposed to the elements.  There are massive scuppers at the rear of the pit to clear all the rain that must have poured into the gun emplacement.

Hey...the military don't build features unless required....

Godley Heads Defense Installation: the open topped E3 gun pit

Godley Heads Defense Installation: Gun E3 could shoot as far as the Waimakiriri River

After we had a good look around the gun installations Georgia and I headed down to the Observation Post No. 2 further down the track. 

Heading down to Observation Post No. 2

We jumped back onto the Godley Heads Loop Track and headed down hill towards the No. 2 Observation Post. It is a bit of a steep track with that really fine gravel DOC use so it is a bit slippery.  It would be around 1 kilometer from the gun battery site to the observation bunker. 

Walking away from Godley Battery, on the Godley Heads Loop Track

Godley Heads Loop Track: the trees that surround the Godley Battery emplacements from down the track

Looking out towards the entrance to Port Levy from the Godley Heads Loop Track

We stopped and had a look at Observation Post No. 2...this cliff side post controlled the battery of searchlights located at water level at the base of the cliffs. It was also the communication nexus for the main battery and the various defense posts scattered around the area.

You used to be able to walk down to the search light battery but a huge chunk of the cliff fell on them and squashed them in the 2011 earthquake....

Sign for Battery Observation Post No. 2 on the Godley Heads Loop Track

The people on top of this post are really stupid: there is a 100 meter drop immediately in front of the post. If they or the dogs fell off that roof they would die...no questions about it. In fact there is a DOC sign at the site which says "Do not sit on this roof. Fall Danger"

Do not do this yourself!!!

Godley Heads Loop Track: Observation Post No. 2 at Godley Heads

Panel about the defunct light house that once resided near Godley Heads

View from inside Observation Post No, 2 on the Godley Heads Loop Track

Inside Observation Post No. 2, Godley Head Loop Track

Panel describing the work undertaken at Observation Post No. 2, Godley Heads Loop Track

We headed up the hill towards the power generation and battery fire control/plotting buildings closer to the car park. The track is uphill for all of the way back but the slope is a lot easier to climb than the one to the battery site as the gradient is gentle. 

View of Lytelton Harbor and Purau Bay from the Godley Head Loop Track

Godley Head Loop Track: view out to Lytelton Harbor mouth

Georgia on the Godley Head Loop Track with Lytelton in background

Clearer view of Lytelton Heads from the Godley Head Loop Track

There are great views from Godley Head of the surrounding area and the still day meant we could see the details a lot clear than the last time I was here. 

At the generator and plotting buildings

Mid way between the Observation Post and the car park are a series of command and control buildings for the defense installation. There is a workshop/power generator, a battery observation and a scale model shot plotting room. 

All these buildings were an integrated part of the defense works and would have housed soldiers,  WREN's/WAAC's and assorted naval personal over the course of the war. 

Inside the generator room at the Godley Heads defense site

As you can see the Armour on the windows and doors is about 5-8mm thick...not enough to deflect large naval rounds but good enough for shrapnel and bullets. 

Thinly armored door on the generator room, Godley Heads defense site

An interpretative panel inside the Godley Heads generator room, Godley Head Loop Track

Godley Head Loop Track: the generator room

The battery fire control room was where a group of military personal would have controlled the fire of the guns if anyone had tried to enter Lytelton Harbor. They were located around this side of the peninsula to protect them from any fire directed at the main gun sites atop the ridge line. 

They must have had a top notch telephone network to link all of these posts as radio technology was a lot more primitive in those days..expensive, complex, hard to use and not very reliable. 

Interpretive panel inside the battery plotting room at Godley Heads

The miniature plotting room was for training the gunners and their officers, a large scale model of Lytelton Harbor and Godley Heads allowed the gunners a chance to practise their skills. Models of ships were moved across the plotting model and the fall of 'shot' was shown by small wooden pegs inserted into the plotting model from below. 

This is still how they train naval gunners abet it is now computer simulated...

Godley Head Loop Track: inside the miniature range room, our earlier visit

An explanation of how the battery plotting worked, Godley Heads defense site

An explanation of how the battery plotting worked, Godley Heads defence site

Its great that DOC and the Godley Head Heritage trust leave these buildings open as they have always been closed up to this point. 

Walking back to the Godley Head car park

From the defense buildings it is a short 10 minute stroll to get back up to the Godley Head car park, it is uphill but a easy gradient. There were a lot of people out walking on this section of the track as it is the closest to the car park. 

Looking at the range, plotting and generator rooms at the Godley Head site

Godley Heads Loop Track, heading down towards the defense buildings

If you walk the track in an anti clockwise direction there is a very good information panel just near the start of the track. Make sure you stop and have a look as it makes the history of the buildings and installations a lot easier to understand. 

Godley Heads Loop Track: map of the whole defense installation at Godley Head

Lots of people waking on the Godley Heads Loop Track

The whole track is 5.5 km's long and takes between 45 minutes and 1 hour to complete. 

Godley Head Loop Track....5.5km's from one end to the other

Godley Head car park...a lot less cars as the afternoon progressed!

Again, this is an awesome weekend short walk, bring the kids out for a look but take care on that road from Evans Pass and keep a tight hold of any children along the cliff sides. 

Access: From Summer take the Evans Pass road, then turn left onto Summit Road heading out to Godley Heads. The road is narrow, winding with drop offs on the downhill side. Exercise caution as it can be busy and some of the other drivers are not very courteous. 

Track Times: From the car-park it is 45 minutes to 1 hour to complete the Godley Heads Loop Track, all tracks are well marked and signposted. 

Campsite Details:  DOC ranger on site over summer, water tank, toilets

Miscellaneous: The campsite is on the DOC booking system, must be booked for overnight visit. Public toilets at the camp site and at the car-park.

Womens tramping clothing

What gear do I need for tramping in New Zealand

Here is an interesting pictograph that JETNZ a fellow Kiwi tramping enthusiast has drawn up and forwarded to me. This is a diagram showing the clothing a woman needs for tramping in New Zealand conditions. 

Obviously, the clothing worn by males and females is made from the same materials but usually differ in cut and styling. Women's outdoor clothing tends to be colourful and more finely cut than menswear, shaped for a women's figure although increasingly outdoor clothing is multisex in nature.

Mostly female tramping group from the Welington Tramping and Mountaineering Club or WTMC

Most guys I interact with outdoors look like a bunch of hobos.....dirty and dishevelled and there is nothing wrong with that. Outdoor women tend to look like they would on the street...tidy. If you are going to see a dirt bag tramper its usually going to be a dude.

The clothing in the diagram is made of either synthetics or merino wool and follows the time honoured layering principles. No cotton clothing because cotton is very hard to dry and leeches heat from your body when wet.

You have options here for all climatic conditions: warm and dry, cold and wet, cold and dry and warm and wet. You 'mix and match' the items to regulate your body heat and to keep yourself dry.

Here is my tramping clothing laid out for a post I made in 2015

The only thing I might add to the list is underwear...both tops and bottoms should be merino or synthetics preferably with good breathable qualities. A sports top and a couple of pair of underwear seem like a goodly amount. You might also consider a swim suit unless you are willing to swim in your underwear. Maybe some hut/camp shoes/sandals if that is your thing...

BTW...thanks for the pictograph Janey......much appreciated! I'm sorry it took so long to post it...

Hawdon Valley, 29th March 2019

An aborted attempt to reach Hawdon Hut...

After recovering from my recent illness and surgery I have been doing a few short walks as part of my recuperation. I thought I might try for an overnight trip to a front country hut, 3-4 hours from the road end to see how my fitness is. 

Karen was working so it was Jon heading out on his own. I decided to go up to Hawdon Hut, one of my favorite destinations in Arthur's Pass, stay the night and then return home the next day.

Hawdon Hut from my 2015 visit, it is a nice 16 bunk hut!

Unfortunately my plan was stymied when after walking up river for over two hours I discovered that I was unable to make the mandatory crossing up stream from the East Hawdon confluence. After attempting to cross the river and failing to do so I reluctantly decided I had to head for home. 

If I had thought to take a tent with me I would have camped out on the picturesque banks of the upper Hawdon River Valley but I only had an emergency bivy with me and that wasn't going to cut the mustard as they say.

Interior of Hawdon Hut: dining area from my visit in 2015

Interior of Hawdon Hut: the bunk rooms from my 2015 visit

Even though my hut night was aborted it was still a lovely early autumn day and I enjoyed being out in the sun after weeks of miserable weather.  I had a nice walk up the valley and now I know I'm fit enough to go out for an overnight trip provided it is not too far from the road. 

Its all part of my ongoing plan to get back to peak tramping fitness. 

A four hour jaunt in the Hawdon Valley

I headed off late...it was 8 am as I drove down the road, the weather was fine but there had been some rain overnight so I had my worries about river levels. It was a uneventful trip until I crossed over the Mt White bridge to drive to the Hawdon Valley shelter site. 

The Silver Surfer parked at Hawdon Shelter

My trip was just four days after "Stormaggedon 2019" so there was significant damage to the gravel roads leading to the campsite; washed out river crossings, massive meter deep holes, exposed rocks and mud from where the Hawdon River had broken its banks and flowed down the access road.

Map: Mt White Bridge to Hawdon Shelter/Campsite

Lucky for me a dozer had just been down the road to cut a new path so although bumpy I managed to get to the campsite. 

Hawdon Shelter at the mouth of Hawdon Valley....big pile of pest traps next to hut!!!

A quick look at the Hawdon Valley intentions book (at the shelter) showed I was the first person to visit the campsite in over five days. Despite that there was a fire smoldering in the fireplace so I suspect someone had been there recently. I wish people would show a bit more sense and put fires out...I used my emergency water supply to fully douse it!

I geared up, locked the car and set off down to the river to see if I was going to be able to cross the Hawdon River

Start of Hawdon Valley Track next to the shelter....nice camping if it is calm. 

When I got down to the river I could see that the recent rain event had heavily impacted the Valley. There was a lot of flood debris and water damage to the banks of the river, a large digger was also hard at work building a new flood bank as the old one had several large breeches in it. 

The water level must have been damn high as there was flood damage on the access road one kilometer and about three meters higher than the river bed. When I got up valley all the grass was facing downstream and there were flood debris around trees. This was in places up to a kilometer from the nearest channel so the whole valley must have been submerged. 

Hawdon River with the Pyramid and Sudden Valley in the background...

The river level was up but because it was broken down into four channels it was relatively easy to find a good crossing point. In the photo below you can see where I crossed...there was a submerged shingle bank most of the way across the main stream. I got across but the volume of water had me worried about the state of the river further up the valley. 

In the background you can see the Pyramid and the entrance to Sudden Valley both of which are on my list of future tramping trips. 

Main course of the Hawdon River near the first river crossing

I found the gate DOC have on the fence across the river flats and started walking up the 4 W/D track to the East Hawdon confluence. The track has been largely washed away by recent storms so it was a bit of a rock bash with multiple crossings of side streams and channels. Harder work than usual it took me nearly two hours to reach the bush near the East Hawdon. 

The stock fence across the mouth of the Hawdon Valley, start of the 4W/D track

As you can see in the photos below a lot of the overlaying soil and grass has been stripped away from the river bed but even so following the 4 W/D track is better than making your own way up valley.

The crossing of Sudden Valley Stream was difficult, it was knee deep and fast but I managed to find a good crossing point. This is at the Hawdon River end of the confluence...if you go up river Sudden Valley Stream is constricted and really deep (chest deep) and not able to be crossed.

Take care on this crossing as the stream run out goes straight into a deep part of the main river. 

Crossing point for Sudden Valley Stream...fast and deep!!!

I had the valley to myself for the whole day...I didn't see another person in all day. This is not unusual during the week (it was Friday) but still a little unnerving as you usually see some DOC workers, anglers or the odd tramper up here. 

I imagine I would have had the hut totally to myself if I had managed to reach it.

Heading up Hawdon Valley just after the Sudden Valley Stream confluence

The same general area of the Hawdon Valley back in 2014

The Hawdon River has changed its main channel once again..the Hawdon is a typical braided river and every couple of years a big storm will carve out a new bed for itself. It used to flow solidly down the true left of the valley but has now migrated over to the true right.

This means you need to cross a couple of quite wide, deep and swift channels in the mid part of the valley. The process started back in 2015 but has gathered pace since.

The new course of the Hawdon River in 2015...this used to be a dry riverbed before 2014!

No photo of the new river channel of course, I took one it just didn't save to the memory stick. Care should be taken when choosing a crossing point here...just don't go striding in....the clarity of the water hides how deep it really is from the bank. 

Map: Approximate course of the new main stream Hawdon River is marked in red

Hawdon Valley: about an hour and a half up the valley approaching East Hawdon Stream

The Hawdon Valley 4/WD track..the preferred way to get up valley

The 4/WD track in the mid region of Hawdon Valley...Hawdon Bivouac in the bush directly ahead

As I was passing by I went for a short side trip to the Hawdon Bivouac, this is a small three bunk DOC hut situated in the tongue of forest just before East Hawdon River. The hut is not for public use but is home for DOC staff when working on research projects, pest trapping and bird recovery programs in the area.

If you want to visit the bivouac there is a very indistinct track leading away from the main track in the forest pictured above. Look for the obvious parking area just off the main track, the path meanders through the bush from there. 

DOC Hawdon Bivouac: Photo from the Hut Bagger NZ website: image by Charlie Ledbrook

The photo above is from the Hut Bagger NZ site, I have a new camera and I'm having a few problems getting used to it. I took around 20 additional photos on the day and for some reason none of them saved to the memory card.

The next time I am up the Hawdon I will stop and take a series of photos of the bivouac. 

On the banks of the Hawdon River, just before the East Hawdon River

The East Hawdon River crossing was not too bad really the channel was narrow and only just above ankle height so easy to cross. There is an excellent two person biv up the East Hawdon River valley, it makes for a nice overnight trip but take a tent in case the hut is full.  

Crossing over a mostly dry East Hawdon River, Hawdon Valley

Once past East Hawdon River I walked for another kilometer up the valley until I got to the point where you must make a mandatory crossing of the Hawdon River. It was not looking good....the valley narrows at this point so the river is always deeper and more difficult to cross there.

 It is about normally 20 metes wide and half way to my knees...so it can usually be crossed if one is cautious. 

Hawdon River in 2016: this is the normal flow level in early spring...normally easy to cross!!!

Map: Mid Hawdon Valley....red cross is location Hawdon Bivouac, blue circle my turn around point

The river is wider at the marked crossing point but all the smaller streams form one bigger river channel. I walked up and down the river for about 200 meters checking out possible crossing points...it didn't look good...deep and swift.  Additionally, there was a lot of runoff coming down the main river and those feeder streams. 

I finally located a spot that look possible and found myself a branch about two meters long to use as a support. I stowed the camera, unbuckled my waist strap, splashed my face with cold river water and waded in...

Hawdon Valley: just past East Hawdon River and close to my turn around point

I'm missing a photo of the place I tried to cross the Hawdon River...stupid camera operator!

Things felt wrong right from the start...I got about 1/3 of the way across and it was just too deep and swift to go on. I had water above the knees, a foot high wave off my support branch and my feet were slipping backwards on the gravel....not good! I thought bugger this for a laugh...so I quickly backtracked and got my arse out of the river pdq. 

I stopped on the bank, dropped pack, brewed up and contemplated my options. I had another look up and down stream but there was no better crossing point and with no tent camping was out of the question. After much thought and very, very reluctantly I decided that I had no option but to turn around and go home.

Bugger....it was only another hours walk to the hut but I just didn't want to drown trying to get there. Unfortunately that is how things go but choosing the safer option is never a bad decision. 

Heading back to Hawdon Shelter

Once I had a firm decision to return to the car I packed up my brew kit and hotfooted it back down the valley as quickly as I could. I jumped back on the 4 W/D track and followed it for most of the way back to Sudden Valley Stream. 

Hawdon Valley: mid valley & heading back down to the car at the campsite

Gravel pinnacles in the mid regions of the Hawdon River Valley...they are about 60 meters high

Two hours saw me back at the crossing point of the Hawdon River down by the campsite and the beginning of the track. The crossing was a bit more difficult than in the morning as the digger had closed off a couple of the side channels in the river, this made the level in the main channel higher.

I found a spot where the river fanned out into several wide gravel beds and used this as my way across, it was knee deep but not as fast running over the gravel. 

Hawdon river, getting ready to cross back to the Hawdon Shelter site

I climbed up to the shelter at the Hawdon Valley campsite and soon found myself back at the car. 

A trip finished long before I expected it would. 

The Hawdon Valley campsite shelter

The entrance to the Hawdon Valey Campsite, Arthur's Pass

If you ever want to camp at the Hawdon River campsite, make sure to check out the campsite shelter. It is a nice wee shelter and has an open fireplace and tables and seats for about 10-12 people inside.

Hawdon Valley campsite shelter, note pile of pest traps to left of shelter

There is no wood shed and the forest nearby has been picked clean of dead-fall but have a look anyway. Every big storm brings down a few branches and trees and there is a lot of wood in the forest fringe around the rest of the campsite. Water is from the nearby Hawdon River but take it upstream of the stock fence across the mouth of the valley.

Hawdon Valley Campsite....looking out on the campsite from near Hawdon Shelter

 The sand-flies are murderous at the campsite easily the worst I have ever encountered in Canterbury and they could give their southern cousins from Fiordland a run for their money. 

DOC messages and intentions book holder, outside of Hawdon Valley Shelter

Hawdon Valley Campsite Shelter: left hand side

Hawdon Valley Campsite Shelter: right hand side

If you are looking for a short over night trip I recommend Hawdon Hut...the valley is very beautiful and feels wilder than the closeness to the road should allow. Just dont go up there when it has been raining as your not getting over the river when it is in flood. 

Cheers!

Access: Turn off SH 73 at Mt White bridge, take the road to Hawdon Shelter. Note the track was a real mess when I visited with mud, washouts and rough areas. Check DOC Arthur's Pass website for warnings. The Hawdon Valley track starts next to the shelter, fords Hawdon River and continues up valley to Hawdon Hut and Walkers Pass.

Track times: 4 hours to Hawdon Hut, another 1.5 hour to Walkers Pass

Hut Details: Hawdon Shelter: shelter only, open fireplace, toilets: Hawdon Bivouac: DOC use only, 2-3 bunks, water tank, toilet: Hawdon Hut, serviced, 18 bunks, water tanks, fire box, wood shed, toilets

Miscellaneous: Hawdon River is prone to flooding in rain and dangerous if in flood. There are at least 5 mandatory river crossings on this track.Exercise caution.