We are home!

A big THANKYOU! to all those involved and all those who came down to Caroline Bay on Sunday to congratulate us on completing the journey... especially our family and friends who put so much time into helping us achieve this goal.

Stay tuned for the next adventure!...

The home straight!

Left at 11. Thanks Liz and John, will text again soon.

Rangitata river mouth

Just made it to our last camp at the river mouth. Big 14 hour day today. Pleased to be here! See you tomorrow.

State highway one

Not long until the end of the raft. Fingers crossed for good ocean conditions tomorrow.

Out of the boots and into the raft

Back in cellphone coverage now and we're happy to be off our feet and rafting down the Rangitata on what is almost our final leg. We had an awesome time churning through the Rangitata Gorge but got held up yesterday afternoon by a strong wind blowing up the valley making rafting impossible.

We're hoping to raft for a marathon 14 hours today and make up the lost time so we can finish up in the early evening tomorrow. We're expecting to be able to send pictures once we get into better coverage - for now, here's the mighty Rangitata, with yellow pointers marking Kelman Hut and Mt Cook in the background.

At Kelman Hut after a long, hard slog

Kelman Hut, our current location, looking toward Dunedin. Our starting point of Caroline Bay is on the far, far left.

We finally made it to Kelman Hut after a 15 hour walk from Plateau Hut. We're stoked to have completed the Mt Cook leg successfully. We'll now be out of reception for the next 5 days.

Summit

We made it successfully down off the summit last night to camp above the summit rocks. We've now turned our noses for home and are heading down the Linda Glacier to Plateau Hut and the Tasman Glacier.

Almost there...

We're now at a second bivy on middle peak, waiting for the wind to die down and our bodies to recover. We'll hopefully head for the summit tomorrow.

Making our way up to the bivy

Having a great time! Blue skies and no wind. Awesome!

Gardiner Hut

Eryn and Paul off to bivy under the northwest couloir. Weather clear for the next few days with some high winds predicted. We're going to make an attempt on the summit early tomorrow morning if conditions are good.

Taking cover

Gardiner Hut with Mt Cook on the left, looking towards Lake Pukaki and Mt Cook Village.

Strong winds and heavy rain up here have sent us snuggling into our sleeping bags to swap yarns inside Gardiner Hut. It's a good chance to give our legs some much-needed rest. We're hoping for some clear weather tomorrow.

Photo Update

Camp 2 after the first cycle leg - the boys tuck each other in for the night.

Hamish demonstrating extreme river crossing
Camp 4 in the Dobson Valley

Climbing towards Barron Saddle on Day 7

Day 10 - Rest at Gardiner Hut

We've made it safe and sound with nary a blister to Gardiner Hut, after an awesome day of crevasse travel, rock climbing and boulder hopping. Tomorrow (Monday) is a rest day as a storm is coming in. Looking forward to an attempt on Cook up the northwest ridge on Wednesday.

Our current location:

And a close-up looking roughly north-west and toward Wednesday's mission:

Walking up the Hooker

Showered and shaved, Paul (L) Hamish and Eryn about to stride off.

We bid farewell to our support crew and set off up the Hooker. Another incredible day here, with blue skies and crystal-clear views.

The boys at Transition Three

Hamish (L) Eryn and Paul preparing their kit. 

We met Adie, Liz, John and the Pringles today at Mt Cook Village for a BBQ and gear change in preparation for our assault on Mt Cook. An excellent day of relaxation and maximum meat consumption eating was had by all. Huge thanks to our cherished support crew!

Day 8 - Sealy Tarns

The team - Hamish, Paul and Eryn - at Sealy Tarns with Mount Cook behind.

Ridge up to Mueller

Eryn (L), Paul and a glorious South Canterbury day.

Had an awesome time walking up the Dobson, though had a bit of a shambles when our tent freed itself from the bindings on Paul's pack and tumbled off in search of liberty. No doubt it will be a nice treat for a lucky tramper. Luckily we have a spare - a word to our trusty support crew and we'll be kitted out with a fresh tent faster than you can say "Nice work PP."

Now down to Mt Cook village for a rest, a feed with our SC and to sort and replace gear in preparation for our third leg, the walk up the Hooker.

PP and Eryn looking up the Dobson Valley

Day 5 - New Year's, Adventure Aotearoa style

Looking northwest toward the Tasman Sea. The Hermitage Hotel is the distant yellow pointer; Lake Ohau and Lake Ruataniwha are in the foreground. Our next destination, Station Hut, is the blue pointer. Click on the image to see it large in all its Google glory.

We had an awesome day cycling around the edge of the glacial lakes marvelling at the scenery and feeling very lucky to be Kiwis. Our New Year's Eve camp site was on the edge of the

Dobson River, where we replaced the champagne, chips and dip with a celebratory dehydrated meal and a fantastic chilly swim in the glacial water. A bracing way to see in 2008.

Our campsite's setting, at the base of the Southern Alps, was an absolutely perfect place to bed down for the night.

We're now headed to Station Hut for the transition to the first part of our mountaineering section, up and over Baron Saddle to Mt Cook Village. Looking forward to catching up with our Fairlie Support Crew for some fresh food and a change of gear as we seem to have run out of clean clothes...

Day 4 - What's missing from this picture?

Hamish (L), Eryn (in spirit) and Paul enjoying a dip and a second lunch on the edge of Lake Ruataniwha.

A beautiful day's cycling and looking forward to taking a rest at tonight's camp on the shores of Lake Ohau. We may be out of reception until we reach Mt Cook Village.

Happy new year!

Looking east towards Caroline Bay and the mouth of the Waitaki.

Day 4 - The real reason for the detour...

Hamish (L) and Paul relive their favourite childhood memories in Omarama.

We arrived in Omarama in time to enjoy a lunch of salami, cheese and fruit with the proud, well-hung Merino ram. We're off to Ruataniwha and then camping for the night at Lake Ohau.

the story so far...